Applied Science, Faculty of
Nursing, School of
DSpace
UBCV
Shalansky, Catriona Elizabeth
Master of Science in Nursing - MSN
University of British Columbia
Wife abuse has become an epidemic in Canada. Research studies have documented that abuse does not end when a women is divorced or separated from her abuser, but, in fact, the danger increases. A father's legal right to custody of and access to his children and the children's bond with their father prevent a women from truly breaking free of her abuser. Theoretical literature has addressed how custody and access can serve as a means for a batterer to continue his abuse and expose his children to ongoing abuse and discord. Research on how custody and access issues are affecting battered women is limited. Key details about this phenomenon are not known. Hence, a research study using the qualitative methodology of phenomenology was conducted of battered women's experiences with custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. Six single mothers who had left abusive relationships and were at the time sharing custody of and/or access to their children with their abusive ex-partners participated in the study. Unstructured, non-directive interviews were conducted. Direction for analysis was taken from the specific steps outlined by Giorgi (1975). Data analysis revealed that al l of the women were living in great fear for their safety and that of their children. The ongoing danger and stress of living with the restrictions of the law and legal system took it's toll on the women and ultimately affected their physical health and psychological well-being. The women described their experiences as having four components: 1) SAFETY: Living with Ongoing Danger; 2) STRESS: Living with the Restrictions of the Law and the Legal System; 3) COPING: Social Support Systems; and 4) TO HEAL AND MOVE FORWARD IN LIFE. Themes within these components were identified, and implications for nursing practice, education and research were discussed.
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B A T T E R E D WOMEN AND C H I L D CUSTODY: THE ONGOING EXPOSURE TO A B U S I V E E X - P A R T N E R S A Q U A L I T A T I V E STUDY B y C A T R I O N A E L I Z A B E T H S H A L A N S K Y B . S . N . , The U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a , 1990 A T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L L M E N T OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF S C I E N C E I N N U R S I N G i n THE F A C U L T Y OF GRADUATE S T U D I E S The S c h o o l o f N u r s i n g We a c c e p t t h i s t h e s i s a s c o n f o r m i n g to^/feije r e q u i r e d s t a n d a r d THE U N I V E R S I T Y OF B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A © C a t r i o n a E l i z a b e t h S h a l a n s k y In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of N u r s i n e , The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada DE-6 (2/88) ABSTRACT W i f e a b u s e h a s become a n e p i d e m i c i n C a n a d a . R e s e a r c h s t u d i e s h a v e d o c u m e n t e d t h a t a b u s e d o e s n o t e n d when a women i s d i v o r c e d o r s e p a r a t e d f r o m h e r a b u s e r , b u t , i n f a c t , t h e d a n g e r i n c r e a s e s . A f a t h e r ' s l e g a l r i g h t t o c u s t o d y o f a n d a c c e s s t o h i s c h i l d r e n a n d t h e c h i l d r e n ' s b o n d w i t h t h e i r f a t h e r p r e v e n t a women f r o m t r u l y b r e a k i n g f r e e o f h e r a b u s e r . T h e o r e t i c a l l i t e r a t u r e h a s a d d r e s s e d how c u s t o d y a n d a c c e s s c a n s e r v e a s a means f o r a b a t t e r e r t o c o n t i n u e h i s a b u s e a n d e x p o s e h i s c h i l d r e n t o o n g o i n g a b u s e a n d d i s c o r d . R e s e a r c h o n how c u s t o d y a n d a c c e s s i s s u e s a r e a f f e c t i n g b a t t e r e d women i s l i m i t e d . K e y d e t a i l s a b o u t t h i s p h e n o m e n o n a r e n o t k n o w n . H e n c e , a r e s e a r c h s t u d y u s i n g t h e q u a l i t a t i v e m e t h o d o l o g y o f p h e n o m e n o l o g y was c o n d u c t e d o f b a t t e r e d w o m e n ' s e x p e r i e n c e s w i t h c u s t o d y a n d a c c e s s a n d t h e o n g o i n g e x p o s u r e t o a b u s i v e e x - p a r t n e r s . S i x s i n g l e m o t h e r s who h a d l e f t a b u s i v e r e l a t i o n s h i p s a n d w e r e a t t h e t i m e s h a r i n g c u s t o d y o f a n d / o r a c c e s s t o t h e i r c h i l d r e n w i t h t h e i r a b u s i v e e x - p a r t n e r s p a r t i c i p a t e d i n t h e s t u d y . U n s t r u c t u r e d , n o n - d i r e c t i v e i n t e r v i e w s w e r e c o n d u c t e d . D i r e c t i o n f o r a n a l y s i s was t a k e n f r o m t h e s p e c i f i c s t e p s o u t l i n e d b y G i o r g i ( 1 9 7 5 ) . D a t a a n a l y s i s r e v e a l e d t h a t a l l o f t h e women w e r e l i v i n g i n g r e a t f e a r f o r t h e i r s a f e t y a n d t h a t o f t h e i r c h i l d r e n . The o n g o i n g d a n g e r a n d s t r e s s o f l i v i n g w i t h t h e r e s t r i c t i o n s o f t h e l a w a n d l e g a l s y s t e m t o o k i t ' s t o l l o n t h e women a n d u l t i m a t e l y a f f e c t e d t h e i r p h y s i c a l h e a l t h a n d I l l psychological well-being. The women described t h e i r experiences as having four components: 1) SAFETY: L i v i n g with Ongoing Danger; 2) STRESS: Living with the Restrictions of the Law and the Legal System; 3) COPING: Social Support Systems; and 4) TO HEAL AND MOVE FORWARD IN LIFE. Themes within these components were i d e n t i f i e d , and implications for nursing practice, education and research were discussed. TABLE OF CONTENTS P a g e A B S T R A C T i i T A B L E OF CONTENTS i v L I S T OF F I G U R E S v i i i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS i x CHAPTER O N E : INTRODUCTION B a c k g r o u n d t o t h e P r o b l e m 1 S i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e S t u d y 8 P r o b l e m S t a t e m e n t 10 P u r p o s e 11 O b j e c t i v e s 12 C o n c e p t u a l P e r s p e c t i v e 12 R e s e a r c h Q u e s t i o n 13 D e f i n i t i o n o f T e r m s 13 A s s u m p t i o n s 15 L i m i t a t i o n s 15 Summary 16 CHAPTER TWO: L I T E R A T U R E REVIEW I n t r o d u c t i o n 18 C u s t o d y a n d A c c e s s - C r i t i c a l I s s u e s F a c i n g B a t t e r e d Women 19 P o w e r a n d C o n t r o l 2 0 S o c i a l I s o l a t i o n / S u p p o r t 23 C u s t o d y a n d A c c e s s 25 C o n t i n u e d V i o l e n c e 28 P a r e n t i n g P r o b l e m s 30 Page Custody and Access - The Impact on C h i l d Witnesses of Abuse 31 Divorce/Separation - Chil d r e n ' s Adjustment Post-divorce 36 Nurses' Role - A c t i n g on the Ongoing Abuse of B a t t e r e d Women 38 Summary 4 0 CHAPTER THREE: METHOD In t r o d u c t i o n 42 Phenomenology, a Q u a l i t a t i v e Approach to Research 42 S e l e c t i o n of P a r t i c i p a n t s 44 S e l e c t i o n C r i t e r i a 44 Recruitment Procedures 45 Sample Si z e 46 Data C o l l e c t i o n Procedure 46 Data A n a l y s i s 48 V a l i d i t y 51 R e l i a b i l i t y 53 E t h i c a l Considerations 54 Summary 57 CHAPTER FOUR: THE NATURE OF. THE EXPERIENCES I n t r o d u c t i o n 58 Demographics 58 P a g e P r e s e n t a t i o n a n d I n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f t h e D a t a 62 S a f e t y 63 F e a r 65 H y p e r - v i g i l a n c e 71 E m o t i o n a l D i l e m m a 73 S t r e s s 79 A n g e r 81 P o w e r l e s s n e s s 86 D e s p a i r 93 F o r m a l s y s t e m s o f s u p p o r t 96 P o l i c e 98 The L e g a l S y s t e m 100 The H e a l t h C a r e S y s t e m 102 T r a n s i t i o n H o u s e s a n d R e f e r r a l S e r v i c e s 103 H e a l i n g a n d M o v i n g F o r w a r d i n L i f e . 1 0 4 C o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n o f t h e E x p e r i e n c e 106 Summary 108 CHAPTER F I V E : D I S C U S S I O N OF THE CONCE P T U A L I Z A T I O N I n t r o d u c t i o n 112 S a f e t y . . 112 E s c a p i n g 116 H e a l i n g 118 Summary 124 v i i CH A PTER S I X : SUMMARY, C O N C L U S I O N S , AND I M P L I C A T I O N S FOR N U R S I N G Summary 128 C o n c l u s i o n s 134 I m p l i c a t i o n s f o r N u r s i n g 137 P r a c t i c e 137 E d u c a t i o n 140 R e s e a r c h 141 R E F E R E N C E S 145 A P P E N D I X A : P a r t i c i p a n t ' s I n f o r m a t i o n L e t t e r 153 A P P E N D I X B : I n t e r v i e w Q u e s t i o n s 155 A P P E N D I X C : C o n s e n t F o r m 156 A P P E N D I X D : D e m o g r a p h i c D a t a 158 A P P E N D I X E : E t h i c s C e r t i f i c a t e o f A p p r o v a l . 1 5 9 v i i i LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1. Conceptualization of the Experience: Battered Women's Experiences with and C h i l d Custody and the Ongoing Exposure to Abusive Ex-partners 107 i x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I w i s h t o t h a n k s e v e r a l p e o p l e w h o s e s u p p o r t a n d g u i d a n c e h e l p e d make t h e c o m p l e t i o n o f t h i s t h e s i s p o s s i b l e . F i r s t l y , I w o u l d l i k e t o t h a n k my t h e s i s c o m m i t t e e , J a n e t E r i c k s e n ( C h a i r ) , A n g e l a H e n d e r s o n a n d J u d y L y n a m . T h a n k y o u f o r y o u r e x c e l l e n t a c a d e m i c l e a d e r s h i p a n d d i r e c t i o n t h r o u g h o u t t h e r e s e a r c h p r o c e s s . To J a n e t a n d A n g e l a , t h a n k y o u f o r a l l y o u r w o r d s o f e n c o u r a g e m e n t a n d t h e many h o u r s s p e n t g e n t l y n u r t u r i n g my t h o u g h t s a n d i d e a s . Y o u r p e r s o n a l d e d i c a t i o n t o f a m i l y v i o l e n c e h a s b e e n a s o u r c e o f i n s p i r a t i o n t o me . To J u d y , t h a n k y o u f o r b e l i e v i n g i n me, y o u r w o r d s o f e n c o u r a g e m e n t h a v e m o t i v a t e d me t o t a k e o n new c h a l l e n g e s . To t h e women who h a v e p a r t i c i p a t e d i n my s t u d y , t h a n k y o u f o r s h a r i n g y o u r e x p e r i e n c e s o f c u s t o d y a n d a c c e s s w i t h me . The p o w e r f u l a n d i n t e n s e e m o t i o n s y o u e x p r e s s e d w i l l f o r e v e r t o u c h my l i f e . To my c o - f a c i l i t a t o r a n d f r i e n d , K i m , t h a n k y o u f o r a l l y o u r w o r d s o f e n c o u r a g e m e n t . Y o u r p e r s o n a l c o m m i t m e n t t o w o r k i n g w i t h b a t t e r e d women a n d t h e i r c h i l d r e n i s t r u l y a b l e s s i n g f o r a l l o f u s w h o s e l i v e s y o u t o u c h . To my p a r e n t s , S h o n a a n d H u g h a n d my i n - l a w s , B a r b a r a a n d C a r l , t h a n k y o u f o r n o t o n l y b e l i e v i n g i n me b u t f o r t h e c o u n t l e s s w a y s y o u h a v e s u p p o r t e d my f a m i l y , e s p e c i a l l y i n t h i s p a s t y e a r . F i n a l l y , t o my h u s b a n d , Tom, a n d my s o n , B r a n d o n , t h a n k y o u f o r y o u r l o v e a n d s u p p o r t . Y o u r e n d u r i n g e f f o r t s a n d s a c r i f i c e s d u r i n g a l l o f my a c a d e m i c e n d e a v o r s a r e w h a t h a v e made my g o a l s now a r e a l i t y . 