Over the last two decades, two trends have emerged that highlight the relational and communal dimensions of health and well-being. The Ottawa Charter of 1986 proposed a model of health that encompasses personal, social, and environmental well-being and emphasizes the role of communities in creating healthy living conditions. In a parallel development, battered women’s advocates identified violence against women as a major health issue, and situated effective interventions within coordinated community response strategies. Both trends point to the significance of social networks and a wide range of social and personal relationships in the promotion of women’s health and well-being.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
ACT Domestic Violence Prevention Council (1999). Claiming back community. Final report. Canberra, Australia: Commonwealth Government .
2.
Argyle, M., & Furnham, A. (1983). Sources of satisfaction and conflict in long-term relationships . Journal of Marriage and the Family, 45, 481–493 .
3.
Bagshaw, D., Chung, D., Couch, M., Lilburn, S., & Wadham, D. (1999). Reshaping responses to domestic violence. Adelaide: University of South Australia .
4.
Baumgartner, M. P. (1993). Violent networks: The origins and management of domestic conflict. In R. B. Felson & J. T. Tedeschi (Eds.), Aggression and violence(pp. 209–231). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Press .
5.
Bowker, L. H. (1993). A battered woman’s problems are social, not psychological. In R. J. Gelles & D. R. Loseke (Eds.), Current controversies on family violence(pp. 154–165). Newbury Park, CA: Sage .
6.
Bryant, C. M. (1996). Subcultural variations in the social network support of Latinos, AfricanAmericans, and Anglos: What is the association between the development of heterosexual relationships and the support of friends and family members?Doctoral dissertation, University of Texas at Austin.
7.
Bureau of Justice Statistics (1998). Violence by intimate: Analysis of data on crimes by current or former spouses, boyfriends and girlfriends(National Criminal Justice Publication No. 167237). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice .
8.
Burger, E., & Milardo, R. M. (1995). Marital interdependence and social networks . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 12, 403–415 .
9.
Campbell, J. C. (2002). Health consequences of intimate partner violence . Lancet, 359, 1331–1336 .
10.
Campbell, J. C., & Lewandowski, L. A. (1997). Mental and physical health effects of intimate partner violence on women and children . Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 20, 353–373 .
11.
Cascardi, M., Langhinrichsen, J., & Vivian, D. (1992). Marital aggression: Impact, injury and health correlates for husbands and wives . Archives of Internal Medicine, 152, 357–363 .
12.
Cavanagh, C. (1978). Battered women and social control. Unpublished master’s thesis. University of Stirling, UK.
13.
Chatzifotiou, S., & Dobash, R. (2001). Seeking informal support: Marital violence against women in Greece . Violence Against Women, 7, 1024–1050 .
14.
Choice, P., & Lamke, L. K. (1999). Stay/leave decision-making processes in abusive dating relationships . Personal Relationships, 6, 351–367 .
15.
Coker, A. L., Smith, P. H., McKeown, R. E., & King, M. J. (2000). Frequency and correlates of intimate partner violence by type: Physical, sexual, and psychological battering . American Journal of Public Health, 90, 553–559 .
16.
Counts, D. A., Brown, J. K., & Campbell, J. C. (1999). To have and to hit: Cultural perspectives on wife beating(2nd ed.). Urbana: University of Illinois Press .
17.
Dearwater, S., Coben, J. H., Nah, G., Glass, N., McLoughlin, E., & Bekemeier, B. (1998). Prevalence of intimate partner violence in community hospital emergency departments . Journal of the American Medical Association, 280, 433–438 .
18.
DeKeseredy, W. S. (1990). Woman abuse in dating relationships: The contribution of male peer support . Sociological Inquiry, 60, 236–243 .
19.
Dye, D. D., Tollivert, R. V., Lee, R. V., & Kenney, C. J. (1995). Violence, pregnancy and birth outcomes in Appalachia . Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, 9, 35–47 .
20.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (1993). Uniform Crime Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice .
21.
Fisher, B. S., Cullen, F. T., & Turner, M. G. (2000). The sexual victimization of college women. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice .
22.
Fraser, I. M., McNutt, L.-A., Clark, C., Williams-Muhammed, D., & Lee, R. (2002). Social support choices for help with abusive relationships: Perceptions of African American women . Journal of Family Violence, 17, 363–375 .
23.
Gillioz, L., de Puy, J., & Ducret, V. (1997). Domination et violence envers la femme dans le couple. Lausanne, Switzerland: Editions Payot .
24.
Godenzi, A., & Yodanis, C. (1999). Male violence: The economic costs. A methodological review. In Council of Europe (Ed.), Men and violence against women(pp. 117–127). Strasbourg: Council of Europe .
25.
Greenfield, L. A., Rand, M. R., Craven, D., Klaus, P. A., Perkins, C. A., Ringel, C., Warchol, G., Matson, C., & Fox, J. A. (1998). Violence by intimates(National Criminal Justice Publication No. 167237). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice .
26.
