Christian Women’s Experiences of Domestic Violence in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This study investigated Zimbabwean Christian women who had experienced domestic violence with a view to finding out the forms of violence these women experienced at the hands of their male intimate partners. The qualitative investigation was informed by the feminist paradigm. Data were collected, by means of in-depth semistructured interviews, from 22 Christian women who were purposefully selected. The women were aged 18 and above and stayed in and around urban Masvingo, Zimbabwe. Data were analyzed thematically. The study revealed diverse but interrelated forms of domestic violence, namely, physical, verbal/emotional, sexual, and economic. Knowledge of forms of domestic violence could assist social workers to come up with relevant intervention strategies to curb domestic violence. Further research going beyond the scope of the current one would enrich an understanding of domestic violence in the form of intimate partner violence.

Keywords

abused Christian women domestic violence Zimbabwean Domestic Violence Act

This article presents findings on a study on domestic violence as experienced by Christian Shona women at the hands of their husbands or male intimate partners. The study was conducted from a feminist perspective wherein domestic violence against women was attributed to male dominance (patriarchy).

Since the enactment of the Domestic Violence Act (Zimbabwe, 2006) was prompted by an escalation in cases of domestic violence in Zimbabwe, it was of interest to find out whether and in what ways Christian women married to Christian men experienced domestic violence perpetrated by their spouses. In addition, the generally held assumption that Christian homes are places of safety stimulated the investigation, the rationale being to find out whether this was indeed the reality on the ground as far as the Masvingo Christian community was concerned.

In this article, the terms domestic violence, wife abuse, intimate partner violence, and spousal abuse are used interchangeably. Furthermore, the terms are considered gender specific where the man is the perpetrator and the woman is the victim or the abused, notwithstanding the fact that domestic violence may include female to male, male to male, and female to female abuse.

Literature Review

The world today is marked by violence that comes in different forms. The concept of violence relates to a range of coercive behaviors aimed at controlling a victim and includes physical, sexual, emotional, and economic abuse (Nawaz, Nawaz, & Majeed, 2008; Takyi & Mann, 2006).

One of the most common forms of violence is domestic violence, which includes the chronic abuse of women by their husbands or their intimate male partners. While men can also fall victim at the hands of their female intimate partners, domestic violence is in most cases perpetrated by men (Ellison, Trinitapoli, Anderson, & Johnson, 2007; Nawaz et al., 2008; Shaw & Lee, 2009; Townsend, 2008; Tracy, 2007; Yigzaw, Berhane, Deyessa, & Kaba, 2010). Domestic violence is often used to dominate and maintain control over women within the context of intimate relationships (Clowes, Sandy, & Ratele, 2010; Nawaz et al., 2008).

Domestic violence, which is both a social and a health problem, is pervasive and occurs across the world cutting across all divisions of class, race, religion, age, ethnicity, and geographical region (Allen & Wozniak, 2011; Golubski, 2012; Hove & Gwazane, 2011; Maluleke & Nadar, 2002; McCloskey, Williams, & Larsen, 2005; Nawaz et al., 2008; Shaw & Lee, 2009; Tracy, 2006; Yigzaw et al., 2010). Although the forms of violence and intensity of violence may vary from context to context, no society can claim to be free from domestic violence (Gnanadason, 2012).

Domestic violence is also no stranger to families of faith as attested by many studies on the interface between domestic violence and religion (e.g., Amenga-Etego, 2006; Gonzalez, 2010; Knickmeyer, 2004; Levitt & Ware, 2006; Nason-Clark, 2009; Phiri, 2001, 2002; Richardson, 2007; Sharp, 2011; Sisselman, 2009).

An escalation in cases of domestic violence in Zimbabwe gave rise to the enactment of the Domestic Violence Act in 2006. Thus, the promulgation of the Domestic Violence Act in Zimbabwe is evidence that domestic violence is widespread in Zimbabwe. The Act was a major accomplishment that acknowledged the seriousness of violence, mainly perpetrated by men, against women in Zimbabwe. The Act was meant to protect people in abusive relationships or abusive domestic situations. However, in spite of the enactment of the Domestic Violence Act in Zimbabwe, domestic violence is still a cause for concern in Zimbabwe (Chuma & Chazovachii, 2012; Hove & Gwazane, 2011).