1 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Background to the Problem "Family and sexual violence i s a s o c i a l problem of such staggering dimensions that i t i s often described i n terms of a national c r i s i s . It i s l i k e a war i n which we can provide only triage service while the casualties mount up" ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992, p.46.). > Abuse against women i n intimate relationships represents a major s o c i a l and health problem i n North America: almost one m i l l i o n women i n Canada are being abused each year (MacLeod, 1987). Wife abuse has become epidemic i n Canada. It i s d i f f i c u l t to generate accurate s t a t i s t i c s on wife abuse as the violence i s usually hidden. S t a t i s t i c s Canada (1993) conducted a nationwide survey on male violence against women. In t h i s random sample of 12,300 women 51% of Canadian women were found to have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16. Almost one ha l f of the women reported violence by men that they knew. One quarter of the women experienced violence from a current or past marital partner, and one-in-six currently married women~reported-violence--by t h e i r -spouses The S t a t i s t i c s Canada (1993) survey supports previous research that suggests women face the greatest r i s k of violence from men they know (MacLeod, 1987). 2 Research suggests that abuse does not end when a woman separates or i s divorced from an abusive partner (Henderson, 1990; Jacobson, 1982; Sonkin, Martin & Walker, 1984; S t a t i s t i c s Canada, 1993). Separation or divorce only increases the danger for many battered women (Pagelow, 1984). "Repeated or ongoing abuse was more commonly reported i n marriages that had ended. Three-quarters of women who experienced violence by past partners endured repeated assaults, 41% on more than ten occasions" ( S t a t i s t i c s Canada, 1993, p.5). The S t a t i s t i c s Canada (1993) survey found 19% of women who reported violence by previous partners experienced violence following or amid separation and, i n one t h i r d of these cases, violence a c t u a l l y increased i n severity during separation. In the United States, i t has been reported that three quarters of a l l women h o s p i t a l i z e d because of domestic violence are separated or divorced from t h e i r abusers (Zorza, 1995). For a battered woman, the decision to leave an abusive partner i s d i f f i c u l t (Henderson, 1990). When a woman does leave, there i s often a threat hanging over her head, such as: "If you ever leave me, I w i l l k i l l you-. -If—you ever-leave-me-, -I-wi-11- see -that-you never see the children again" (Taylor, 1994, p.9). Women w i l l often remain i n abusive relationships because they believe t h e i r children need a father, no matter how t e r r i b l e he may be (Elbow, 1982). It takes a great deal 3 of courage and strength for a woman to leave. When she does leave, a woman i s seeking to terminate a v i o l e n t marriage and i s hoping to b u i l d a l i f e free of violence for h erself and her children (Pagelow, 1992). A father's l e g a l right to custody of and access to his children and the children's bond with t h e i r father make i t d i f f i c u l t , i f not impossible, for an abused woman to t r u l y break free. The issues surrounding battered women and custody and access have only recently been i d e n t i f i e d ; however, to date they have not been recognized as credible problems ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992) and, c e r t a i n l y , t h e i r ramifications i n terms of health care have not been explored. The researcher i n i t i a l l y became interested i n battered women's experiences with custody and access through her role as a f a c i l i t a t o r of a parenting support group for battered women. During weekly sessions, i t became clear that leaving an abusive partner d i d not usually mean an end to the abuse. Women continued to experience abuse from t h e i r ex-partners through t h e i r involvement with court-imposed custody and access v i s i t s . Many- of the women -were s t i l l - i n -great-fear-for t h e i r safety and the safety of t h e i r children. Monat and Lazarus (1977) state that the threat of anticipated harm produces stress reactions both physical and psychological. The threat of abuse and ongoing 4 c o n f l i c t from an ex-partner can be a major source of psychological and physical stress for a battered woman. When a woman " . . . i s placed i n a s i t u a t i o n i n which some threat or danger i s present or i n which demands may overwhelm a b i l i t i e s to cope, a number of b i o l o g i c a l and psychological changes occur, behavior i s altered, and, i n some cases, health i s affected" (Baum & Singer, 1987, p . x i i i ) . Battered women who experience stress because of th e i r ongoing contact with abusive ex-partners may ultimately suffer psychological and physical health consequences. There are c r i t i c a l issues involving custody and access which can adversely a f f e c t the health and welfare of an abused woman and her children. In a study by Jacobson (1982), battered women i d e n t i f i e d the following concerns i n regards to custody and access: 1) ongoing danger to the mother; 2) concern for the physical and psychological safety of t h e i r children; 3) feelings of personal g u i l t about a broken marriage; 4) c o n f l i c t i n g b e l i e f s about t h e i r children's needs for two parents; 5) perceptions of t h e i r children's needs and feelings towards t h e i r father; 6) supervised access; 7) doubts about—the-i-r ability—to--provide- a l l — t h e emotional, physical, and f i n a n c i a l care for t h e i r c h i l d r e n . These themes were merely i d e n t i f i e d i n the report of the study; there was no discussion of the women's perceptions of these worries. 5 An increasing number of women are l o s i n g custody of t h e i r children to abusive ex-husbands ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992; Chesler, 1986; Drewitt, 1993; Jacobson, 1982; Pagelow, 1992; Zorza, 1995). This trend towards awarding fathers custody i s happening because of the b e l i e f that both parents have equal rights with regards to t h e i r children ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992). The doctrine 'in the best i n t e r e s t of the c h i l d ' i s used to determine custody; however, there appear to be d i f f e r e n t interpretations of t h i s dictum (Drewitt, 1993). It has been well documented that the courts often do not consider wife abuse as having any bearing on c h i l d custody disputes and see no l i n k between wife abuse and the batterer's rel a t i o n s h i p with his childr e n ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992; Chesler, 1986; Drewitt, 1993; Jacobson, 1982; McMahon & Pence, 1995; Pagelow, 1992; Walker & Edwall, 1987; Zorza, 1995). Canadian provinces have yet to enact statutes that make wife abuse at least relevant i n custody and access decisions (Department of Justice Canada, 1993). Nevertheless, there i s s u f f i c i e n t empirical evidence to support-that-witnessi-ng-wi-f-e-~abuse~does-affect the physical and psychological well-being of childr e n (Alcorn, Sakaluk & Solomon, 1985; Ericksen & Henderson, 1992; Hershorn & Rosenbaum, 1985; Hilberman & Munson, 1978; Jaffe, Wolfe & Wilson, 1990; Jaffe, Wolfe, Wilson & 6 Zak, 1985, 1986a, 1986b; Rosenbaum & O'Leary, 1981; Westra & Martin, 1981). Battered women and c h i l d witnesses of abuse are i n need of protection and support to keep them from being revictimized by t h e i r abusers (Zorza, 1995). Health care professionals must become more active i n the treatment and prevention of wife abuse. Nurses are i n the ide a l p o s i t i o n to intervene i n the cycle of violence. Nurses encounter abused women i n a v a r i e t y of work settings such as prenatal classes, mom and tot drop-in groups, well-baby c l i n i c s , emergency departments, labour and delivery and postpartum units, intensive care and medical-surgical units (Henderson, 1992). " C l i n i c a l p r a ctice takes nurses into the homes and l i v e s of families i n a co n f i d e n t i a l and intimate way" (Campbell & Humphreys, 1984, p.6). The closeness of the nurse/client r e l a t i o n s h i p allows the nurse to explore s e n s i t i v e issues such as wife abuse, and s p e c i f i c a l l y issues involving custody and access. Nurses have the capacity to make an impact on the prevention of wife abuse, both i n terms of health promotion and i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and intervention for those women at r i s k (Campbell, Smith McKenna, Torres, Sheridan- &-Landenburger,-~19-93)-. Because-of •• thei-r focus on holism, nurses are concerned with any factor that a f f e c t s t h e i r c l i e n t ' s health (Campbell & Humphreys, 1993; Ericksen & Henderson, 1992). Nurses' emphasis on health promotion encourages optimal health and the 7 development of personal strengths to cope with physical and emotional stressors (Campbell & Humphreys, 1993). To provide e f f e c t i v e nursing care, nurses must, f i r s t , recognize the problem of wife abuse and, second, look beyond i s o l a t e d incidents of abuse to acknowledge the far reaching e f f e c t s that wife abuse has on women, children, extended family, friends, and society. Through her work with battered women, the researcher became aware that very l i t t l e i s known about battered women's experiences of l i v i n g with custody and access orders and the continued involvement with abusive ex-partners. Key d e t a i l s about t h i s phenomenon are not known. Qualitative nursing research, which u t i l i z e s h o l i s t i c interpretations of experiences derived from inductive methods and which i s focussed on the perspective of the participant, can make a s i g n i f i c a n t contribution to the body of knowledge of wife abuse and, s p e c i f i c a l l y , the issue of custody and access. It i s th i s researcher's b e l i e f that in-depth exploration of thi s phenomenon w i l l provide insight for nurses and other professionals who care for battered women. Nursing research has the pot e n t i a l to bring about changes i n the health care system and,—ultimately,-the-health of battered women. 8 Significance of the Study Because of the high incidence of wife abuse and of children witnessing the abuse of t h e i r mothers, there i s a need for action by p o l i t i c i a n s , lawyers, health care professionals, and society to aid these women and t h e i r children. Wife abuse c l e a r l y a f f e c t s the physical and emotional well-being of women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n (Pagelow, 1992). As such, nurses need to become more knowledgeable about wife abuse and the consequences i t has for a l l the members of the family. The decision to leave an abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p i s d i f f i c u l t for women when children are involved (NiCarthy, 1982). Women are torn between seeing t h e i r c h i l d r e n affected by violence and t h e i r children's need for a father. Once a woman does decide to leave, she i s faced with a new set of concerns for he r s e l f and her children (Henderson, 1990). These concerns are i n r e l a t i o n to the ongoing contact between the children and t h e i r fathers, guaranteed by court-imposed custody and access orders (Henderson, 1990). Custody and access jeopardizes the safety of battered women as they are l e g a l l y required to maintain contact with t h e i r abusers. At t h i s point, there- -is-limi-ted.-knowl.edge-on-how._cus.tody.