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Violence Against Women: Beyond the Statistics, Dangerous Relationships
J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol (1996) 9:99
Video Review Roundup Edited by Frederick J. Rau, M.D., Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Hartford Hospital and Connecticut Children's Medical Center, Hartford, CT
Reviewed by Barbara R. Hostetler, M.D., Instructor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Tennessee Medical Group, Memphis TN
Violence Against Women: Beyond the Statistics, Dangerous Relationships. As you can see from the titles, the theme for the video reviews is "interpersonal violence." Both run approximately 30 minutes and are designed to serve as a stepping stone for group discussions around the related issues. Each comes with a teacher's guide to managing a discussion group, exercises and role plays for participants, as well as assignments, additional reading, and a list of national resources available for victims of violent relationships. While the classroom setting in a junior or senior high school is ideal, I think that both are perfectly appropriate for other age groups and settings, including church youth groups, personal viewing with one's own children, and the physician's waiting area. Both videos are produced by Human Relations Media, Inc. and are priced at $189.00 each (my first criticism). Dangerous Relationships introduces the viewer to unhealthy dating relationships by utilizing a dramatization of a relationship between two teenagers (Matt and Tanya), which is punctuated by intermittent observations by experts from various fields (including law enforce-
healthy relationships, particularly when their victim friends are too much "in love" to acknowledge what is happening to themselves. I like very much the effort that is made to point out that violence in relationships is something that all of us have a responsibility to prevent. Commentary on the dramatization is also offered by Tanya's "best" friend who is able to more objectively observe the progressive isolation of her friend and attempts to point this out to Tanya. If I have a criticism of the film it is that it portrays the friend as a bit judgmental and self-righteous which decreases her effectiveness as a friend and secondly that there is little insight offered about why teenage females feel the desperate need to be in a relationship even when it compromises their safety. In any event the technique of using peers to teach peers is likely the most effective method of introducing the topic for discussion with other teenagers. The 1992 National Crime Victimization Survey published by the V.S. Department of Justice reveals that two-thirds of violent crimes committed against women in this country occur at the hands of a spouse, former partner' or acquaintance. Violence Against Women is a wonderful albeit short video that provides an overview of the issue of domestic violence. This film succeeds for two main reasons: 1) It effectively points out the inequality of the power balance between men and women in relationships and how his-
ment), as well as a group of teens around a table talking
torically in both a legal as well as a social sense men
about their own experiences with abusive relationships and their thoughts about the dynamics of violent situations. Emphasis is placed on understanding the characteristics of abuse partners, i.e., their need to control, manipulate, and isolate their partners, and identifying warning signals that can prevent further escalation of violence and facilitate exiting from the relationship. It is also helpful and interesting to hear several of the young women talk about the need to have a boyfriend and how powerfully this need is tied to their self-esteem in the high school social arena (even if it occurs at the expense of their physical and emotional safety). While the film makes no comments on how teenagers acquire such perceptions, it clearly sends the message that violent relationships only lead to the destruction of the abused partner's self-esteem. The video also emphasizes that friends play an important role in helping to identify un-
have been permitted to commit violent acts against their intimate partners that would never be tolerated against those outside their household. 2) It demonstrates that the issue of domestic violence is not a women's issue-it is an issue for which all must bear responsibility. By interviewing both victims of violence, perpetrators of violence, and experts involved in the treatment of both, as well as law enforcement and justice officials, this film destroys the notion that violence in the home is a private matter but rather a problem with consequences that "ripple out into the larger community." As Judge Knaplund poignantly states "that when a man beats his wife it is a terrible thing for society because how a marriage exists in this society determines how we all live." Amen sister. The videos can be ordered from HRM Video, 175 Tomkins Ave., Pleasantville, NY 10570. Phone (800) 431-2050 or (914)769-7496, or fax (914)747-1744.
Video Review Roundup Edited by Frederick J. Rau, M.D., Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Hartford Hospital and Connecticut Children's Medical Center, Hartford, CT
Reviewed by Barbara R. Hostetler, M.D., Instructor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Tennessee Medical Group, Memphis TN
Violence Against Women: Beyond the Statistics, Dangerous Relationships. As you can see from the titles, the theme for the video reviews is "interpersonal violence." Both run approximately 30 minutes and are designed to serve as a stepping stone for group discussions around the related issues. Each comes with a teacher's guide to managing a discussion group, exercises and role plays for participants, as well as assignments, additional reading, and a list of national resources available for victims of violent relationships. While the classroom setting in a junior or senior high school is ideal, I think that both are perfectly appropriate for other age groups and settings, including church youth groups, personal viewing with one's own children, and the physician's waiting area. Both videos are produced by Human Relations Media, Inc. and are priced at $189.00 each (my first criticism). Dangerous Relationships introduces the viewer to unhealthy dating relationships by utilizing a dramatization of a relationship between two teenagers (Matt and Tanya), which is punctuated by intermittent observations by experts from various fields (including law enforce-
healthy relationships, particularly when their victim friends are too much "in love" to acknowledge what is happening to themselves. I like very much the effort that is made to point out that violence in relationships is something that all of us have a responsibility to prevent. Commentary on the dramatization is also offered by Tanya's "best" friend who is able to more objectively observe the progressive isolation of her friend and attempts to point this out to Tanya. If I have a criticism of the film it is that it portrays the friend as a bit judgmental and self-righteous which decreases her effectiveness as a friend and secondly that there is little insight offered about why teenage females feel the desperate need to be in a relationship even when it compromises their safety. In any event the technique of using peers to teach peers is likely the most effective method of introducing the topic for discussion with other teenagers. The 1992 National Crime Victimization Survey published by the V.S. Department of Justice reveals that two-thirds of violent crimes committed against women in this country occur at the hands of a spouse, former partner' or acquaintance. Violence Against Women is a wonderful albeit short video that provides an overview of the issue of domestic violence. This film succeeds for two main reasons: 1) It effectively points out the inequality of the power balance between men and women in relationships and how his-
ment), as well as a group of teens around a table talking
torically in both a legal as well as a social sense men
about their own experiences with abusive relationships and their thoughts about the dynamics of violent situations. Emphasis is placed on understanding the characteristics of abuse partners, i.e., their need to control, manipulate, and isolate their partners, and identifying warning signals that can prevent further escalation of violence and facilitate exiting from the relationship. It is also helpful and interesting to hear several of the young women talk about the need to have a boyfriend and how powerfully this need is tied to their self-esteem in the high school social arena (even if it occurs at the expense of their physical and emotional safety). While the film makes no comments on how teenagers acquire such perceptions, it clearly sends the message that violent relationships only lead to the destruction of the abused partner's self-esteem. The video also emphasizes that friends play an important role in helping to identify un-
have been permitted to commit violent acts against their intimate partners that would never be tolerated against those outside their household. 2) It demonstrates that the issue of domestic violence is not a women's issue-it is an issue for which all must bear responsibility. By interviewing both victims of violence, perpetrators of violence, and experts involved in the treatment of both, as well as law enforcement and justice officials, this film destroys the notion that violence in the home is a private matter but rather a problem with consequences that "ripple out into the larger community." As Judge Knaplund poignantly states "that when a man beats his wife it is a terrible thing for society because how a marriage exists in this society determines how we all live." Amen sister. The videos can be ordered from HRM Video, 175 Tomkins Ave., Pleasantville, NY 10570. Phone (800) 431-2050 or (914)769-7496, or fax (914)747-1744.