Although today there is a plethora of literature and research on domestic violence, particularly intimate partner violence, there is limited literature on domestic violence among Christians in Zimbabwe. This dearth of research on domestic violence among Christians creates a gap in the body of knowledge. This study contributes to the body of knowledge on Christian women’s experiences of domestic violence.

The study sought to find out the forms of domestic violence experienced by Christian women in Zimbabwe. The study sought to answer the following main research question: What are the forms of domestic violence experienced by Christian women in Zimbabwe? It was part of a larger study that focused on the extent to which domestically abused Zimbabwean Christian and Muslim women took advantage of the Zimbabwean Domestic Violence Act (Chireshe, 2012).

Theoretical Framework

The study was informed by the feminist perspective. Feminist research explores realities and experiences of women (Townsend, 2008). To the extent that this study investigated women who were or had been victims of domestic violence, it is at heart a feminist project.

There are diverse feminist perspectives which include radical, liberal, and Marxist/socialist perspectives. However, for the purpose of this study, the feminist perspective was based on the common conviction that cuts across the various perspectives, that is, a commitment to investigating the experiences of women in society and to try to view the world from the perspective of women. The feminist approach afforded women a safe realm within which to tell their stories and in so doing validated and empowered them. The feminist perspective entails a critique of patriarchy. Patriarchy is the institutionalization of men’s power over women within economical, religious, social, political, and marital relations (Rotunda, Williamson, & Penfold, 2004).

The feminist model is critical in explaining violence against women which is at the heart of this study. Violence against women, in this case domestic violence, is a matter of male power over women (Townsend, 2008; Tsanga, 1999). The “control-over component” gives patriarchy a propensity to violence (Tracy, 2007, p. 282). While women are also initiators of domestic violence, gender parity is nonexistent when it comes to violence (Ellison et al., 2007; Tracy, 2007). According to feminist theory, patriarchy is the ultimate cause, the key construct which ultimately leads to violence against women (Tracy, 2007). As such, from a feminist perspective, violence against women is a critical tool in the maintenance of male hegemony. The feminist perspective on female subservience and patriarchy provided an appropriate framework for studying women’s experiences of domestic violence.

Method

A qualitative design, informed by feminist theory and employing semistructured interviews, was used to collect information on experiences of domestic violence from 22 participants. Since the qualitative design is based on an exploration of people’s lived experiences and how they make sense of such experiences (Corbin & Strauss, 2008; Heppner, Wampold, & Kivlighan, 2007), the qualitative method was used for this study in order to extract an individual account from each participant by listening to stories of their experiences of domestic violence. As such, this study investigated domestic violence as it was experienced by specific individuals.

Twenty-two Christian women, 18 years or older, who were or had been in intimate heterosexual relationships with partners who abused them physically or otherwise, participated in the study. They all belonged to the Shona ethnic group, the largest indigenous ethnic group in Zimbabwe, and resided in and around Masvingo City, Zimbabwe. The participants were purposefully selected. Purposeful sampling involves choosing participants who have the right information for the study (Neuman, 2006). In this study, women who had experienced domestic violence were selected with the assistance of their relatives and leaders of Christian women’s fellowship groupings to which they belonged. In addition, some participants assisted with the identification of their peers who had also fallen victim to domestic violence, thus snowballing. In snowball sampling, “Researchers identify a small number of individuals who have the characteristics in which they are interested” (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2001, p. 104). These individuals identify, to the researcher, other prospective participants, and these, in turn, identify yet others.

Since in-depth semistructured interviews are an effective means of gathering data on people’s experiences (Aspers, 2009; Denzin & Lincoln, 2000), they were used to collect qualitative data on Christian women’s experiences of domestic violence. An expert on the subject of domestic violence was asked to check on the relevance of the items on the interview guide.

Participation was voluntary because, as Heppner, Wampold, and Kivlighan (2007) advise, the dignity and welfare of participants is central in all research endeavors. Due to the sensitivity and potential danger of participating in the study, the selected participants were assured of their anonymity. Each participant was asked to sign a consent form after understanding the specifications of the study as articulated on the consent form.