- and access issues are a f f e c t i n g battered women. However, s t a t i s t i c s on wife abuse during separation and divorce c l e a r l y support the need for services which address the mental 9 health and physical well-being of these women and t h e i r children . Ericksen and Henderson (1992) recommended that, because of t h e i r focus on wholeness of experience and th e i r teaching and communication s k i l l s , nurses can play a v i t a l role i n helping battered women and t h e i r children. At t h i s time, there i s currently very l i t t l e formal support for a battered women once she leaves an abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p . Henderson (1990) states that t r a n s i t i o n houses are often not funded at a l e v e l which allows for formal follow-up programs. As a re s u l t , women may not receive support to deal with complex issues subsequent to separation such as custody and access (Henderson, 1990). To be supportive nurses need to be able to recognize and understand the issues that these women experience. Insights gained from an in-depth exploration of the phenomenon of custody and access w i l l help nurses by providing the necessary knowledge that i s required i f nurses are to be supportive of battered women and t h e i r children. It i s clear that new laws and p o l i c i e s on custody and access as they relate to battered women and t h e i r children need- -to -be-de-veloped.- -In a recent -policy paper on custody and access, the Canadian Department of Justice (1993) i d e n t i f i e d that, indeed, wife abuse may not be properly considered by the courts i n determining custody and access. The Canadian Department of Justice (1993) 10 addressed a need f o r research which would shed l i g h t on the p r a c t i c a l r e a l i t i e s of custody and access i s s u e s . Nursing research which serves to empower b a t t e r e d women and focuses on understanding t h e i r experiences of custody and access has the a b i l i t y and the p o t e n t i a l to be an important i n f l u e n c e to help ensure t h a t p o l i c y change i s based on s c i e n t i f i c knowledge. Problem Statement The experiences of b a t t e r e d women who are i n v o l v e d w i t h ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners through court-imposed custody and access orders need to be understood i f r e l e v a n t h e a l t h care s e r v i c e s to a i d these women are to be developed. Nurses can p l a y a v i t a l r o l e i n the establishment and p r o v i s i o n of these s e r v i c e s . The a c t u a l and p o t e n t i a l a l t e r a t i o n s i n a b a t t e r e d woman's h e a l t h that are a s s o c i a t e d w i t h v i o l e n c e , "...are immense, complex, and i n need of nur s i n g c o n s i d e r a t i o n i f maximum l e v e l s of wellness are to be achieved" (Campbell & Humphreys, 1993, p . i x ) . Nurses encounter b a t t e r e d women i n a wide v a r i e t y of s e t t i n g s . Assessment, i d e n t i f y i n g approaches to nursing care, and developing n u r s i n g i n t e r v e n t i o n s to care f o r b a t t e r e d women are necessary-nursing-functions. -A-nurse- can not assume that a b a t t e r e d woman i s safe and no longer i n need of support and care j u s t because she has l e f t her abusive ex-partner. The l i t e r a t u r e i n d i c a t e s t h a t abuse does not end when a woman leaves an abusive partner, but indeed i t 11 may well even escalate i n l e t h a l i t y (Henderson, 1990; Jacobson, 1982; McMahon & Pence, 1995; Sonkin, et a l . , 1985; S t a t i s t i c s Canada, 1993; Zorza, 1995). A batterer's l e g a l rights to custody of and access to his children can serve as a means for him to continue to abuse his ex-partner and expose his childr e n to ongoing violence and discord. The ongoing violence and stress experienced by the battered woman af f e c t s her psychological and physical well-being and also takes i t s t o l l on her children, extended family and friends. Nurses need to understand the s o c i a l context and le g a l implications along with the physical and mental issues experienced by battered women who are exposed to t h i s ongoing abuse. The battered woman's perceptions of l i v i n g with court-imposed custody and access and the continuing involvement with an abusive ex-partner have not been described i n the l i t e r a t u r e . The woman's perceptions of her experiences need to be understood i f appropriate health services are to be provided. A qu a l i t a t i v e study which e l i c i t s in-depth descriptions of battered women's experiences must be undertaken i f the complexities of t h i s phenomenon are to be f u l l y -understood. - - -- - -Purpose The purpose of t h i s study i s to understand the experiences of battered women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be involved with 12 abusive ex-partners. Implications from these findings can then be used to i d e n t i f y approaches to nursing care and ultimately, to develop nursing interventions for battered women and t h e i r children. The battered woman's view of custody and access and the ongoing involvement with an abusive ex-partner have not been described i n the l i t e r a t u r e . Objectives 1. To understand the experiences of battered women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be involved with abusive ex-partners. 2. To describe common factors which a f f e c t the experiences of these women. Conceptual Perspective A feminist approach provides the foundation for t h i s research study. A feminist advocates the same right s for women that society bestows upon men, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n realms of economics and p o l i t i c s (Vance, Talbott & McBride, 1985). A feminist envisions an end to patriarchy, subordination, and inequality and promotes respect for a l l humans regardless of gender, race or culture-(•Kagan-Kriegar, -1987-).. - -Describing women's experiences through q u a l i t a t i v e research methods such as phenomenology i s i n keeping with a feminist approach of bringing women's experiences to the forefront and acknowledging t h e i r value (Kagan-13 Krieger, 1987). MacPherson (1988) states that feminist research "... formulates women-related questions generated from actual experiences and c l o s e l y r e l a t e d to s o c i a l change" (p.19). This study arose from the researcher's work as a f a c i l i t a t o r of a parenting support group for battered women. The research question which guides t h i s study was generated from the concerns of these women. It i s t h i s researcher's b e l i e f that by bringing battered women's experiences with custody and access to the forefront, and examining the issues, t h i s information w i l l provide knowledge that can be used by these women themselves and ultimately contribute to t h e i r l i b e r a t i o n . Research Question The research question which directed t h i s study i s as follows: What are the experiences of battered women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be involved with abusive ex-partners? Definition of Terms 1) Wife abuse was defined according to the d e f i n i t i o n suggested by MacLeod (1987): Wife battering i s the loss of dignity, control, and safety as well as the f e e l i n g of powerlessness _ . and-entr.apment__experfenced-by ..women .who are d i r e c t victims of ongoing or repeated physical, psychological, economic, sexual and/or verbal violence or who are subject to persistent threats or witnessing of such violence against t h e i r 14 children..., by t h e i r boyfriends, husbands, l i v e - i n lovers, ex-husbands or ex-partners, whether male or female. The term 'wife battering' w i l l also be understood to encompass the ramifications of the violence for women, her children, her friends and re l a t i v e s , and for society as a whole (p.16). This d e f i n i t i o n was chosen because i t includes the children of women who are abused and can, therefore, serve as a d e f i n i t i o n of c h i l d witnesses of abuse. 2) Custody refers to the parent's l e g a l r i g h t to l i v e with her or his c h i l d and have care and control of the c h i l d (Jacobson, 1982). The most common types of custody are defined according to Beveridge and Reid (1987) : Sole Custody: One parent i s given complete care and control of the c h i l d , while the other parent has access r i g h t s . Divided Custody: Both parents are equally competent to care for the c h i l d ; sole custody i s divided. For example, one parent may have sole custody during school months, the other during holidays. Joint Custody: Both parents assume r e s p o n s i b i l i t y „„ — f o r — d e c i s i o n s r e l a t i n g -to- t h e - c h i l d ' s -education, r e l i g i o n , d i s c i p l i n e and general upbringing. As well, children may divide t h e i r time, spending part of i t l i v i n g i n each parent's home (p.49). 3) Access i s the non-custodial parent's l e g a l r i g h t to 15 v i s i t , phone, or take the c h i l d away from the custodial parent's home for v i s i t s (Beveridge & Reid, 1987) . Assumptions 1) It was assumed that issues surrounding custody and access and ongoing contact of t h e i r c h i l d r e n with abusive ex-partners would have meaning for abused women. 2) It was assumed that a l l battered women were equally q u a l i f i e d to speak on behalf of abused women as a group. 3) It was assumed that the mother's perceptions of custody and access and ongoing contact with an abusive ex-partner would also include her perceptions of her children's experiences. 4) It was assumed that feminist research methods of gaining knowledge of battered women w i l l serve needs of these women and w i l l not be ex p l o i t i v e or oppressive. Limitations Several l i m i t a t i o n s were i d e n t i f i e d at the beginning of t h i s study and were e x p l i c i t l y outlined. 1)- Many of the—women-may--still--have—valid- concerns about the safety of themselves and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . This concern may i n turn influence t h e i r candidness. Women may chose to be se l e c t i v e i n how they present information about themselves and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . 16 2) Some women may be i n the middle of custody disputes or a f r a i d that t h e i r ex-partner may challenge t h e i r e x i s t i n g custody arrangements. This fear may i n h i b i t women from being t r u l y open and frank i n fear that t h e i r husbands may somehow obtain l e g a l access to th i s information. 3) This study i s li m i t e d to women who can speak English; thus, s i g n i f i c a n t c u l t u r a l issues unique to battered women i n r e l a t i o n to custody and access may not be addressed i n the scope of t h i s study. Summary This study was designed to understand the experiences of battered women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be involved with abusive ex-partners. Chapter one outlined the background and significance of t h i s research problem along with the purpose, objectives and conceptual framework of t h i s study. The research question to be addressed was presented; i n addition, the d e f i n i t i o n of terms, assumptions and li m i t a t i o n s of t h i s study were also i d e n t i f i e d . In chapter Two, the current l i t e r a t u r e and theory relevant to -this—study—will—be-.presented. - In Chapter Three, the q u a l i t a t i v e methodology of phenomenology, used i n t h i s study w i l l be described. Chapter Four w i l l include a presentation of the researcher's interpretations of the findings, and Chapter Five w i l l 17 follow with a discussion of the findings. Ultimately i n Chapter Six the researcher w i l l present a summary, conclusions, and the study's implications for nursing practice, education, and research. 