Description of the characteristic of Whyalla Stuart using census data
Dsicuss about the Understanding The Effects Of Domestic Violence.
The aim of this paper is to discuss about the incidence and prevalence of domestic abuse and intimate partner violence that ultimately leads to partner separation and divorce. The paper begins with focusing on Whyalla Stuart 5608 South Australia that is known for its heterogeneous populations comprising of people from England, Scotland, Germany and Philippines amongst others. Although the rate of divorce and separation is not quite high in this suburban region yet there is an imperative to discuss about the veracity of domestic violence and divorce on the development of the child. The next section of the paper discusses about the contributions of Whyalla Uniting church in responding to the issues of family breakdown, dysfunctional family and violence. Finally, the paper concludes with the trials and tribulations faced by the victims of intimate partner violence and the repercussions on the child.
Whyalla Stuart is a suburban region located in the Corporation of the City of Whyalla local government situated in the southern part of Australia. According to the census data, the indigenous population in Whyalla Stuart is 516 people and it amounts to 7.6 per cent of the population. The per cent of population who belong to England is 8. 0 (536). Number of people who are from Scotland are 197 (2.6 per cent), number of people whose country of origin is Philippines is 101 that is 1.5 per cent of the population, number of people whose country of origin is Germany is 39 that is 0. 6 per cent of the population. Number of people whose country of origin is Germany is 39 that is 0.6 per cent of the population and number of people whose country of origin is 37 that is 0.6 per cent of the population. Number of people in the region who are part-time employed are 757 and that amounts to 30. 6 percent of the population and number of people who are full-time employed are 1151 people that is 46. 5 per cent of the population. The median household-income of the people is 754 AUD per week. The number of single-parent families in the region is 476 that is 28. 3 per cent of the population. Therefore, I can be stated that Whyalla Stuart region has a heterogeneous composition with people residing from all parts of the country. Secondly, the number of families with single-parent households may be small in number, however it cannot denied this have major impact on the growth of the child.
Identification and definition of divorce and separation and the impact it has on the family
The selected issue that affects the people of WhyllaStuart South Australia is the high rate of divorce and parental separation among the community. It has been found that child abuse in general has been surrounded by a myth of denial. There is large scale ignorance regarding the acceptance of child abuse as an epidemic that emerges due to the breakdown of partnership between the parents. Given that that there is limited research on the subject of child abuse and breakdown of partnership, it can be assumed why there is a continual denial of both these occurrences. It is interesting to find that most of the literature on child abuse emerges from USA given the high incidence of child abuse in the country. The discourse on child sexual abuse in India
Scholars like Bandcroft and Silverman have discussed about the phenomenon of partner separation and the impact it has on the child and the responsibility of the parent. Since separation occurs in a situation where negative feelings become dominant, the climate in which the children are brought up and supervised becomes toxic. There emerges the ethical question of whether the batterer who is also the parent should have the moral obligation to raise the child. If the batterer who is also the parent raises the child, what impact it will have on the child are also some of the issues that emerges in this context. Another question there emerges during the separation of the child from the parent where will be the residence of the child and in who will be in charge of taking primary decisions related to the child (McIntosh 2003). These primary decisions include medical care, schooling and religious education. Studies have shown that more batters compared to non-batterers seek custody of children and that is the reason of real concern for the community service providers. It is reported that battered fathers have more advantage than the battered mothers during the legal custody of the child. The stress that emerges during the phase of the legal custody often deepens and exacerbates the division within the families and intensifies the trauma of the battered mother (Butterworth, 2003). The trauma faced by the mother has implications on the child too and hinders the growth of the child. In this kind of climate, the court has to resolve the issues related to domestic violence allegations and thereby make determination on the grounds of misconception regarding the victims and the batterer rather completely relying on the investigation. Scholars have argued that visitation litigation and custody are the least explored areas of domestic violence victimization. There are situations when the battered woman have parenting problems of her own and this situation propels the child protection service to be involved in the incident, therefore adding complication to the situation especially the future of the child (Radford and Hester 2006). The involvement of the child protection service raises some pertinent issues about the mother being not safe for the child and the father steps in to take care of the child. In this situation, the question that emerges is whether the state should allow the father to take custody of the child. Critics are of the view that it is better to place the child with a battered father than a foster home where the child has no legal or emotional connection with the father. These issues need to be kept in mind whilst dealing with cases related to children in the battered homes. There can be greater intensity of problem in the battering style of the parents and this may become more resonant after the separation of partner and makes the family dysfunctional (Perry 2004). Separation from the partner has negative impact on the development of the child, as the mother tends to become irresponsible due to the trauma and emotional distress. Due to the negligence of children, the child tends to demonstrate the behavioral signs of recovery. It has been found that the batterer father is out of the place and the aggression of the mother towards the child tends to drop significantly. However, this progress in the condition of the child can escalate in situations when there is a renewed contact with the batterer father. Therefore, decisions a need to be made that concerns the well being of all and takes into account all the aspects. These issues need to be taken account by the community service provider whilst dealing with domestic violence on the family. Women who