Interviews were conducted at different venues, that is, the participants’ homes, the researcher’s home, and the researcher’s office at work. The interviews were directed by the interview guide but flexibility was allowed. Most of the interviews were audio-recorded and lasted an average of 1 hr.

Thematic content analysis was adopted. It is a method appropriate for analyzing qualitative data (Schutt & Chambliss, 2006). After completing all 22 interviews, the transcribed data were analyzed, using tables to summarize all the information on each of the different issues that formed the focus of the interviews. Important categories in the data were identified.

Results

The study revealed that domestic violence commenced at different stages of the marriage relationship, but most cases of domestic violence started within the early years of marriage. Domestic violence, as experienced by participants, assumed a variety of forms including physical (beating), psychological/emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and economic abuse. Physical abuse, manifesting in the form of beating, was often associated with other forms of abuse. The experiences of domestic violence are discussed in terms of the forms of the violence participants experienced.

Control

Control, which Nadar and Potgieter (2010, p. 148) refer to as “the epitome of masculinity,” was central to the experiences of domestic violence. Control manifested in the form of isolation, curtailing mobility, behavior prescriptions, and controlling money.

Isolation

Abusive partners isolated their spouses from relatives and friends. Being cutoff from social networks emerged as a matter of great concern for the participants. For example, one participant said her husband did not allow her to visit her relatives often and that he did not allow her to have friends. As a result of the isolation from her relatives, the participant had this to say, “I feel like someone living in a cage.”

Participants indicated that they needed to continue interacting with their natal kin after marriage, an indicator of the need to belong, given that Shona women are considered aliens (vatorwa) in the families into which they are married.

Curtailing mobility

Control was also manifested through curtailing movement. In this case, the partners closely monitored their wives’ movements to ensure that they only went where they (abusive partners) allowed them to go. It emerged that for most participants, movement from the home was controlled by their spouses to the extent that they had to seek for permission from their husbands if they wanted to go somewhere. Even some employed women reported that they were subjected to such kind of control. In this connection, one participant said, “My husband does not allow me to visit my relatives without his company”. Another said, “My husband does not allow me to leave the home without his consent and knowledge. He always reminds me that my duty is to be at home.”

Behavior prescriptions

It emerged that participants were subjected to behavior prescriptions by their abusive husbands. Three participants revealed that their husbands prescribed how they ought to relate to in-laws and other people including neighbors. Beatings or verbal assaults often followed what was perceived to be noncompliance by abusive partners. One participant had this to say “My husband sometimes beats me up for allegedly not treating his mother with respect.”

Controlling money

Control over money (to be discussed at length later in the article) emerged as a form of violence, with some husbands exercising strict control over finances. One participant’s statement, “My husband treats me like a child,” epitomizes the controlling behavior exhibited by abusive partners.

Extramarital Affairs

Eight participants indicated that it was within a year of their marriages that they realized that their husbands were being unfaithful. This was despite the fact that the couples were married in church and that their husbands professed a belief in monogamy and faithfulness to their wives until death.

These participants expressed that infidelity was the basis of the violence they experienced. They reported that when their spouses engaged in extramarital affairs (condemned in Christianity), they (the participants) noticed that the warmth in the marriage relationship dwindled and there was a significant drop in the level of economic support, given by the spouses. When the women questioned their husbands about their extramarital affairs, this resulted in domestic violence in the form of physical and verbal assault. One participant reported “My husband would not tolerate my questioning, asserting his right to do whatever he wants as a man. Beatings and name-calling followed my questioning.” For complaining about their husbands’ extramarital affairs, the women in the study were seen (by their abusive husbands) as challenging their authority and entitlements.

Two participants reported that the women with whom their husbands had extramarital affairs had used some form of witchcraft (muti) to attract them (their spouses). Belief in the power of occult medicines to attract lovers is common among the Shona.

Most of the participants experiencing infidelity-related violence attributed the violence to their husbands’ own mischief and not some spiritual or supernatural causes. They felt cheated by their husbands who had promised to cherish them for life. They reported that although their husbands were baptized in the church and occasionally attended church services, they were being hypocritical. These participants did not see any external forces at work but put the blame squarely on their husbands who had failed to live up to their marriage vows; to be faithful to one partner till death.