18 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW Introduction In t h i s chapter, the researcher w i l l review l i t e r a t u r e i n order to d e l i n e a t e the cu r r e n t s t a t e of knowledge as i t r e l a t e s to the experiences of b a t t e r e d women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be i n v o l v e d w i t h t h e i r abusive ex-pa r t n e r s . Both q u a l i t a t i v e and q u a n t i t a t i v e research w i l l be presented. L i t e r a t u r e on b a t t e r e d women and the i s s u e s they face i n regards to custody and access of t h e i r c h i l d r e n i s extremely l i m i t e d . Most of the l i t e r a t u r e to date focuses on the l e g a l process. Much of the research has focussed on current trends i n the l e g a l system such as j o i n t custody, increased awareness of f a t h e r ' s r i g h t s and a move towards mediation as a means of r e s o l v i n g custody and access i s s u e s (Pagelow, 1992). Although t h i s l i t e r a t u r e provides i n s i g h t i n t o the depth and breadth of these i s s u e s , an in-depth examination of law reform was not the i n t e n t of t h i s study. The purpose of t h i s l i t e r a t u r e review i s to describe the context from which t h i s study was de r i v e d and provide d i r e c t i o n f o r t h i s study Four—themes—that-have—emerged-from -the l i t e r a t u r e are examined: 1) Custody and Access - C r i t i c a l Issues Facing B a t t e r e d Women; 2) Custody and Access - The Impact on C h i l d Witnesses of Abuse; 3) Divorce/Separation - The 19 Children's Adjustment Post-divorce; 4) Nurses' Role -Acting on the Ongoing Abuse of Battered Women. Custody and Access - C r i t i c a l Issues Facing Battered Women Women have endured centuries of abuse, but i t i s only within the past few decades that the issue of wife abuse has become a public concern (MacLeod, 1987). Health care professionals have been slow to take an active stand on the issue of wife abuse. A major deterrent to prevention and treatment of wife abuse i s lack of knowledge and understanding by health care professionals (Moss & Taylor, 1991). Moss and Taylor (1991) suggest that, "...inappropriate responses (or no response) by health care professionals may stem from t h e i r lack of knowledge or t r a i n i n g i n abuse issues, misinformation, sexist bias, the structure of the medical model and di s b e l i e v i n g . . . " (p.1159). Nurses may be reluctant to i d e n t i f y and a i d battered women because they believe that battering i s a s o c i a l or leg a l problem rather than a nursing problem (Tilden, 1989). "Staff may believe the myths about battered women, such as the myth of masochism ('she must l i k e i t or she'-d -leave)—and—the-myth-of-rational cause ('she must have asked for i t ' ) " (Tilden, 1989, p.314). Nurses w i l l need to be aware of t h e i r own attitudes and b e l i e f s about wife abuse, as well as be taught the theories of battering and understand the dynamics of wife abuse 20 (Brendtro & Bowker, 1989). To understand wife abuse, i t i s necessary to examine some of the h i s t o r i c a l , s o c i a l , environmental and leg a l factors which have helped to perpetuate the problem (Henderson, 1992). Power and Control The powerful have controlled the less powerful throughout history; "...the family has been shaped as a gender-based hierarchy: the man has the most power, and the woman i s subordinate to him" ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992, p.47). The control and expl o i t a t i o n of the less powerful has been supported by p o l i t i c a l , economic and r e l i g i o u s i n s t i t u t i o n s ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992). The husband has t r a d i t i o n a l l y been sanctioned with the authority to maintain control over his family. Patriarchal power and physical force have been assumed to be morally j u s t i f i e d . In the past, t r a d i t i o n a l terms of marriage c l e a r l y stated that a woman i s 'given' i n marriage by her father to her husband, and that she must promise to 'obey' her husband ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992). H i s t o r i c a l l y , the leg a l promise of marriage has included enduring abuse. The -' rule-of--thumb•'--was-a -n-i-neteenth=century- B r i t i s h law which stated that a man could beat his wife 'with a rod no thicker than his thumb' ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992, p.48). This law was amended i n the United States i n the late 1800's to state that, as 21 long as no permanent injury or cruelty to the wife was evident, i t was better to, "...leave the pa r t i e s to forget and forgive" (Swanson, 1984, p.709). Although the women's movement has achieved many advancements for women, power inequity between men and women s t i l l exists (Sampselle, Bernhard, Kerr, Opie, Perley & Pitzer, 1993). Feminist researchers believe that violence against women stems from an unequal power base between men and women; "...the s o c i a l i z a t i o n of women, discrimination, and biases that support i n e q u a l i t y a f f e c t battering and women's health" (Moss & Taylor, 1991, p.1159). A c l a s s i c anthropological study on violence against women by Sandy (1981) reviewed 186 s o c i e t i e s . The resul t s of Sandy's (1981) study revealed that, i n cultures where violence was an i n t e g r a l f a b r i c of the culture, the roles of men and women were gender based. Men held a l l the power, and women were viewed as the man's property. T r a d i t i o n a l c u l t u r a l values are often deeply entrenched and ra r e l y questioned (Sampselle et a l . , 1993). Values which support the devaluating of women perpetrate -the-problem-of -violence-against..-women. Deep-rooted i n e q u a l i t i e s between men and women w i l l be d i f f i c u l t to eliminate without massive changes at a l l l e v e l s of society (Dobash & Dobash, 1979). Sampselle (1991) states that, when taken together, the devaluation 22 of women, diminished power, and being treated as property have a profound impact on women and, i n turn, a f f e c t t h e i r physical and psychological well-being. Brendtro and Bowker (1989) conducted a study i n which 146 battered women were interviewed and another 854 battered women completed a questionnaire. The main findings of t h i s study include the following: wife battering was usually accompanied by very high l e v e l s of male dominance i n other areas of marital l i f e ; at least 7 out of 10 batterers also beat t h e i r children; most of the women were raped by t h e i r husbands, and many of them on a regular basis; wife abuse occurs i n a l l s o c i a l classes and i n a l l ethnic groups; and there i s strong evidence to support intergenerational transmission of male propensity to commit acts of family violence. A s i g n i f i c a n t finding of t h i s study i s that formal help sources d i f f e r s i g n i f i c a n t l y i n t h e i r effectiveness i n providing services to battered women. The women i n t h i s study rated the health care system as the least e f f e c t i v e formal source of help. As r e s u l t of t h e i r research, Brendtro and Bowker (1989) concluded that wife abuse i s one way a man can • increase -his—dominance _wi thin—the.-family The authors believe that the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and care of battered women i s complicated by the psychological e f f e c t s of battering. Male strategies for dominance tend to depress a battered woman's self-image and self-confidence; 23 "...some battered women f i n d i t uncommonly d i f f i c u l t to leave t h e i r husbands and others believe that they deserve to be battered" (Brendtro & Bowker, 1989, p.174). These authors believe that battered women seek help from nurses to deal with both the physical trauma and the secondary e f f e c t s of abuse. Secondary e f f e c t s were described as both short and long-term including somatic complaints, anxieties, phobias, depression, nightmares, feelings of worthlessness and betrayal, and an i n a b i l i t y to engage i n a s a t i s f y i n g s o c i a l and/or sexual r e l a t i o n s h i p with the opposite sex. Social Isolation/Support The home i s often viewed as a private place. Wife abuse occurs within the home, thus women are e f f e c t i v e l y i s o l a t e d by s o c i e t a l reluctance to become involved i n domestic a f f a i r s (Henderson, 1992). Henderson (1992) i d e n t i f i e s the very important but usually overlooked unpleasant truth that battered women f e e l safer l i v i n g with t h e i r abusers than they do l i v i n g on t h e i r own. "Women on t h e i r own can never be sure that t h e i r husband w i l l not f i n d them and/or the children, or abduct the ch i l d ( r e n ) . As a culture, we do not do well i n -suppor-ting--these..-.women-.-when-they_leave -their-marriage. . . " (Henderson, 1992, p.28). A q u a l i t a t i v e study by Henderson (1990), examined the experiences of abused women who, along with t h e i r children were i n the process of leaving t h e i r abusive 24 partner. Eight women were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide designed to e l i c i t information on d i f f e r e n t aspects of the women's experiences. Nineteen interviews were analyzed according to the process described by Giorgi (1975). The findings of t h i s study revealed that when a battered woman leaves an abusive partner, she and her children are i n need of support. Henderson (1990) found i t was d i f f i c u l t for women to uphold t h e i r decision to leave because of court-imposed contact with the father and the lack of ava i l a b l e support subsequent to the separation. Issues surrounding custody and access have been i d e n t i f i e d by battered women as a major problem area (Henderson, 1990). Jacobson (1982) coordinated a study on protection for battered women. The partic i p a n t s for t h i s study were battered women and individuals from various agencies who work with battered women. The following outlines the sample of pa r t i c i p a n t s : nine battered women; 20 partici p a n t s form the leg a l system including, p o l i c e , lawyers, judges, family court counsellors and j u s t i c e of the peace; 11 health care professionals including, physicians, mental health s o c i a l workers, psychologists, and nurses-in-public—health,-psychiatry,—obstetrics and emergency departments. Semi-structured interviews were used to e l i c i t data from each of the p a r t i c i p a n t s . The method of data analysis i s unclear; however, the data are c l e a r l y presented as a det a i l e d i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y report 25 on what happens when a battered woman seeks a i d . The comprehensive descriptions i n t h i s report are evidence that more rigorous research studies need to be conducted to further support the findings of Jacobson ( 1 9 8 2 ) . Custody and Access Jacobson(1982) i d e n t i f i e d that custody and access i s a c r i t i c a l issue for battered women. Husbands who had been successfully charged with assault against t h e i r wives were s t i l l seen as capable parents by the courts. Moreover, these men were using t h e i r access v i s i t s as a means of continuing to harass and abuse t h e i r wives. Some of the fathers were only interested i n the children when picking them up or bringing them back; i n between, the children were l e f t with friends or r e l a t i v e s . The children's welfare was i n jeopardy, because they i continued to experience unneeded stress. Jacobson reported that there was a consensus among the l e g a l participants that a father had the r i g h t to access to his children regardless of a h i s t o r y of wife abuse. The physical safety of the children was i d e n t i f i e d as a concern; however, the abuse would have to be extremely serious before access would be denied. Jacobson---(-1982-) —noted-that- par-ticipants-within the l e g a l system talked about the father's rights to his children, but they did not mention the c h i l d ' s r i g h t to choose not to spend time with the father or the battered woman's 26 ri g h t to protection