Sage Publishing Family Violence in the United States: Defining, Understanding, and Combating Abuse

Family aggression - whether in form of physical violence or verbal abuse - has touched most of us in our lifetime. Most of us have witnessed it, experienced it, or used it at one point or another. In order for us to eliminate aggressive and abusive behaviors from relationships, we must be willing to confront our own experiences with these behaviors. Family Violence in the United States examines all types of family aggression. The book is designed to provoke readers into questioning assumptions, evaluating information, formulating hypotheses, and designing solutions to problems of family violence in the United States. Using an ecological framework, authors Denise A. Hines and Kathleen Malley-Morrison provide a thought-provoking and informative discussion not only of the most well-recognized forms of maltreatment in families, but also of less understood and more controversial issues such as husband abuse, parent abuse, and gay/lesbian abuse. Key Features: - Includes full chapters on husband abuse and abuse in gay/lesbian relationships - topics scarcely covered in other texts - Discusses "hidden forms" of family violence including wife rape, sibling abuse, parent abuse, and abuse of people with disabilities - Uses real case studies to illustrate the concepts discussed and to provoke readers to think critically about issues in family violence - Provides thought-provoking questions throughout the text to prompt readers to evaluate their own and others’ notions of abuse and maltreatment - Incorporates "Special Issues" sections to highlight new, and sometimes controversial, aspects of family violence - Includes summary sections at the end of each chapter to serve as a useful study aid for students - Concludes with a discussion of how we, as a society, are currently responding to the problem of family violence in the United States. Rich in scholarly references and case materials, Family Violence in the United States is suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses on family violence in the fields of Family Studies, Sociology, Social Work, Women’s Studies, Criminal Justice, Psychology, Counselling, and Nursing.