Three of the eight participants whose husbands’ violence was related to extramarital affairs revealed that they were no longer enjoying their conjugal rights because their spouses got sexual satisfaction elsewhere.

Risk of contracting HIV and AIDS

Extramarital affairs not only resulted in domestic violence but also carried the threat of contracting sexually transmitted infections including HIV and AIDS. Two participants revealed that they had contracted HIV as a result of their husbands’ infidelity. One of the participants had this to say “It is not easy to deny your husband sex even if you feel strongly that sometimes this is risky … I have contracted HIV through my husband.” Another participant also recounted how she had contracted HIV through her promiscuous husband. Fear of violence came out as a constraint to the participants’ ability to negotiate condom use or to refuse to have sex with their partners. Furthermore, roora ¹ (bridewealth), to be discussed at length in a later section, also contributed to women’s powerlessness in sexual matters. Roora gives the husband unlimited access to his wife’s sexual services.

Accusation of Infidelity

Three participants revealed that the violence they experienced was triggered by unfounded suspicion on the part of their husbands that they (the participants) were having extramarital affairs. All three said this was a result of their spouses’ relatives who falsely informed their husbands that they were cheating on them. The following statement by one participant illustrates this:

My husband said he had been reliably informed by his brother who was a teacher at the school where I was teaching that I was in love with a fellow Grade 3 teacher. I tried to convince him that this was not true but he would not listen to me.

Denial of support for children born during the period of tension

Of the three participants who indicated that they were falsely accused of infidelity, one participant fell pregnant during the period of tension and the husband denied responsibility for the pregnancy alleging that the pregnancy was from her extramarital affair. Even after the birth of the child, the husband did not change his mind. He refused to economically support the child. The abuse was thus extended to the child who was considered illegitimate, as belonging to another man. The participant in question reported that to add insult to the injury, the husband called the child by the name of the man he believed was having an extramarital affair with her. She thus reported “My husband did not like the child from the time of pregnancy because he was saying he was not the father. He said he was not bound to support the child.”

Accusation of bringing AIDS into the marriage

One of the three participants, who reported that they were falsely accused of infidelity, reported that she was verbally abused by her husband who accused her of bringing AIDS into the family. Her husband’s sister added to the insult by saying, “We know that AIDS is brought into the family by the husband and not by the wife. What you have done is beyond imagination.”

Another participant, whose experience of domestic violence was linked to accusations of infidelity, explained that her husband suspected that she was in love with a cross border driver, an accusation that she vehemently rejected but to no avail. She was eventually evicted from the matrimonial home by her husband who was assisted by his relatives. She narrated her ordeal thus:

I used to go to South Africa (Musina) to do some shopping without having any problems with my husband. It all started when my husband’s uncle, who was a cross border trader, lied to my husband that I had a love affair with a certain man based in Beitbridge. The man was said to assist me with the ferrying of goods from Musina to Beitbridge Border Post.

Roora (lobola)-Related Abuse

Six participants indicated that their abuse was closely related to the custom of roora which caused their husbands to feel that they were superior to them and owned them. Roora validates a marriage such that where it has not been paid to the woman’s family, society does not recognize the union as a marriage. It was traditionally viewed as an expression of gratitude by the bridegroom’s family to the bride’s family. While roora or bridewealth gives status to both men and women in traditional marriages, the custom is often abused to give the husband and his family a sense of ownership of the wife. Coupled with patriarchal attitudes, roora has become the basis of oppression of women by men (Chireshe & Chireshe, 2010; Townsend, 2008). Findings of this study testify to this. One participant reported:

My husband does not consider my opinion in most cases. When I try to reason with him that we need to discuss issues and arrive at decisions together, he would not have anything of that, citing his payment of roora as having given him the right to make decisions on my behalf.

In a similar vein, another participant said:

When we were still dating we had such an understanding that I believed my marriage to this man was going to be enjoyable. Our relationship changed the moment he paid roora to my father. Paying roora gave him a sense of possession. His words soon after roora payment were, “Know that you are now married and that I am the head”. Ever since, our relationship has been one of a leader and his follower. Sometimes I regret why I got married to this man because to say the truth I have no voice in the marriage.