from ongoing physical and/or mental abuse from the ex-husband. Abusive relationships are often characterized as involving a power imbalance between the husband and wife (Dobash & Dobash, 1979). An abusive husband sometimes extends his power and control beyond the marriage into the separation period. Abusive husbands w i l l often use the l e g a l system to maintain contact and control over t h e i r ex-wives and children (The Canadian Panel on Violence Against Women, 1993). Zorza (1995) states that even i f p r i o r to separation the abuse was only focussed on the mother, an abusive partner w i l l " . . . s h i f t his focus to control of the c h i l d as a way to continue the t e r r o r and violence against the mother" (p.147). The current trend favours awarding j o i n t or sole custody to fathers regardless of a hi s t o r y of wife abuse ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992; Chesler, 1986; Jacobson, 1982; Pagelow, 1992; Zorza, 1995). Joint custody and access v i s i t s provide the abuser with ongoing contact with his ex-wife and enable the batterer to continue to abuse his partner and expose his children to violence and discord. _ Joint- custody -is—currently._se.en as-.a._means of preventing b i t t e r court battles and serving ' i n the best in t e r e s t of the c h i l d ' (Walker & Edwall, 1987) . Divorce research which states that children are better adjusted i f they maintain contact with both parents (Wallerstein & 27 Kelly, 1980) i s often c i t e d as grounds for awarding j o i n t custody. However, j o i n t custody may not be 'i n the best i n t e r e s t of the c h i l d ' when there i s a h i s t o r y of abuse (Pagelow, 1992). Custody and access serve as a means for a batterer to continue to abuse his ex-partner and expose his children to violence and discord (The Canadian Panel on Violence Against Women, 1993). Most battered women are either too exhausted p h y s i c a l l y and emotionally or too frightened of los i n g custody to dispute t h e i r ex-partner's plea for j o i n t custody; thus, they give i n to the demands of the batterer (Walker & Edwall, 1987). Pagelow (1992) claims that although ' i n the best i n t e r e s t of the c h i l d ' i s a widely accepted doctrine, "the focus often s h i f t s from the righ t s of children to nonviolent l i v e s , to a focus on parental (paternal) rights when abused mothers attempt to separate from t h e i r abusers or to terminate t h e i r marriage..." (p.107). Zorza (1995) suggests the factors used to determine the best i n t e r e s t of the c h i l d usually favour fathers over mothers, for example: l i f e s t y l e , employment, c r e d i t record, economic a b i l i t y , health, a b i l i t y to care for the c h i l d and s t a b i l i t y of the environment. "Women are often penallz.ed.-for—having_l.es.s - S t a b i l i t y Battered women are p a r t i c u l a r l y l i k e l y to appear less stable. Many w i l l have had to move frequently to avoid the abuse or w i l l have been or are homeless because of the abuse (Zorza, 1995, p.151). In addition, many batterers refuse to l e t 28 t h e i r partners work, which leaves women disadvantaged i n the work place, along with undermining t h e i r s e l f -confidence and decreasing t h e i r self-esteem (Zorza, 1995). Continued Violence A common myth held i n society i s that women are free to leave t h e i r abusive partners at anytime, and, by choosing to remain i n abusive relationships, they deserve to be beaten (Campbell & Fishwick, 1993). This myth i s based on an assumption that the violence w i l l cease when the women leave. Zorza (1995) suggests that judges often "...assume i n c o r r e c t l y that domestic violence ends when the parties divorce or that a woman i s greatly exaggerating the abuse because she would have l e f t long before i f the abuse was severe" (p.152). As previously stated, violence does not always end when a women leaves an abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p . Separation and divorce increases the danger for many battered women (Zorza, 1995). Campbell and Fishwick (1993) state that t h i s myth has influenced the conduct of the courts, p o l i c e , and health care professionals and, thereby, has also masked the blame of the abuser and society. — -Battered-women...are—of.ten_intimidated...by..both the leg a l system and threats of violence from t h e i r ex-husbands (Archer, 1989; Drewitt, 1993; Pagelow, 1992; Walker & Edwall, 1987). Fear of the le g a l system, the complexities of the law, along with the f i n a n c i a l s t r a i n 29 of l e g a l fees create stress on battered women. Fear often leads women to ignore t h e i r own right s to alimony and c h i l d support. Many women hold a misconception that a quick settlement w i l l s i g n i f y an end to t h e i r fear and intimidation (Archer, 1989). In many cases, the fear and intimidation does not cease a f t e r the divorce settlement (Archer, 1989). Women and t h e i r children are adversely affected by unfair settlements which continue to expose them to abusive ex-partners. Chesler (1986) conducted a study with 60 mothers who had been primary care givers of t h e i r c h i l d r e n and were challenged c u s t o d i a l l y by t h e i r ex-partners. Chesler (1986) describes several cases where women i n her study who were the primary caregivers of t h e i r c h i l d r e n were denied custody and were prevented from any reasonable access. The fathers i n t h i s study won 82% of custody battles, and 62% of these fathers used violence to win custody: "They p h y s i c a l l y battered, p a t h o l o g i c a l l y t e r r o r i z e d , and p h y s i c a l l y ejected women from t h e i r homes" (p.83); they also kidnapped t h e i r children, and 'brainwashed' them against t h e i r mothers. In addition, the fathers i n the study acted as i f t h e i r wives were unworthy_-of mer.cy~or__compass.ion:__!!They .were--surprised' when t h e i r ex-wives displayed human emotion upon being c u s t o d i a l l y victimized" (Chesler, 1986, p.153). 30 Parenting Problems Confrontation with an abusive ex-partner and the ex-partner's r e l a t i o n s h i p with his children are only one part of a woman's problems. NiCarthy's (1982) s e l f - h e l p manual for battered women describes how an abusive re l a t i o n s h i p and the children's separation from t h e i r father can also create problems between the mother and her children. A mother may have developed patterns of coping with her children that are a r e s u l t of t r y i n g to survive while l i v i n g with abuse. Typical coping s k i l l s a battered woman may develop include the following: being overprotective towards her children i n an e f f o r t to protect them from d i r e c t or i n d i r e c t abuse from t h e i r father; being reluctant to d i s c i p l i n e her children, because the children have suffered so much abuse and punishment from t h e i r father; d i s p l a c i n g her anger for her partner onto her children; and becoming so depressed that her means of coping are to ignore the needs of her children (NiCarthy, 1982). In addition, NiCarthy (1982) states that the children have l i v e d a s i g n i f i c a n t part of th e i r l i v e s i n a state of tension, and, therefore, they may also develop inappropriate or unsuitable means of coping -within.- a - . f a m i l y — f i l l e d -with-frightening, dangerous, and unpredictable events. The mother's and the children's previous methods of coping may now be counter-productive i n t h e i r new family s i t u a t i o n . Both the mother and her children w i l l need to 31 learn new methods of coping. The mother w i l l need support to develop or adapt her parenting s k i l l s and e s t a b l i s h herself as a credible parental figure (NiCarthy, 1982). If she does not receive support, both she and the children may revert back to o l d and f a m i l i a r ways of coping (NiCarthy, 1982). It seems reasonable to assume that when a battered woman leaves an abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p she w i l l expect to be free of the violence and psychological abuse. Yet, the l i t e r a t u r e presented c l e a r l y indicates that many women, through custody and access, continue to be involved with abusive ex-partners. Children make a woman's separation from an abusive partner more complicated (NiCarthy, 1982). To f u l l y appreciate the complexities of t h i s phenomenon, l i t e r a t u r e which describes c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of c h i l d witnesses to abuse and children's adjustment to separation or divorce must be explored i n order to understand the impact these e f f e c t s have on the mother. Custody and Access - The Impact on Child Witnesses of Abuse A study by MacLeod (1987), found that 70% of women who- sought -refuge - i n - c r i s i s - s h e l t e r s -due -to -abuse were accompanied by children. The average number of children per woman was two, with the majority being under 10 years of age (MacLeod, 1987). Children who witness wife abuse are victims of violence. Recent research on wife abuse 32 has extended to include these c h i l d witnesses (Ericksen & Henderson, 1992; Henderson, 1990; Jaffe, Wolfe & Wilson, 1990). Research indicates that children who l i v e i n vi o l e n t families w i l l suffer psychological and physical consequences (Jaffe, Wolfe, Wilson & Zak, 1985, 1986a, 1986b). A ch i l d ' s exposure to wife abuse can have numerous ef f e c t s with immediate or long-term implications depending on the c h i l d and his/her unique s i t u a t i o n . These e f f e c t s are well documented and include: restlessness, nervousness, anxiety disorders, nightmares, psychosomatic disorders, bedwetting, stomach problems, insomnia, withdrawal, destructive behaviours, decreased self-esteem, approval of interpersonal violence, and s o c i a l incompetence (Alcorn, Sakaluk & Solomon, 1985; Ericksen & Henderson, 1992; Hershorn & Rosenbaum, 1985; Hilberman & Munson, 1978; Hughes, 1986; Hughes & Barad, 1983; Jaffe, Wolfe, Wilson & Zak, 1985, 1986a, 1986b; Levine, 1975; Owens & Straus, 1975; Rosenbaum & O'Leary; 1981; Westra & Martin, 1981). Any c h i l d who witnesses wife abuse can be considered a v i c t i m of abuse and, therefore, a c h i l d whose needs are of concern-to-nurses Children -who-witness wife abuse are at r i s k for many problems because they must learn to cope with and adapt to an environment which i s s t r e s s f u l and highly disorganized (Campbell & Humphreys, 1984). 33 The connection between exposure to violence as a c h i l d and growing up to either be abused or an abuser has been well documented i n the l i t e r a t u r e (Owens & Straus, 1975; Post, Wi l l e t , Franks & Back, 1981; Roy, 1977) . A study by Roy (1977), reported that 81% of the abusive husbands i n her study witnessed abuse as a c h i l d and 33% of them abused women. "Batterers themselves acknowledged the learning experiences i n t h e i r childhood when t h e i r fathers taught them how to be men and how to be husbands" (Jaffe, Wolfe & Wilson, 1990, p.17). Violence i s perceived as a basis for power and control over t h e i r family (Jaffe, Wolfe & Wilson, 1990). Roy (1977) found that battered women often expected violence i n t h e i r marriage and had l i t t l e i nsight into how to end the violence. Pagelow (1992) i d e n t i f i e s two assumptions prominent i n the American le g a l system which have an impact on c h i l d witnesses of abuse: "(a) abuse directed only at a spouse i s not necessarily damaging to a c h i l d , and (b) being a vio l e n t spouse,does not necessarily have anything to do with that person's a b i l i t y to be a good parent" (p.106). These assumptions are also prevalent i n the -Canadian-legal—system-as -the-provinces -are _yet to enact statutes that make domestic violence relevant i n custody decisions (Department of Justice Canada, 1993). There i s s u f f i c i e n t research to refute these assumptions. 