DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LIKELY MORE FREQUENT FOR SAME SEX COUPLES
Domestic violence
occurs at least as frequently, and likely even more so, between same-sex
couples compared to opposite-sex couples, according to a review of literature
by Northwestern Medicine scientists.
"Evidence
suggests that the minority stress model may explain these high prevalence
rates," said senior author Richard Carroll, associate professor in
psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School
of Medicine and a psychologist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
"Domestic violence is exacerbated because same-sex couples are dealing
with the additional stress of being a sexual minority. This leads to reluctance
to address domestic violence issues."
The review was
published Sept. 4 in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy. The
first author is Colleen Stiles-Shields, a student in the clinical psychology
Ph.D. program at Feinberg.
Domestic violence --
sometimes called intimate partner violence -- is physical, sexual or
psychological harm occurring between current or former intimate partners.
Research concerning the issue began in the 1970s in response to the women's
movement, but traditionally studies focused on women abused by men in
opposite-sex relationships.
"There has been a
lot of research on domestic violence but it hasn't looked as carefully at the
subgroup of same-sex couples," Carroll said. "Another obstacle is
getting the appropriate samples because of the stigma that has been attached to
sexual orientation. In the past, individuals were reluctant to talk about
it."
Of the research that
has examined same-sex domestic violence, most has concentrated on lesbians
rather than gay men and bisexuals.
"Men may not want
to see themselves as the victim, to present themselves as un-masculine and
unable to defend themselves," Carroll said.
He suggests that
homosexual men and women may not report domestic violence for fear of
discrimination and being blamed for abuse from a partner. They also may worry
about their sexual orientation being revealed before they're comfortable with
it.
Mental health services
for people involved in abusive same-sex relationships are becoming more common,
but this population still faces obstacles in accessing help, reports the paper.
"We need to
educate health care providers about the presence of this problem and remind
them to assess for it in homosexual relationships, just as they would for
heterosexual patients," Carroll said. "The hope is that with
increasingly deeper acceptance, the stress and stigma will disappear for these
individuals so they can get the help they need."
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