Participants in this study were very concerned about the payment of roora which, they alleged, contributed to their vulnerability in marriage. They reported that their husbands felt that they owned them and so perceived them as property and not as partners. In this case, roora, which traditionally joined families as a unity enhancer, emerged as a factor that powered male possessiveness and disempowered women, a “visa” to wife’s abuse. The following statement by one of the participants illustrates this disempowering nature of roora:

Whenever we have a disagreement, my husband always says, “You must bear in mind that I paid roora for you” meaning that I should always agree with him because I am a kind of property to him because he paid roora to my parents.

The issue of neglect of wives’ relatives on the grounds of payment of roora also emerged as a matter of concern for some participants. One participant had this to say:

Whenever I ask my husband to financially assist my parents and other close relatives, he reminds me, “Your parents overcharged roora and therefore they have had enough from me. You can’t give them anything because you have no money.” Although I am employed, my husband makes it difficult for me to support my relatives because he controls my salary.

Economic Abuse

The following subheadings were subcategories that emerged from economic abuse.

Stringent control of family economic resources

A substantial number of participants indicated that they suffered economic abuse in the form of the stringent control of finances. What emerged from the study was that some participants were denied the freedom to make decisions on usage of funds although they were employed and contributed significantly to family income. In this connection, one participant said:

I am like a servant when it comes to decision-making on money matters. My husband does not listen to my opinion on how we should use money but makes decisions on his own, often resulting in allocating limited financial resources for family use.

Lack of support for the family

Four participants reported that their husbands neglected them financially and rarely settled bills such as water and electricity, putting their families in difficult situations. Of these, two were employed women who reported that their husbands were unconcerned about the dire financial strains of their families. The two participants explained that they had to use their meagre resources to finance their families. One of the participants had this to say:

To ask for money from my husband is like inviting trouble for myself. He would utter such bad words that I will have to think twice before approaching him for financial support. He does not beat me up but sometimes his words are more painful than beating. He provides when he wants to, otherwise I use my meagre salary.

Discussion

Results suggest that the participants experienced various forms of abuse and that these abuses were triggered by different factors all having to do with male dominance. Regardless of what form it assumed, domestic violence emerged as a tool in the hands of abusive husbands to ensure conformity on the part of their wives. As Moore (2008, p.778) suggests, “…men commit violence against women because they want to dominate and control women.”

It is necessary to take into consideration the interrelatedness of culture and religion in exploring the patriarchal roots of domestic violence. The study revealed that the women’s experiences of domestic violence were shaped by both culture and religion. Both religion and culture support male dominance which is conducive to violence against women. In Christianity, male dominance is sanctioned by biblical texts such as Ephesians 5:22–24 and Colossians 3:18–19 which admonish wives to submit to their husbands in everything. African cultural practices such as payment of roora render women vulnerable to abuse because they give a sense of ownership to the man. In Shona traditional culture, as in Christianity, male headship is axiomatic. Men are dominant and are the heads of families. They are the managers of women. Women have a subservient position and as such they are expected to obey their husbands. Since female subordination is rooted in cultural regulations and divine decrees, when they (women) fail to submit as expected, they find themselves vulnerable to domestic violence, a scenario that emerged from the present study. In view of findings of this study, one is tempted to agree with Maluleke and Nadar (2002, p. 14) who describe the relationship between religion, culture, and gender socialization as “the unholy alliance,” since these lay a fertile ground for domestic violence against women.

Domestic violence was linked to the desire to control. In this connection, domestic violence served as a mechanism by which abusive men ensured conformity on the part of their partners. Control suggests that abusive partners largely perceived their wives as inferior, as possessions that required monitoring.

The excessive control that participants experienced made them feel trapped in their marriages which they viewed as some kind of mini-prisons. The abuse robbed them of a voice in their marriages as well as a support system. This effectively trapped participants in a cycle of violence.