34 Studies have demonstrated that children who witness abuse are well aware of the violence and a c t u a l l y witness more violence than either of the parents know of (Dobash & Dobash, 1979; Ericksen & Henderson, 1992; Henderson, 1993). It i s also well documented that ch i l d r e n who witness wife abuse are victims of abuse (Alcorn, Sakaluk & Solomon, 1985; Ericksen, & Henderson, 1992; Jaffe, Wolfe & Wilson, 1990; Jaffe, Wolfe, Wilson & Zak, 1985, 1986a, 1986b; Hershorn & Rosenbaum, 1985; Hilberman & Munson, 1978; Rosenbaum & O'Leary, 1981; Westra & Martin, 1981). Rosenbaum and O'Leary (1981) i d e n t i f y four reasons why children are victims: 1) they are exposed to vio l e n t and violence t o l e r a t i n g role models; 2) they are exposed to marital discord at the same time as abuse; 3)they must learn to cope with the stress from both the fear of inj u r y to the mother and fear of being vic t i m i z e d themselves; and 4) they may also be victims of physical abuse by either or both parents. Walker and Edwall (1987) claim that i t i s not unusual for a man who batters his wife to, " . . . h i t , shove, push, throw, shake and otherwise beat his children" (p.135). Walker (1984) found that i n 55% of the-.cases,- children~who-.-witnessed -abuse...were also p h y s i c a l l y abused, and 70% of the abuse came from the father. Only 0.5% of the women interviewed i n t h i s study reported p h y s i c a l l y abusing t h e i r children. However, most of the women admitted to d i s c i p l i n i n g t h e i r children 35 to control t h e i r behaviour i n hopes that the abusive partner would not abuse them or the children (Walker, 1984). The mothers who did abuse t h e i r children ceased the abuse following the separation from t h e i r partners (Walker, 1984). Maternal stress l e v e l s can have a s i g n i f i c a n t impact on children's behaviour and adjustment (Wolfe, Jaffe, Wilson & Zak, 1985). Battered women are more l i k e l y to suffer from both physical and emotional problems and be exposed to c r i t i c a l l i f e stresses, such as f i n a n c i a l d i f f i c u l t i e s and homelessness (Wolfe et a l . , 1985). These stressors can hinder t h e i r mother-child interactions (Walker, 1979). As a re s u l t , c h i l d r e n may develop behavioural problems because of inconsistent, under-stimulating, and unsuitable attention from t h e i r mother (Walker, 1979). A father's l e g a l right to custody and access of his children enable the batterer to continue to expose his children to ongoing abuse and marital discord. The l i t e r a t u r e c l e a r l y supports that children who witness abuse are changed by i t and w i l l suffer both emotional and physical consequences (Ericksen & Henderson, 1992). When -a -mother—leaves -her.-abusi.ve...partner_.she-faces both a greater r i s k of danger for herself (Zorza, 1995) and the physical and emotional harm of her children. Leaving the violence also provides a new layer of problems for the mother and her children as the eff e c t s of separation and 36 divorce are also recognized as being d i f f i c u l t on children (Emery, 1982). Divorce/Separation - Children's Adjustment Post-divorce The divorce l i t e r a t u r e maintains that children's adjustment i s most s i g n i f i c a n t l y influenced by the amount of marital discord and aggression to which they are exposed (Emery, 1982; Jo u r i l e s , Murphy & O'Leary, 1989; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980; Zaslow, 1988, 1989). Emery (1982) suggests that interparental c o n f l i c t , not separation from the c h i l d ' s father (or mother), may be the explanation for continuing childhood problems following divorce. This statement has been supported by other researchers (Hetherington, Cox & Cox, 197 6; Rutter, 1971, 1979). Studies s i m i l a r l y support that c o n f l i c t between parents does not cease with divorce (Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980; Johnston, Kline, Tschann, 1989). Joint custody and access v i s i t a t i o n often exposes children to ongoing parental c o n f l i c t . There i s a lack of research supporting the e f f i c a c y of j o i n t custody when there i s parental c o n f l i c t . Johnston et a l . (1989) point out that the sparse body of l i t e r a t u r e on j o i n t custody comes from small studies of families who have v o l u n t a r i l y -undertaken-the-arrangement. -In-their--study, -Johnston et a l . (1989) examined ongoing post-divorce c o n f l i c t by measuring the behavioural and s o c i a l adjustment of children form 100 families that were involved i n custody and access disputes. Johnston et a l . (1989) found that 37 frequent access to parents who are h o s t i l e towards each other leads to increased amounts of verbal and physical aggression, and a greater l i k e l i h o o d that a c h i l d w i l l be caught i n the middle of disputes. Higher incidence of emotional and behavioural problems was found i n children exposed to ongoing post-divorce parental c o n f l i c t (Johnston et a l . , 1989). Children of battered women who have ongoing contact with an abusive father are l i k e l y to be at a higher r i s k for exposure to ongoing post-divorce abuse and discord. Children's adjustment following divorce or separation has been associated with the psychological adjustment of the custodial parent (Emery, 1982; Kalter, Kloner, Schreier & Okla, 1989; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980). Walker and Edwall (1987) claim that sometimes a battered woman can become so depressed or angry when her rela t i o n s h i p ends that she neglects her children's emotional needs for a time. Kalter et a l . (1989) state that "when economic depravation, interparental h o s t i l i t y and the burden of single parenting take t h e i r t o l l on custodial mothers, children w i l l tend to fare less well" (p.671). Kalter et a l . (1989) recommend that a key -intervention on~behalf ...of-the-.children ..is supportive parenting through parenting groups and i n d i v i d u a l counselling. 38 Nurses' Role - Acting on the Ongoing Abuse of Battered Women There i s no research l i t e r a t u r e which describes the nurse's role i n a s s i s t i n g battered women i n dealing with the issues involved i n custody and access. This lack of l i t e r a t u r e i s c l e a r l y related to the fact that issues surrounding battered women and custody and access have only recently been i d e n t i f i e d ; to date, custody and access has not been recognized as a credible problem ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992). The issue of battered women and custody and access has, however, been i d e n t i f i e d i n nursing research as a concern for nurses. In a q u a l i t a t i v e study by Henderson (1990), the experiences of eight battered women who were i n the process of leaving an abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p were examined. One major problem area i d e n t i f i e d by the women was i n r e l a t i o n to the ongoing contact, guaranteed by court-imposed access, between the children and t h e i r fathers. These women perceived that the children were being further disturbed by the access v i s i t s and were being forced to take sides. The women had mixed feelings about t h e i r children's needs to see t h e i r father: "They a l l f e l t , - however, that t h e - s i t u a t i o n was .a ..difficult one, not easy to resolve, and that they had to make the best of a bad job" (Henderson, 1990, p.12). In conclusion, Henderson (1990) states that "...women continued to experience danger, harassment and constant 39 worry even when out of the marriage" (p.12). Henderson (1990) recommends that nurses help e s t a b l i s h and f a c i l i t a t e parenting support groups which w i l l help women anticipate and plan for some of the problems, including custody and access. Nurses as health care professionals have been part of a system which, to date, has been unable to adequately meet the needs of battered women. In a study by Brendtro and Bowker (1989), 1,000 battered women i d e n t i f i e d the health care system as the least e f f e c t i v e formal source of help. Why haven't nurses been more successful i n the past i n caring for battered women? Polk and Brown (1988) i d e n t i f y two factors which have contributed to nurses' lack of response: lack of knowledge and a f f e c t i v e dissonance. Polk and Brown (1988) define a f f e c t i v e dissonance as "...an unconscious fear of recognizing violence and abuse within s e l f or family members" (p.43). Brendtro and Bowker (1989) recommend that i n order to be ef f e c t i v e , nurses must f i r s t examine t h e i r own attitudes and feelings about wife abuse. One way of c l a r i f y i n g values and b e l i e f s i s to become better educated about wife abuse. Cognitive and a f f e c t i v e knowledge w i l l provide .nurses -with--the-necessary .s k i l l s - for appropriate intervention and care of battered women (Brendtro & Bowker, 1989). To t h i s researcher's knowledge there i s no qu a l i t a t i v e l i t e r a t u r e describing the battered women's 40 experiences with t h i s phenomenon of ongoing abuse. However, a recent s t a t i s t i c reported by Zorza (1995) c l e a r l y supports the need for q u a l i t a t i v e nursing research to understand these women's experiences: "In the United States, although only one tenth of a l l women are separated or divorced at any one time, three quarters of a l l women hos p i t a l i z e d because of domestic violence are separated or divorced"(p.147). Summary The l i t e r a t u r e which has been presented i n t h i s chapter delineates the current state of knowledge i n the area of battered women's experiences with custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners, and describes the context from which t h i s study was derived. Four themes that emerged from the l i t e r a t u r e were examined. Each of these themes i l l u s t r a t e s the complexities facing battered women when children are involved. The relat i o n s h i p between her abuser and his children make i t d i f f i c u l t , i f not t r u l y impossible, for a woman to t r u l y break-free (NiCarthy, 1982) . Literature which describes the h i s t o r i c a l , s o c i a l , environmental and leg a l factors of wife abuse provide the necessary—foundation .for-this-study. .. The-literature has i l l u s t r a t e d that when a woman leaves an abusive re l a t i o n s h i p she i s faced with a new set of challenges and i s at an increased r i s k for ongoing danger (Zorza, 1995). Custody and access i s c l e a r l y a major source of 41 stress for these women. Issues related to custody and access have been i d e n t i f i e d i n some desc r i p t i v e l i t e r a t u r e , but the researcher has found no empirical data which i d e n t i f i e s the battered woman's experiences. A q u a l i t a t i v e study which s p e c i f i c a l l y e l i c i t s i n -depth descriptions of battered women's experiences must be undertaken i s t h i s phenomenon of wife abuse i s to be understood, and health care services to a i d these women are to be developed. Our current knowledge of custody and access i s not s u f f i c i e n t to secure e f f e c t i v e services and protection to battered women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . In a discussion paper on custody and access, Jaffe, Austin, Leschied and Sas (1987) discuss the need for health care professionals to engage i n creative research i n order to better understand the eff e c t s of exposing parents and children to ongoing parental c o n f l i c t . 