Theories of Family Violence

THEORIES OF FAMILY VIOLENCE
Name
Institution
Abstract
There is no particular definition that can be standardized as one which befits an explanation of what family violence is. Rather, different legislations have made attempts at providing the scope covered by domestic violence and acts that can be classified under the same. As such, family or rather as often regarded, domestic violence may be described as acts done by dominating persons in a family against other members of the family, acts which involve threats and may cause the other persons to get hurt or feel apprehensive about them. Such acts are often meant to ensure that the said members of the family act a certain way and adopt particular behavioral characteristics. The following paper highlights the control theory as one of the many theories that have been devised by learned individuals in an attempt to explain the causes of family violence. The theory will be critically analyzed and defenses for the same outlined as well as examples to show that it explains the root cause of domestic violence.
Theories of Family Violence: The control theory
As earlier stated, family violence can be defined as acts done by an individual that may be considered as the dominating member of the family; in most cases, it is the parents or the father figure, against the weaker members, mostly the children or wives CITATION Aus16 l 1033 (Commision, 2016). Such actions may at times extend to being life threatening and are geared towards ensuring that the victims are doing as expected or dictated.

Domestic violence has been in existence since time immemorial. The patriarchal system that existed in earlier centuries and still does today was rooted on the basis that men were supreme over women, that they owned them. The 19th Amendment is an example of the many changes that occurred to ensure that such notions of male supremacy were done away with. Under this system, women were seen only as objects to be transferred from one man to another with or without their consent. They had no right to have ownership of any property and only upon marriage were they able to have any form of possession of proprietary rights, which their husbands still had control over. Such notions persisted in the society for the reason that they had been inherited from one generation to another. A man was only considered as one if and when he married a woman or women and had children and most of all if he had control over their actions. Any man that was seen not to have effective control over his family was considered invalid.
As a result, a culture developed, one in which men were thought to be well within their right to punish their wives and children, to threaten them into doing their bidding. Such punishment often involved battery and assault, sometimes to the point of death. This is still the case in many families today.
The common factor when it comes to the basis of domestic violence before and now is control; making the control theory the most favorable when it comes to providing a reasoning behind the family violence. Everyone yearns for control; it has been said that power is addictive, that when one gets it, he cannot be convinced otherwise. Gaining control over a product, even worse human beings can be said to be the source of all power. Hence, having control over the family members is the basis of domestic violence and is the basis for which the control theory is argued. CITATION Mar l 1033 (Maren E. Hyde-Nolan)
The control theory provides that perpetrators of domestic violence often seek control over those on the receiving end of such violence. Such control is always for the purposes of ensuring that they are obeyed and that the victims behave a certain type of way. For example, parents often punish their children, such punishment extending to them beating the children and causing them serious harm, to either instill in them that what they did was wrong or to make sure that they do not repeat the same acts.
The ultimate effect of such acts against children is that they will think twice before they engage in any activity that is prohibited by their parents. Moreover, the acts need not be physical; they can be just threats. Upon receiving such “punishment,” the children are very unlikely to engage in the same acts that landed them into trouble with their parents and the latter can be considered as having gained control over their children.
Another example is where the man in the house wants to establish control over his wife. This may be claimed as the original form of domestic violence. In such a case, the man may threaten his wife or assault her into doing something she would otherwise not be willing to do. Sometimes it is about getting respect and fear from their wives. The fear they instill in them serves as a deterring mechanism in case of any thoughts of rebellion from their wives. As a result of such acts of violence, the women are forced to relinquish control to their husbands.
There are also instances where family violence may extend to people who are not family members. The control theory is based on the control that one family member wants to have over the others. This, however, need not be just the immediate family members; it may also include those that are not. For example, a parent may violently attack or threaten their child’s friend as a lesson to the child. What this achieves is to have the child believe that if he or she does anything outside the norm of what is expected of him, his or her child will be the one to bear the pain. Such violence may also be used to influence the friends to either stay away from the children or keep any violence the latter are facing a secret. Violence against a third party directly connected to the primary victim keeps the latter under the control of the perpetrator.
The control theory has however been seen as not applicable in some cases. For example, it has been argued that in marriages where partners are close and husbands value their wives and would not wish to lose them, instances of domestic violence are absent; because the application of power and control was is not necessary.
Understanding the primary cause of family violence serves to significantly influence the manner in which different people deal with the problem, in this case, the community. Helping the community understand the reasons as to why people engage in family violence will increase the rate of retaliation towards the same and protection of the victims as well as reduce the number of domestic violence cases.
Being unable to understand the problems can lead to them being overlooked. For instance, in a community where the act of family violence is believed to be okay will not respond positively to claims of violence being brought forwarded by the victims. On the other hand, in the event that the community understands what the cause of family violence is, there is a high chance that it will ensure that such cases do not go unpunished. Additionally, such understanding can also help as a deterrent mechanism against family violence.
In conclusion, family violence has been a problem facing the society for a long time. Understanding the root cause of it may come in handy in its eradication. The control theory is the cause of family violence. Attempts made to control family members and obtaining such control is the basis of such acts being perpetrated by other members of the society. Understanding the control theory will effectively instill in the community the knowledge of what ought to be done in the event that there are instances of family violence. Additionally, it will influence the people’s mentality in that family violence will no longer be seen as part of what is usual.
References
BIBLIOGRAPHY Commission, A. L. (2016). Definition of Family Violence. Retrieved from Australian Law Commission: http://www.alrc.gov.au/publications
Maren E. Hyde-Nolan, P. T. (n.d.). Theoretical Basis for Family Violence. Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC, 9-10.