Grisso, J. A., Wishner, A. R., Schwarz, D. F., Weene, B. A., Holmes, J. H., & Sutton, R. L. (1991). A population-based study of injuries in inner-city women . American Journal of Epidemiology, 143, 59–68 .
27.
Hagemann-White, C. (2001). European research on the prevalence of violence against women . Violence Against Women, 7, 732–759 .
28.
Heise, L., Ellsberg, M., & Gottemoeller, M. (1999). Ending violence against women. Population Reports, Series L, No. 11. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health .
29.
Heise, L. L., Pitanguy, J., & Germain, A. (1994). Violence against women: The hidden health burden. Washington, DC : Worldbank Discussion Papers, No. 255.
30.
Heiskanen, M., & Piispa, M. (1998). Faith, hope, battering: A survey of men’s violence against women in Finland. Helsinki: Statistics Finland .
31.
Hoff, L. A. (1990). Battered women as survivors. London: Routledge .
32.
Jaspard, M., Brown, E., Condon, S., Firdion, J. M., Fougeyrollas-Schwebel, D., Lhomond, B., Maillochan, F., & Schittz, M.-A. (2001). National survey on violence against women in France (ENVEFF). Paris: Institut de dÈmographie de l’UniversitÈ de Paris I .
33.
Johnson, M. P. (1998, July). Commitment and entrapment . Paper presented at the Ninth International Conference on Personal Relationships, Saratoga Springs, NY.
34.
Kaukinen, C. (2002). The help-seeking decisions of violent crime victims . Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17, 432–456 .
35.
Kelleher and Associates (with O’Connor, M.) (1995). Making the links: Toward an integrated strategy for the elimination of violence against women in intimate relationships with men. Dublin, Ireland: Women’s Aid .
36.
Kelly, L. (1987). The continuum of sexual violence. In J. Hanmer & M. Maynard (Eds.), Women, violence and social control(pp. 46–60). London: Macmillan .
37.
Kelly, L. (1996). Tensions and possibilities: Enhancing informal responses to domestic violence. In J. L. Edleson & Z. C. Eisikovits (Eds.), Future interventions with battered women and their families(pp. 67–86). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
Kirkwood, C. (1993). Leaving abusive partners. London: Sage .
40.
Klein, R., & Milardo, R. M. (1993). Third-party influences on the management of personal relationships. In S. Duck (Ed.), Understanding relationship processes 3: Social context and relationships(pp. 55–77). Newbury Park, CA: Sage .
41.
Klein, R. C. A., & Milardo, R. M. (2000). The social context of couple conflict: Support and criticism from informal third parties . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 17, 618–637 .
42.
Koss, M. P., Goodman, L., Fitzgerald, L., Russo, N., Keita, G., & Browne, A. (1994). No safe haven: Male violence against women at home, at work, and in the community. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association .
43.
Lepowsky, M. (1993). Fruit of the motherland. New York: Columbia University Press .
44.
Levinson, D. (1989). Family violence in cross-cultural perspective. Newbury Park, CA: Sage .
45.
Lourenco, N., Lisboa, M., & Pais, E. (1997). ViolÍncia contra as mulheres. Cedernos Condic‘o Feminina 48. Lisboa, Portugal: Comiss‘o para a igualdade a para os direitos das mulheres.
46.
Lundgren, E., & Westerstrand, J. (2002, September). The omnipresence of violence in equal Sweden: The first prevalence study on men’s violence against women in Sweden . Paper invited for the 7th Interdisciplinary Conference of the European Research Network on Conflict, Gender, and Violence. Valencia, Spain.
47.
Lyons, R., Mickelson, K. D., Sullivan, M. J. L., & Coyne, J. C. (1998). Coping as a communal process . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15, 579–605 .
48.
Martinez, M., GarcÌa-Linares, M. I., & Pico-Alfonso, M. A. (2003). Women victims of domestic violence: Consequences for their health and role of the health system. In R.C.A. Klein & B. Wallner (Eds.), Conflict, gender, and violence(pp. 53–71). Vienna: Studien-Verlag .
49.
Martinez, M., GarcÌa-Linares, M. I., Pico-Alfonso, M. A., Savall-Rodriguez, F., Sanchez-Lorente, S., Celda-Navarro, N., & Blasco-Ros, C. (2002, September). Impact of physical and psychological domestic violence on women’s health: Results of a study in the Valencian Community in Spain . Paper presented at the 7th Interdisciplinary Conference of the European Research Network on Conflict, Gender, and Violence. Valencia, Spain.
50.
McCauley, J., Kern, D. E., Kolodner, K., Dill, L., Schroeder, A. F., DeChant, H. K., Ryden, J., Bass, E. B., & Derogatis, L. R. (1996). The ‘battering syndrome’: Prevalence and clinical characteristics of domestic violence in primary care internal medicine practices . Annals of Internal Medicine, 123, 737–746 .
51.
McFarlane, J., Parker, B., & Soeken, K. (1996). Abuse during pregnancy: Associations with maternal health and infant birth weight . Nursing Research, 45, 37–42 .
52.