42 CHAPTER THREE: METHOD Introduction The purpose of t h i s study i s to understand the experiences of battered women who, through court-imposed custody and access orders, continue to be involved with t h e i r abusive ex-partners. The q u a l i t a t i v e methodology of phenomenology was chosen as the research method for t h i s study. Phenomenology i s an appropriate method when l i t t l e i s known about the topic and when the topic i s complex and requires a h o l i s t i c view of the phenomenon of inquiry (Oiler, 1982; Ornery, 1983). Battered women's perceptions of custody and access are unknown. Phenomenology i s a research approach which concentrates on searching for the facts and causes of a subject's behaviour by attempting to understand the in d i v i d u a l ' s perspective (Munhall & Oi l e r , 1986). In t h i s chapter the q u a l i t a t i v e method of phenomenology w i l l be described. The researcher w i l l then describe the procedures used i n t h i s study to select p a r t i c i p a n t s and to c o l l e c t and analyze data. F i n a l l y , the researcher w i l l present e t h i c a l considerations u t i l i z e d i n t h i s study to ensure protection of human ri g h t s . - - - - .. Phenomenology, a Qualitative Approach to Research Qualitative research methods have been increasingly recognized as congruent with the goals and perspectives of nursing (Sandelowski, 1986). The goal of 43 phenomenological research i s to describe "...the world-as-experienced by the participants of the inquiry i n order to discover the common meanings underlying empirical variations of a given phenomenon" (Baker, Wuest & Noerager Stern, 1992, p.1356). Phenomenology uncovers and makes e x p l i c i t the complexities of human experience. Omery (1983) states that nursing i s a humanistic d i s c i p l i n e with values and b e l i e f s that include viewing the human phenomenon as h o l i s t i c and meaningful. These are values and b e l i e f s shared by phenomenological inquiry (Omery, 1983). Therefore, phenomenology, by placing value on the understanding of human experiences from the indi v i d u a l ' s perspective (Knaack, 1984), provides a l o g i c a l approach to nursing research. Thorne (1991) states that phenomenology with " . . . i t s methods of intense i n t e r a c t i o n between the knower and that to be known,...parallel a concern within c l i n i c a l nursing ...of engaging i n i n t e r a c t i o n with indiv i d u a l s as unique beings deserving of some equally unique caring or intervention (p.183). Phenomenology i s an inductive, d e s c r i p t i v e research method (Omery, 1983). It i s an appropriate method of inquiry—when—there i s -a -need-to -understand-both the subjective and the objective perspective of the person who has experienced the e f f e c t s of the phenomenon (Omery, 1983). Omery (1983) states that nurse researchers can no longer ignore the fact that quantitative research i s 44 t r a d i t i o n a l l y a reduction and abstraction of i s o l a t e d parts. Quantitative research on human development i s not comprehensive (Ornery, 1983). In contrast, phenomenology s t r i v e s to f i t the smaller parts back into a dynamic whole (Ornery, 1983). As such, i t i s the method of choice when the study involves an i n d i v i d u a l ' s experience of and response to a set of complex externally imposed influences. Selection of Participants In phenomenological research, anyone who has l i v e d experience of the phenomenon of inquiry q u a l i f i e s as a v a l i d p a r t i c i p a n t (Sandelowski, 1986). "Samples i n q u a l i t a t i v e research are often not representative i n the quantitative sense, but i n q u a l i t a t i v e research, any p a r t i c i p a n t belonging to a s p e c i f i c group i s considered to represent that group" (Sandelowski, 1986, p.32). Sampling i s purposive i n that p a r t i c i p a n t s are chosen that can illuminate the richness of the i n d i v i d u a l experience (Baker et a l . , 1992). The sampling technique of purposive sampling was u t i l i z e d i n t h i s study, and p a r t i c i p a n t s were chosen who could illuminate the phenomenon of inquiry. - - •- - — -Selection C r i t e r i a -The selection of participants for t h i s study was conducted using a predetermined set of c r i t e r i a . These c r i t e r i a were established to ensure that the p a r t i c i p a n t s would be knowledgeable about the phenomenon under study. 4 5 The p a r t i c i p a n t s for t h i s study were battered women who had l e f t abusive relationships and were currently involved i n ongoing custody and access negotiations with t h e i r abusive ex-partners. The s p e c i f i c c r i t e r i a used i n the s e l e c t i o n of the participants was as follows: 1) single mothers who had l e f t abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p s ; 2) single mothers who were at the time sharing custody and/or access v i s i t a t i o n s of t h e i r children with abusive ex-partners; 3) women who were able to speak English. The selected participants agreed to p a r t i c i p a t e i n one to three separate audio-taped interviews of one to two hours i n duration. Recruitment Procedures Participants were recruited from follow-up programs at a Lower Mainland t r a n s i t i o n house for battered women. A l l of the participants were previously known to the researcher through her role as a f a c i l i t a t o r of a parenting support group for battered women. The researcher recruited p a r t i c i p a n t s through a number of short presentations describing the nature of the study. An introductory l e t t e r (Appendix A) explaining the study and instructions on how to contact the researcher were .distributed -to_potential_participants.. . .The..participants then i n i t i a t e d contact with the researcher either through a telephone c a l l to a number at the u n i v e r s i t y or by leaving instructions with an agency worker on how the researcher was to contact them. Concerns for the safety 46 of both the participants and the researcher precluded using the researcher's own phone number. Sample Size In phenomenological research there can be no predetermined sample s i z e . When using the sampling technique of purposive sampling, the sample sizes are d e l i b e r a t e l y kept small due to the depth and breadth of the data c o l l e c t i o n from each p a r t i c i p a n t (Baker et a l . , 1992). The number of part i c i p a n t s i s , i n fact, judged to be adequate when no new concepts are emerging and data saturation has occurred (Woods & Catanzaro, 1988). Data saturation i s said to occur when the major categories or themes are repeated and no new themes are emerging (Woods & Catanzaro, 1988). The researcher i d e n t i f i e d that data saturation had i n fact occurred aft e r data were c o l l e c t e d from a t o t a l of f i v e p a r t i c i p a n t s . Data C o l l e c t i o n Phenomenology requires intense r e f l e c t i o n with absolute concentration on the experience (Oiler, 1981). O i l e r (1981) describes t h i s as "...looking at the experience with wide-open eyes, with knowledge, facts and theory held at bay..." (p.180). The data c o l l e c t i o n technique-must - ensure -the-preservation -of -the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' spontaneity as they describe t h e i r l i v e d experience and the e f f e c t s that t h e i r perspective may have had on t h e i r experiences and behaviour (Oiler, 4 7 1981). The data c o l l e c t i o n technique used i n t h i s study was interviews. Unstructured non-directive interviews were conducted to e l i c i t spontaneous descriptions from the p a r t i c i p a n t s . A l l interviews were audio-taped and subsequently transcribed verbatim by the researcher to ensure accuracy of the descriptions and pa r t i c i p a n t c o n f i d e n t i a l i t y . Trigger questions were used to keep the p a r t i c i p a n t s focussed on the issues without influencing t h e i r descriptions (Appendix B). Questioning and probing were done i n an informal manner to a s s i s t p a r t i c i p a n t s i n getting started with t h e i r conversation, to c l a r i f y information, and to encourage further descriptions of t h e i r experiences and behaviour. During the i n i t i a l contact between the researcher and the participant, the researcher explained the nature of the study and arranged an interview time. Written consent (Appendix C) was obtained from the pa r t i c i p a n t s following an explanation of the study and p r i o r to the st a r t of the interview. Each interview was conducted one-on-one and was one to two hours i n duration. Many of the part i c i p a n t s i n t h i s study were s t i l l at great r i s k of danger, - and-any. exposure-would-only compound the danger; thus, the participants were interviewed i n a set t i n g of t h e i r choice which did not pose a threat to the participant's or the researcher's safety. Some of the part i c i p a n t s were interviewed i n t h e i r homes while 48 others were interviewed i n a private s e t t i n g at both the School of Nursing and the r e f e r r a l agency. Interviews with the f i r s t two p a r t i c i p a n t s were guided by the researcher's use of the broad t r i g g e r questions and probes related to the phenomenon of inquiry (Appendix B). After these interviews were conducted, the data were transcribed then analyzed. This analysis provided d i r e c t i o n for planning subsequent interviews using a more defined set of questions ( F i e l d & Morse, 1985). With each subsequent interview, s i m i l a r i t i e s among pa r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences were explored and validated. As well, any differences i n the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences were also examined i n order to f u l l y understand the phenomenon of study. As common themes began to emerge from the data, p a r t i c i p a n t s ' insight into the meaning of these themes was sought to vali d a t e the research findings. F i e l d notes were also kept by the researcher as a means of recording factors which might have influenced the interview process. These notes included the researcher's personal thoughts and feelings during the interview(s). Personal insights into the research -process -were .also -recorded -Data Analysis In phenomenological research, data analysis occurs concurrently with the ongoing data c o l l e c t i o n (Omery, 1983). Data analysis occurs as soon as the f i r s t 49 interview has been completed. Each interview i s analyzed then used as a basis for structuring subsequent interviews. As data are collected, they are analyzed to i d e n t i f y emerging themes. This process allows the researcher to develop new questions or valid a t e and refin e e x i s t i n g themes. The goal of the analysis i s to make e x p l i c i t a deeper understanding of the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. Data analysis was conducted according to the s p e c i f i c steps outlined by Giorgi (1975). The following i s a summary of these steps (Giorgi, 1975): 1) The researcher reads the entire descriptions straight through to get a sense of the whole. 2) The researcher reads the same desc r i p t i o n again but more slowly for the purpose of i d e n t i f y i n g meaning units (inherent themes). 3) The researcher eliminates a l l redundancies but otherwise keeps a l l of the units. The remaining units are c l a r i f i e d or elaborated upon by r e l a t i n g them to each other as a whole. 4) The researcher r e f l e c t s on the given units, s t i l l i d e n t i f i e d i n the concrete language of .