Justification, Perception of Severity and Harm, and Criminalization of Wife Abuse in the Palestinian Society

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of Palestinian adults toward different dimensions of wife abuse. A cross-sectional survey, using a combination of self-administered questionnaires and interviews, was conducted among a systematic random sample of 624 adult Palestinian men and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of interpersonal violence 2012-07, Vol.27 (10), p.1932-1958
Main Authors: Haj-Yahia, Muhammad M., Wilson, Rula M., Naqvi, Syed Agha M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Age
Aged
Arabs
Banking
Battered Women - legislation & jurisprudence
Crime
Criminal Law
Criminalization
Criminology
Domestic violence
Family Violence
Female
Females
Foreign Countries
Gender Differences
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Husbands
Israel
Male
Marital Status
Middle Aged
Middle East
Palestine
Palestinian people
Palestinians
Perceptions
Place of Residence
Polls & surveys
Predictor Variables
Residence
Role
Sex
Sex Role
Sexual Abuse
Spouses
Surveys and Questionnaires
Trauma Severity Indices
Weapons
Young Adult
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of Palestinian adults toward different dimensions of wife abuse. A cross-sectional survey, using a combination of self-administered questionnaires and interviews, was conducted among a systematic random sample of 624 adult Palestinian men and women from the West Bank and Gaza Strip (18 years or older). Study results indicated a strong tendency to justify wife beating in different situations, such as when the wife is perceived as having an affair with another man or as physically attacking her husband. Participants considered the following acts of husband’s violence against wife as most severe: using a weapon (86%), having sex with the wife against her will (67%), and hitting her with his fist (57%). The majority of participants thought that wife beating should be considered a crime (82.3%). Traditional marital role expectations was the main significant predictor for all of the study criterion variables. Gender, place of residence, age, and marital status were significant predictors of some of the criterion variables.
ISSN:0886-2605
1552-6518
DOI:10.1177/0886260511431433