Citation

Kennedy LW, Forde DR, Smith MD, Dutton DG. J. Fam. Violence 1991; 6(3): 303-317.

Affiliation

Department of Sociology, University of Alberta, T6G 2H4 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; Department of Sociology, York University, USA; Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, USA

Copyright

(Copyright © 1991, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/BF00980535

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Of concern to many who study criminality of all kinds is the high level of known abuse in a climate of noninvolvement by others. The research reported in this paper clearly indicates that noninvolvement in spousal assault cases is not dependent on low levels of knowledge of the problem, as many people admit to being aware of its occurrence among relatives, friends, and neighbors. This knowledge does vary, however, by location of the respondents with strong effects of nonmetropolitan residents expressing greater knowledge of the occurrence of this violence than people living in urban areas. We find this in the context of lower levels of self-reported victimization. It could be that these lower levels reflect a reluctance on the part of nonmetropolitan women to admit to researchers that they are victims of this problem. Or, it could suggest that these women have access to a more intricate network of support from friends and family who become involved in discussing this problem with the victims and helping them to reduce its incidence.