When one is cutoff from social networks, one is left with no support base such that in the face of domestic violence the individual has limited support, something that would ensure the abuser maintains control. The use of isolation to prevent wives from seeing friends and relatives is a control mechanism. Having been cutoff from their social networks, participants in this study became what Mesatywa (2009, p. 58) refers to as “hostages in their own homes”; without social support. Denying someone freedom of association is therefore denying the individual the power to seek assistance in the face of abuse and ultimately depriving the individual concerned of the capacity to leave an abusive situation (Ellece, 2011). That abusive men isolate their spouses in a bid to ensure that they assert their control came out in other studies as well (Amenga-Etego, 2006; Mabena, 2002; Maluleke & Nadar, 2002; Mesatywa, 2009; Ogland, 2011).

Curtailing the mobility of their spouses was one way in which abusive partners kept their wives under surveillance and isolated them from information, support, and advice. Controlling mobility is a form of domestic abuse which is alienating (Mabena, 2002). It suggests that perpetrators of domestic violence have what Prinsloo (2007, p. 18) describes as “the power to define and confine.”

The finding that abusive partners prescribe the behavior of their victims concurs with findings obtained in other studies (e.g., Ellece, 2011; Gnanadason, 2012; Knickmeyer, 2004; Mesatywa, 2009). Controlling behaviors, exhibited by abusive partners, also resonate with Goldman’s claim (as cited in Shaw & Lee, 2009, p. 396) that “The home can have more solid doors and bars than a prison.” Thus, instead of being a source of love, comfort, and support, the home becomes a prison as a result of domestic violence.

By subjecting their wives to violence when they challenged them about their extramarital affairs, the men expected their wives to accept their promiscuity although Christianity condemns adultery on the part of both husband and wife. It might be expected that men professing Christianity would make their affairs very secretive (knowing the faith they profess is against adultery but calls for marital fidelity) and would even be remorseful when their wives asked them about this. Far from this, participants revealed that they were victims of beatings or verbal abuse when they complained about their husbands’ extramarital affairs. The behavior of the participants’ spouses seems to suggest a masculinity that celebrates sexual promiscuity as a marker of manliness. In the light of this, Clowes, Sandy, and Ratele’s (2010, p. 15) contention that “men are violent when their masculinity is threatened” seems tenable.

When some participants alleged that their husbands engaged in extramarital affairs because they had been bewitched by the women with whom they engaged in the extramarital affairs, they were subscribing to a belief in witchcraft. The belief in witchcraft is prevalent among the Shona people of Zimbabwe. It is not uncommon to hear people explaining human behavior in terms of the influence of witchcraft. It is often believed that when a man engages in an extramarital affair to the extent that he abandons his wife and children, the woman in the extramarital affair would have used some form of witchcraft (muti) to turn the man’s heart away from his family. When a husband denies his wife conjugal rights owing to his engagement in extramarital affairs, the sexual deprivation may also be understood in terms of emotional abuse. Among the Shona, there is a statement often made by wives whose husbands deny them sex, “Handina kuvinga sadza pano” (Shona, literally translated as, “I did not come here for food,” particularly sadza which is the staple food of the Shona people of Zimbabwe). The implication is that what motivates an individual to enter into marriage is the need for sexual intimacy, rather than food.

It can be noted that participants who experienced violence related to extramarital affairs were not only victims of physical and emotional abuse, they were also victims of economic abuse, since available financial resources were being channeled to girlfriends, leaving them economically deprived.

Although each of the eight women experiencing infidelity-related violence was, in principle, in a monogamous union, the picture that emerges from the study is that formal monogamy was practiced alongside “backdoor” polygamy. This resonates with Suda’s (1996, p. 79) assertion that, while polygamy is becoming less fashionable, monogamy is practiced alongside “clandestine polygamy according to which men keep mistresses whom they support, sometimes lavishly.” This often results in dwindling financial support for the family.

A common thread that runs through all the cases of domestic violence related to extramarital affairs is that participants did not tolerate infidelity on the part of their husbands and that their husbands were not remorseful about their extramarital affairs. These results are consistent with Suda’s (1996, p. 78) assertion that men’s infidelity, which was “traditionally accepted as a masculine trait, is no longer strongly upheld in many modern African marriages, especially by wives.” That sexual promiscuity on the part of the husband fuels domestic violence is confirmed in the literature (Chireshe & Chireshe, 2011; Mesatywa, 2009).