McGibbon, A., Cooper, L., & Kelly, L. (1989). ‘What support?’: An exploratory study of council policy and practice, and local support services in the area of domestic violence within Hammersmith and Fulham. London: Hammersmith and Fulham Council, Community and Police Committee .
53.
Milardo, R. M. (1992). Comparative methods for delineating social networks . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 9, 447–461 .
54.
Milardo, R. M., & Wellman, B. (1992). The personal is social . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 9, 339–342 .
55.
Miller, T. R., Cohen, M. A., & Wiersema, B. (1996). Victim costs and consequences: A new look. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice .
56.
Mooney, J. (1994). The hidden figure: Domestic violence in North London. London: Islington Police and Crime Prevention Unit .
57.
Mullerman, R., Lenaghan, P. A., & Pakieser, R.A. (1996). Battered women: Injury locations and types . Annals of Emergency Medicine, 28, 486–492 .
58.
Non-Consensual Sex in Marriage Programme (1999). London, UK .
59.
O’Leary, K. D. (1999). Psychological abuse: A variable deserving critical attention in domestic violence . Violence and Victims, 14, 3–23 .
60.
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (1993). OECD Health Systems: Facts and trends 1960–1991. Paris: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development .
61.
Plichta, S. (1996). Violence and abuse: Implications for women’s health. In M. Falik & K. Collins (Eds.), Women’s health: The commonwealth fund survey(pp. 238–270). Baltimore: Academy Press .
62.
Plichta, S. B., & Abraham, C. (1996). Violence and gynecological health in women 50 years old . American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 174, 903–907 .
63.
Romito, P. (2000). Private violence, public complicity: The response of health and social services to battered women. In L. Sherr & J. S. St. Lawrence (Eds.), Women, health, and mind(pp. 59–74). New York: Wiley .
64.
Romito, P., Gerin, D., Crisma, M., Scattolin, P., & Vascotto, P. (1997). Donne e salute: Donne e servizio sanitario nazionale [Women and health: Women and the national health service]. Trieste, Italy: Commissione regionale per le pari opportunit‡ tra uomo e donna .
65.
R^mkens, R. (1997). Prevalence of wife abuse in the Netherlands: Combining quantitative and qualitative methods in survey research . Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 12, 99–125 .
66.
R^mkens, R., & Mastenbroek, S. (1998). Budding happiness: The relational dynamics of the abuse of girls and young women by their boyfriends. In R. Klein (Ed.), Multidisciplinary perspectives on family violence(pp. 58–75). London: Routledge .
67.
Rosen, K. H. (1996). The ties that bind women to violent premarital relationships. In D. D. Cahn & S. A. Lloyd (Eds.), Family violence from a communication perspective(pp. 151–176). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
68.
Ross, M. H. (1993). The culture of conflict: Interpretations and interests in comparative perspective. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press .
69.
RozÈe, P. D. (1993). Forbidden or forgiven? Rape in cross-cultural perspective . Psychology of Women Quarterly, 17, 499–514 .
70.
Sanday, P. R. (1981). The socio-cultural context of rape: A cross-cultural study . Journal of Social Issues, 37(4), 5–27 .
71.
Schwartz, M. D., & DeKeseredy, W. S. (1997). Sexual assault on the college campus: The role of male peer support. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
72.
Sharp, P. W., & Campbell, J. (1999). Health consequences for victims of violence in intimate relationships. In X. B. Arriaga & S. Oskamp (Eds.), Violence in intimate relationships(pp. 163–180). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
73.
Shepard, M. F., & Pence, E. L. (Eds.). (1999). Coordinating community responses to domestic violence. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
74.
Silverman, J. G., & Williamson, G. M. (1997). Social ecology and entitlements involved in battering by heterosexual college males: Contributions of family and peers . Violence and Victims, 12, 147–164 .
75.
Statistics Canada (1993). The violence against women survey. The Daily: Statistics Canada.
76.
Straus, M. A. (1986). Medical care costs of intrafamily assault and homicide . Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, 62, 556–561 .
77.
Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. (2000). Prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control .
Varvaro, F. F., & Lasko, D. L. (1993). Physical abuse as cause of injury in women: Information for orthopedic nurses . Orthopedic Nursing, 12, 37–41 .
80.
Websdale, N. (1998). Rural woman battering and the justice system. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage .
81.
Wellman, D., & Wortley, S. (1990). Different strokes from different folks: Community ties and social support . American Journal of Sociology, 96, 558–588 .
82.
West, D. L. (2001). The discursive practice of gender in talk about rape. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Iowa.
83.
Williamson, G. M., & Silverman, J. G. (2001). Violence against female partners: Direct and interactive effects of family history, communal orientation, and peer-related variables . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 18, 535–549 .
84.
Wood, J. (2001). The normalization of violence in heterosexual romantic relationships: Women’s narratives of love and violence . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 18, 239–261 .
85.
World Health Organization (1996). Investing in health research and development. TDR/Gen/96.1 WHO Ad Hoc Committee on Health Research Relating to Future Intervention Options. Geneva: World Health Organization . Available (consulted 8/12/03): http://www.who.int/about/en/