stay away from their husbands experience four times the frequency of sexual assaults, stalking and physical assaults compared to those who inhabits with the abuser. Studies have shown that when women decide to separate or at the verge of separation, they are likely to be subjected to violence (Edwards, Baxter, Smart, Sanson and Hayes 2009). They are also subjected to attempt to rape. It has been found that divorce and separation can have a deeply disturbing experience for the concerned children with both short-term and long-term repercussions for the children. Children may experience distress due to their previous exposure to domestic violence. In case of the dysfunctional family, it has been found that children are dually traumatized. There may be additional traumatic effects on the children when they are exposed to physical, sexual and psychological abuse. Children of the batterers are said to experience elevated rates of violence. The long-term issues of these children are linked to situations of their ability to heal from the dual sources of the trauma. This is further related to an environment that is conducive to emotional recovery. There are studies regarding the resilience of children in this context and it has been found that divorced children growing up in low-conflict environments are better adjusted compared to children who are growing up in an environment of high-conflict. Children need to feel a sense of emotional and physical security in their surroundings. There needs to be the establishment of the sensation and the actuality of safety (Flanagan 2011).There needs to be an indispensable step towards any process that concerns the emotional recovery of the child from trauma. This will be especially important for children who are likely to experience danger and fear. Studies have shown that domestic violence or intimate partner violence and partner separation leads to pandemonium in the home environment of the child, due to an uncertainty about what can happen at any moment. The battering clients may erupt without any warning signal as has been found in a range of studies. The disciplining of the batterer towards the children alternates between leniency and harness. The authority of the mother lies in undermining the battering (Perry 2004). Therefore, studies have shown that children need structure, predictability and limits as a counterweight to the dynamics. It has also been found that the quality of the relationship of the child with the nurturing parent has been considered and underscored by scholars as the most appropriate predictors for their thriving and their ability to recover from the parental psychopathology and marital conflict. The adjustment of the children to post-divorce is tied to the overall quality of life in the custodial home and the creation of the nurturant protective milieu. These needs have been identified for children who have experienced emotional distress, trauma and extreme level of violence due to the separation of their parents. It has been found that a strong bond of caring parent is critical for the recovery of the children. Traumatized children are required to be with the parents who are in the position to recognize witness and identify the ordeals of the child and thereby provide succour in the recovery of the child. Studies indicate that the children’s sense of security is instrumental in case of domestic violence and there is potential for resilience.
The organization that have been selected for providing the community service to the families and children affected by divorce, intimate partner violence and partner separation is Whyalla Uniting Church. The organization has built its reputation for providing family relationship advice and counseling services to families in distress. It is widely known that social support networks essay an important role in the lives of low-income women. As has been documented in the previous section, families where the battered mother has to make the tough decision to separate from the abusive partner and seek divorce as the last step their economic life is also affected (Yuen 2007). It is because not all women are economically stable and therefore require the support of their husband even if the husband is abusive. Therefore, Whyalla Uniting Church is responsible for providing incentives and welfare measures with the intention of providing emancipation to these women. In case, single mothers who have faced domestic violence and are in need of financial support are subsumed within the welfare-to-work requirements. It acts a family counseling service and collects data on families who are afflicted to domestic abuse and are at the verge of separation. The next step by them is to approach the families providing them assurance that the organization will resolve their issues. It invites the couples who are about to divorce to share their personal grievances. In case of abusive marital relationships the members of the organization provides legal support to the battered mother and looks into the welfare of the child. The child is placed under special care and the activities of the parents towards the child are monitored. After the initial assessment of the short-term and long-term challenges if it felt that the pervasion of a toxic environment would hinder the growth of the child, then child is placed in the foster home of the organization (Brown, Frederico, Hewitt and Sheehan, 2001). People in distress in other words clients can access to the organization through the contact number provided in the official website of the organization. There is 24-hour free helpline for the aggrieved parties to seek help. There are both reciprocal costs and benefits connected with the support transactions. The fees are 10 $ AUD and even lesser considering the economic position of the women seeking help. Women require much time and emotional cost whilst approaching this support. It is not that all women go through the same situation however; it highlights the potential cost that is faced by a number of single mothers who have separated from their partners. Women from the low-income group have to bear the onerous burden, as they have to draw on profound social support to manage their welfare-to-work transition. Once a domestic abuse victim reports about their problem, they can contact the toll free number to register about their exact problem. On registering the client (domestic abuse victims) are provided with a token number that also contains the date and time for counseling. This is indicative of the waiting list. Usually Whylla Uniting Church do not have the provision of waiting list as it believes the clients should have access to their service without much delay considering the veracity of social epidemic. Whylla Uniting Church do not require any referral to reach out the service as it si accessible for all without any discrimination. The operating hours for the service is 24 hours and for all the seven days in the week. The organization provides bus service to all the clients to ease their transportation problem.