With regard to extramarital affairs, it can be noted that the practice increases vulnerability of both men and women to HIV. However, women are more vulnerable because of their social position (Chitando, 2011; Hove & Gwazane, 2011; Moore, 2008; Osirim, 2003). The imbalance of power in marriage curtails women’s ability to negotiate how and when sex is done. Given that HIV is mostly transmitted through heterosexual sex, men’s extramarital sexual unions increase their, and subsequently their wives’, risk of contracting HIV. In this study, men’s infidelity coupled with women’s inability to negotiate the terms of sex made some participants vulnerable to HIV and AIDS.

Concerned participants were compelled to have unprotected sex. In this regard, male dominance and domestic violence colluded to render women powerless and therefore vulnerable. The vulnerability of married women to HIV and AIDS due to unequal power relations in marriage is well documented (Chitando, 2004; Chitando, 2011; Desai, 2005; Francisco, 2010; Mungwini, 2008; Muzvidziwa, 2001; Phiri, 2002). From some of the participants’ experiences, it can be noted that domestic violence and HIV and AIDS coexisted. As Desai (2005, p. 152) states, “Domestic violence directly and indirectly exacerbates vulnerability to HIV. Men who engage in extramarital affairs have a high likelihood of being violent.”

Domestic violence related to accusations of infidelity bring in an important aspect of Shona life; that of staying with members of the extended family. In Shona marriages, the extended family is very important. Couples stay not only with their children but also with other relatives, such as aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins, grandmothers, and grandfathers. While relatives can be a source of support and social security, they can also be dangerous for a couple, since they may interfere with the life of the couple to such an extent that they may cause the eruption of violence. For the participants under review, relatives were a key factor in their abuse when it comes to being accused of committing adultery. Accusations of infidelity were allegedly relayed by their husbands’ relatives with whom they stayed.

Although the three participants who had experienced violence related to accusations of infidelity did not report physical assault, they noted a high level of verbal, psychological, and economic abuse which included a denial of conjugal rights. Findings confirm Mesatywa’s (2009) assertion that accusations of infidelity are usually associated with jealousy and abusive men are often characterized by extreme jealousy which may be accompanied by false accusations.

Roora emerged as one of the factors that fueled domestic violence. Traditionally roora was a noble practice that united families and protected the dignity of both men and women (Bourdillon, 1993; Kethusegile, Kwaramba, & Lopi, 2000). However, as findings of this study suggest, the custom is now linked with spousal abuse.

The study revealed that roora has a silencing effect on women. While roora empowers men to exercise authority on their wives, it disempowers women by relegating them to a position of servitude. It needs, however, to be pointed out that it is not roora per se that is a problem but its abuse. The abuse of the custom of roora thus renders women vulnerable to abuse, physically, sexually, economically, and psychologically/emotionally. The risk owes to the lack of a voice that comes with roora. Since roora results in the subjection and exposure of women to various forms of abuse, it has become, in Mazrui’s (1998, p. 45) terminology, “an aspect of malevolent sexism.”

While abusive men cited culture, as represented by roora payment, to justify their objectification of their wives, they tended to forget that culture expects husbands to continuously care for their in-laws as expressed in the Shona saying “Mukwasha muonde haaperi kudyiwa” (which literally means that a son-in-law is like a fig tree which constantly supplies fruit). The saying implies that a son-in-law should continue to support his in-laws beyond payment of roora; he should not come to a point when he feels he has supported his in-laws enough. What is also apparent is that abusive men were selective in their appeal to culture. They only referred to those elements that tended to justify their behavior and ignored those that were not supportive of the behavior.

That roora can be a facilitator of the abuse of women is articulated in a number of writings (Armstrong, 1998; Chireshe & Chireshe, 2010; Chitando, 2004; Hove & Gwazane, 2011; Kambarami, 2006; Kethusegile et al., 2000; Maluleke & Nadar, 2002; Mesatywa, 2009; Ntsimane, 2006; Townsend, 2008; Tsanga, 1999). The cited literature indicates that payment of roora, as a booster of male domination, contributes to women’s vulnerability to domestic violence.

