the essential guide - Texas Council on Family Violence

Understanding <strong>the</strong> Dynamics of Family ViolenceWhile <strong>the</strong>re are many different <strong>the</strong>ories as to <strong>the</strong> causes of family violence, leaders in <strong>the</strong> family violencefield, along with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Texas</strong> <strong>Council</strong> on Family Violence, believe that family violence is rooted in batterers’desire to maintain power and control over <strong>the</strong>ir partners and that it is a learned behavior.As emphasized above, family violence is a pattern of coercive, controlling behaviors that may include awide range of abusive tactics. In addition to physical and sexual abuse, batterers may use many tactics toexert power and control over a partner, including:Coercion and Threats: Includes threatening to harm ano<strong>the</strong>r person or self, to leave, to report toauthorities, to make <strong>the</strong>ir partner drop charges or force participation in illegal activities.Intimidation: Includes using looks, gestures and actions to make partner feel afraid. This may alsoinclude displaying weapons and abusing pets.Emotional Abuse: Using insults, disrespectful names, guilt or humiliation to make <strong>the</strong>ir partnersfeel bad about <strong>the</strong>mselves.Isolation: Includes controlling <strong>the</strong>ir partner’s actions and interaction with friends and family oroutside influences. Examples include: giving a curfew, restricting access to transportation,barricading inside <strong>the</strong> home and not allowing employment.Minimizing, Denying, Blaming: Includes making light of <strong>the</strong> abuse, saying <strong>the</strong> abuse did nothappen and shifting blame to <strong>the</strong> partner.Children: Using children to relay messages, threatening to take children away or threatening toreport partner to Child Protective Services (CPS).Male Privilege: Includes not allowing input into decision making, treating partner as a servantand using traditional gender roles to gain power and control in <strong>the</strong> relationship.Economic Abuse: Preventing partner from getting or keeping a job, making partner ask formoney and hiding financial information or access to <strong>the</strong> family income.Power and Control WheelA Power and Control Wheel, created by Domestic Abuse Intervention Project (DAIP), can be very helpfulin individual advocacy work as it offers survivors an opportunity to recognize and name a wide range ofabusive tactics that may have never been identified as abuse.THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE: AN INTRODUCTION TO ADVOCATING FOR SURVIVORS OF FAMILY VIOLENCE10 | P a g e