The Family legal system in Australia is different from the structure of UK. The family court in Australia is structurally specialized court and philosophically there are convergences and divergences with the court in England. However, the major difference between the these two courts is the difference between the family law system and the child welfare system. In Australia, the child welfare system is a state system and there is an agreed-on protocol between the state services and the federal. The protocols provide the priority to child protection services that is in relation to the contact dispute and residence. There is a myth about child abuse and parental separation that these allegations are false. There have reports stating that 30 per cent of allegations are false. However as it has been found that 70 per cent of the cases of allegations are actually true (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2012). This report has been substantiated by the child protection services and nothing was said about the allegations. In case of partnership breakdown among the married couple, it has been seen that there is a child who is affected due to the conflict (Bromfield, Lamont, Parker and Horsfall 2010.). There is a myth existing in the society those women makes false allegations of child abuse and intimate partner violence. There also myths that men are easily sourced and it implies the defence of women. There is a generalized understanding that men are perpetrators and women are victims. This arises from the patriarchal understanding of the situation where the women are considered to be weak and subservient and therefore, there s an understanding that they lack agency.
Another myth that pervades in the society is that women do not perpetrate sexual abuse on their own children. However, studies have shown that only 9 per cent of the allegations are false (Cook 2012) . Abuse as has been defined by scholars is emotional, sexual and physical and it underscores on the failure to protect and exposure to violence. Abuse is a criminal act. It has been found that family violence or intimate partner violence is one of the important causes of partnership breakdown. Partner to partner violence includes male controlling behaviour, male battering or battering of the spouse and abuse inflicted on the child. In a patriarchal society, men are considered to manifest aggressive behaviour whereas women are expected to play the subservient and docile role. As a result of this there sit eh normalization of the culture of violence perpetrated against women as a demonstration of masculine behaviour. Women are expected to bear with such behaviour from their partners. However when a woman decides to break the silence over domestic abuse and break away from the relationship she is faced with stigma (Baker, Jaffe and Moore 2001). Single mothers are stigmatized in the society and if they are not economically stable, their ordeals become deeper. In this context, it can be said that despite community support to provide succour to couples in distressful relationships and support provided Whyalla Uniting Church to the welfare of the single mothers, the challenges and ordeals of battered women does not become less. Violence against women and children is instrumental in affecting the population in Australia. The National Council of Single Mothers and their Children’s (NCSMC) has identified that their seventy to eighty per cent of the clients have been survivors of domestic abuse.
Some of the additional problems faced by these women are homelessness, poverty, refraining contact with children during the phase of abuse, development of behavioural problem in the children that emerges due to stigma and violence in the larger society. Single parents who have experienced separation have to bear a series of negative outcomes that are associated with single parenting. Single mothers become a public spectacle and are easy scapegoat for public lamentations due to the breakdown of family and an assault on the family values (Edwards, Baxter, Smart, Sanson and Hayes, 2009). It has been found that if the child do not turn out be disciplined and obedient, it is the mother who is blamed for not being able to fulfil her parental duties in the right manner. It is important to be serious about minimizing the incidence of domestic violence that leads to the separation of the partner and enforcing appropriate law to punish the culprits.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be stated that the culture of patriarchy normalizes aggressive behaviour and violence against women. It is domestic violence that forces couples to stay away from each other. It has been found that children growing up in these kind of abusive environment are the worst sufferers and therefore, community support is required both for the battered mother as well as the child to recover form the emotional distress and trauma. In this light, Whyalla Uniting Church is doing an exemplary job through the identification ad provision of the problems to this epidemic in Whyalla Stuart.
References
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2012. Child protection Australia 2010-11 (No. 53). AIHW.
Baker, L.L., Jaffe, P. and Moore, K.J., 2001. Understanding the effects of domestic violence: A handbook for early childhood educators. Centre for Children and Families in the Justice System, London Family Court Clinic.
Bromfield, L.M., Lamont, A., Parker, R. and Horsfall, B., 2010. Issues for the safety and wellbeing of children in families with multiple and complex problems.
Brown, T., Frederico, M., Hewitt, L. and Sheehan, R., 2001. The child abuse and divorce myth. Child Abuse Review, 10(2), pp.113-124.
Butterworth, P., 2003. Multiple and severe disadvantage among lone mothers receiving income support. Family Matters, (64), p.22.
Cook, K.E., 2012. Social support in single parents’ transition from welfare to work: Analysis of qualitative findings. International Journal of Social Welfare, 21(4), pp.338-350.
Edwards, B., Baxter, J., Smart, D., Sanson, A. and Hayes, A., 2009. Financial disadvantage and children’s school readiness. Family Matters, (83), p.23.
Flanagan, J., 2011. The price of poverty: the cost of living for.
McIntosh, J., 2003. Enduring conflict in parental separation: Pathways of impact on child development. Journal of Family Studies, 9(1), pp.63-80.
Perry, B., 2004. Principles of working with traumatized children. Available [accessed September 2004]: https://www. trauma-pages. com/perrykid. htm.
Radford, L. and Hester, M., 2006. Mothering through domestic violence. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Yuen, A., 2007. Discovering children’s responses to trauma: A response-based narrative practice. International Journal of Narrative Therapy & Community Work, 2007(4), p.3.
Order an Essay Now & Get These Features For Free:
Turnitin Report
Formatting
Title Page
Citation
Outline