Findings of roora-related abuse confirm Tsanga’s (1999, p. 61) assertion that “The payment of roora is indicative of the reality that women are largely regarded as property that exchanges hands.” When a man views his wife as a piece of property, it is unlikely that he would give her a voice in the marriage. Rather than promoting the dignity and welfare of women, roora can become a dehumanizing custom.

Findings on economic abuse suggest that economic abuse is not an isolated phenomenon as it is linked to other forms of abuse such as physical, emotional, and verbal abuse and excessive control which is the most pervasive and overarching form of abuse. Given that half of the participants were unemployed, it could also be inferred that there was some association between unemployment and the increasing rates of domestic violence. Although a dependency on the husband seemed to be positively correlated with domestic violence, it should also be noted that some victims of violence were in fact gainfully employed.

Some previous studies also revealed that economic violence was one form of violence which abused Christian women experienced. In her 2001 study on domestic violence in Christian homes in Durban, South Africa, Phiri (2001) found that some Christian husbands controlled the finances and excluded their wives from making decisions regarding the family expenditure. In a related study, Davhana-Maselesele, Myburgh, and Poggenpoel (2009) found that some women were not even at liberty to spend their own earnings without their partners’ approval. The economic abuse experienced by some participants is in direct violation of the Domestic Violence Act (Zimbabwe, 2006, p. 214) Section 3, Subsection 1 (d) (i) which states that economic abuse includes “the unreasonable deprivation of economic or financial resources to which a complainant is entitled under the law or which the complainant requires out of necessity.”

The findings on economic abuse suggest a double standard on the part of abusers. Thus, while abusive men wanted to control, in some cases they shunned their financial obligation to their families to serve as breadwinners. Thus, while affirming a hegemonic masculinity, some abusive men negated a breadwinning masculinity.

Most cases of domestic violence in this study were related to the man’s social and economic control over their wives and the use of violence was a tool of asserting their power.

Limitations of the Study

Although useful as a source of literature on domestic violence, this study cannot provide a complete picture of the dynamics of domestic violence in homes because of some limitations. These limitations will need consideration when future studies are conducted.

The researcher is aware that generalization from the study is limited by the small sample size, sampling procedure, and geographical context. Since the findings of this study are based on a sample of 22 abused Christian women, it may not be representative of all abused women in Zimbabwe.

Furthermore, narratives were collected from abused women excluding stakeholders such as perpetrators of the abuse and those people to whom the abused turned for help. Getting information from these other stakeholders could be more enlightening.

Conclusions and Future Study

The study revealed that abusive spouses felt threatened by what they perceived as their wives’ desire to assert their rights and this often resulted in beatings. Most cases of domestic violence in this study were related to the man’s social and economic control over their wives and violence was a tool of asserting their power, a way to bring a wayward wife into line. The various forms of abuse that emerged from the study can be viewed as emanating from the desire to control and maintain dominance over the abused. Physical abuse was found to be a key instrument in the hands of the abuser to enforce compliance. By subjecting their partners to excessive control, abusive men relegated them to a subservient position. The participants, who experienced domestic violence at the hands of their intimate partners, could be described as victims of terror if one subscribes to Johnson’s (2008, p. 84) characterization of the abusive male partner as an “intimate terrorist.”

As already indicated, domestic violence emerged as a multifaceted phenomenon. Different types of abuse often occurred concurrently. Most participants experienced more than one type of abuse. Physical abuse was almost always accompanied by other forms of violence such as economic abuse and emotional abuse.

Campaigns to raise awareness of the sources of domestic violence in schools and churches would go a long way in addressing domestic violence. In addition, the incorporation of available information on domestic violence into courses on gender could raise the awareness of domestic violence. Furthermore, since this study was limited in geographical scope, research on a wider geographical area and with a more diverse sample needs to be done to include participants outside the Shona ethnic group.

As this study focused only on the female perspective of domestic violence, it is suggested that further research, considering both the male and the female perspective, be conducted. It could be pertinent to gather information on domestic violence from both partners, where possible or at least both males and females living close to one another, that is, living in the same geographical area.

Footnotes

Acknowledgments

My sincere gratitude goes to all participants who agreed to offer their time during the interviews. I would also like to thank my husband for the moral support.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Note

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