Intimate Violence

This book summarizes the results of a large international research IVAWS on domestic violence, which took place in the Czech Republic in 2003. Besides a comprehensive description of the prevalence of Czech women’s experience it also brings the results of the pilot-study carried out a bit later among men. It reflects a wider social context of this phenomenon (the importance of previous experience in the family, alcohol abuse, drugs, partner’s aggression, the effect of education and social status). It also deals with economic and psychological violence or abuse and with the overall consequences for the victims. Additionally, it examines the possibility and limits of the intervention of state authorities and non-profit organizations. In the respect of the comparison of several countries involved in the IVAWS it offers the interpretation of findings in terms of the Czech side. The theoretical framework and the knowledge base accumulated in this book represents the solid starting point for further investigation of this serious social problem for many scholars interested in the topic, including the current research project focused on both the replication and the further enrichment of the survey.