— -the participants,- and..transforms...then into more abstract language. 5) The researcher then integrates and synthesizes the insights into a descriptive structure of the meaning of the experience. This f i n a l 50 product i s then communicated to other researchers for c r i t i q u e and confirmation of the findings (p.74 & 75). In q u a l i t a t i v e research, i t i s necessary that the researcher have no preconceived notions or expectations, present to guide the analysis of the data ( F i e l d & Morse, 1985). Therefore, bracketing or suspending one's b e l i e f s was undertaken by the researcher p r i o r to analysis of the data to ensure that the essential r e a l i t i e s or 'truths' of the partic i p a n t s could be discovered. The endeavour to t r u l y suspend one's b e l i e f s i s often d i f f i c u l t , p a r t i c u l a r l y with sensitive research topics (Cowles, 1988). Throughout the research process, the researcher kept f i e l d notes as a means of confronting her own b e l i e f s and opinions, and i d e n t i f y i n g how these b e l i e f s may have influenced the questions asked. The researcher acknowledges the fact that her previous acquaintance with the participants may have influenced her a b i l i t y to 'tru l y ' separate her b e l i e f s from the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. However, t h i s researcher believes that the context of the experience i n the women's l i v e s was more deeply appreciated because of her re l a t i o n s h i p with the -participants . - As -well,--the -bond-between-the -researcher and the partic i p a n t s may have fostered the openness with which the women disclosed t h e i r experiences. 51 Validity The v a l i d i t y of q u a l i t a t i v e research i s measured by the c r e d i b i l i t y of the study. Sandelowski (1986) defines a credible study as one which "...presents such f a i t h f u l descriptions or interpretations of a human experience that the people having that experience would immediately recognize i t from those descriptions or interpretations as t h e i r own" (p.30). The researcher could never assume that she understood the meaning of the phenomenon without c l a r i f i c a t i o n and input from the p a r t i c i p a n t s i n t h i s study (Knaack, 1984). Therefore, to ensure c r e d i b i l i t y of t h i s study, data were continuously validated with the part i c i p a n t s , and the analysis of each interview was i n v a r i a b l y incorporated into subsequent interviews. Once the insights achieved from the analysis were integrated and synthesized, v a l i d a t i o n interviews were conducted to ensure the c r e d i b i l i t y of the researcher's des c r i p t i o n of the phenomenon. In addition, the researcher maintained ongoing consultation with her thesis committee to ensure the accuracy of the descriptions of the phenomenon. With q u a l i t a t i v e research methods such as phenomenology, constructing a meaningful account of the participants-'-—experiences ..while .remaining., objective can be d i f f i c u l t when there i s face-to-face contact with highly vulnerable women (Cowles, 1988). Cowles (1988) suggests " . . . i t i s d i f f i c u l t , at best, for the researcher not to have preconceived attitudes toward, and some 52 emotional responses to, situations i n which violence, acute emotional pain, sex, or i l l e g a l a c t i v i t y play major ro l e s " (p.176). It was important that the researcher acknowledge the s e n s i t i v i t y of t h i s researcher topic and the emotional attachment that she f e l t toward each of the p a r t i c i p a n t s . Although i t may be argued that an emotional involvement with the p a r t i c i p a n t s would bias the r e s u l t s of t h i s study, i t i s t h i s researcher's b e l i e f that the bond between the researcher and the p a r t i c i p a n t s created an environment that fostered openness and honesty. Oakley (1981) suggests that " . . . f i n d i n g out about other peoples' l i v e s i s much more r e a d i l y done on a basis of friendship than i n a formal interview" (p.52). The p a r t i c i p a n t s f e l t comfortable sharing with the researcher t h e i r inner thoughts, weaknesses and strengths gained from l i v i n g with t h i s phenomenon. Sandelowski (1986) states that 'going native' i s a threat to the c r e d i b i l i t y of q u a l i t a t i v e research. 'Going native' refers to when the researcher-participant rel a t i o n s h i p becomes so enmeshed that the researcher has d i f f i c u l t y d istinguishing her own experience from that of the p a r t i c i p a n t s . To avoid t h i s threat to c r e d i b i l i t y , the-researcher—kept-field -notes .to.-document ..her perceptions of the interviews and as a means of confronting her own b e l i e f s and opinions. In addition, the researcher used debriefing sessions with her thesis 53 committee to describe her personal feelings and thoughts throughout the research process. Miles and Huberman (1984) i d e n t i f y ' h o l i s t i c f a l l a c y ' as a threat to the external v a l i d i t y of a phenomenological study. H o l i s t i c f a l l a c y refers to when a researcher attempts to make the data seem more patterned and regular than i t t r u l y i s (Sandelowski, 1986). The f i n a l findings of t h i s study are grounded i n the l i v e d experiences of the par t i c i p a n t s and r e f l e c t both the t y p i c a l and the at y p i c a l elements of t h e i r experiences (Sandelowski, 1986). Furthermore, the findings of t h i s study should f i t into contexts outside of t h i s study. Fittingness w i l l be judged when battered women who did not p a r t i c i p a t e i n t h i s study view the findings as meaningful and applicable i n terms of t h e i r own experiences (Sandelowski, 1986) with custody and access. R e l i a b i l i t y R e l i a b i l i t y of q u a l i t a t i v e research i s judged by the a u d i t a b i l i t y of the study rather than r e p e a t a b i l i t y . Phenomenology seeks variations i n human experiences as opposed to i d e n t i c a l r e p l i c a t i o n (Sandelowski, 1986). A u d i t a b i l i t y - i s - d e f i n e d by-Sandelowski .(1986) - as when another researcher can c l e a r l y follow the decision t r a i l and a r r i v e at comparable not contradictory conclusions given the same data, perspective and s i t u a t i o n . To achieve a u d i t a b i l i t y , the researcher provided clear 54 descriptions of how the research was conducted, explained the data c o l l e c t i o n process, and accurately recorded a l l of the data. As categories and themes emerged from the data, the researcher's l o g i c a l reasoning was recorded and presented to her thesis committee for v a l i d a t i o n . Moreover, the f i n a l themes and descriptions were continually compared to the o r i g i n a l data to ensure that the l i n k s between the data and the f i n a l d e s c r i p t i v e structure were clear. The publ i c a t i o n of the re s u l t s of t h i s study and the input from other researchers w i l l also serve as a means of establishing a u d i t a b i l i t y of t h i s study. Throughout t h i s research study, the researcher was working i n consultation with the members of her thesis committee. The committee was constantly reviewing the decision t r a i l of the researcher, and t h i s i n turn helped to ensure the c l a r i t y , c r e d i b i l i t y and a u d i t a b i l i t y of these research findings. E t h i c a l Considerations C o n f i d e n t i a l i t y of the s t r i c t e s t nature was ensured throughout the research process. It was extremely important that the names of the par t i c i p a n t s d i d not -appear-.anywhere—that—they, might ..be-recognized... Thus, measures to ensure c o n f i d e n t i a l i t y were s t r i c t l y followed: 1) only f i r s t names were used when consent was obtained; 2) a l l participants were assigned a code number for means of i d e n t i f i c a t i o n ; 3) these codes were used to 55 i d e n t i f y the audio tapes and the interview tr a n s c r i p t i o n s ; 4) f i c t i t i o u s names are used i n the description of the research findings. Only the researcher had access to the master l i s t which i d e n t i f i e d the par t i c i p a n t s with t h e i r corresponding code. A l l of the consent forms, the master l i s t of names, audio tapes, interview transcriptions, and f i e l d notes were kept i n a locked f i l i n g cabinet at the researcher's home. The tapes were erased once they were transcribed. In addition, the master l i s t of the names of the partic i p a n t s was destroyed with the completion of t h i s study. The only other people who had access to the coded typed tr a n s c r i p t s were the researcher's thesis committee. Prior to commencing t h i s study, the researcher obtained e t h i c a l approval from the University of B r i t i s h Columbia Behavioural Sciences Screening Committee (Appendix E) along with the approval of the r e f e r r a l agency. Recruitment of participants for t h i s study required the assistance of s t a f f workers from the r e f e r r a l agency to help the researcher i d e n t i f y p o t e n t i a l p a r t i c i p a n t s . The researcher conducted b r i e f presentations on the nature of the study to women using services of the r e f e r r a l a g e n c y . -..An introductory l e t t e r explaining the study and instructions on how to contact the researcher were d i s t r i b u t e d to p o t e n t i a l p a r t i c i p a n t s . 56 I n i t i a l contact with the researcher was i n i t i a t e d by the p a r t i c i p a n t s . During t h i s f i r s t contact, the researcher explained the partici p a n t ' s role i n the study and arranged an interview time. At the s t a r t of the interview, the researcher took time to review the information l e t t e r (Appendix A) and the purpose of the study, along with any associated r i s k and benefits of p a r t i c i p a t i o n . Since the d i r e c t i o n of q u a l i t a t i v e research i s unknown, possible dangers are often hard to predict; therefore, ongoing consensual decision-making was used with the pa r t i c i p a n t s . The women were t o l d that they had the right to refuse to answer any questions and to withdraw from the study at any point i n the research process. Such a refusal would not i n t e r f e r e with the women obtaining any services provided by the r e f e r r a l agency. If any of the partic i p a n t s had decided to return to t h e i r ex-partner during the time of t h i s study, there would have been no further interviews conducted as i t could have placed both the par t i c i p a n t and the researcher i n p o t e n t i a l danger. A l l of the participants signed a written consent - -f orm-(Appendix...C)—of—which—they -received-a-copy. A summary of the findings of t h i s study w i l l be made available to the participants through the r e f e r r a l agency. It was f e l t that mailing information to the particip a n t ' s home could put them i n a dangerous 57 s i t u a t i o n . The researcher was well aware of the sensiti v e nature of t h i s topic and the ongoing threat of danger faced by battered women when continually exposed to abusive ex-partners. Every e f f o r t possible was under taken to ensure that the safety of the women was not further jeopardized by t h e i r involvement with t h i s study. It i s t h i s researcher's b e l i e f that women who par t i c i p a t e d i n t h i s study benefited as they were able to t e l l t h e i r s t o r i e s . Battered women's experiences of custody and access were not known. These women added to our knowledge of th i s phenomenon. By l i s t e n i n g to what these women were saying we w i l l be able to create better services which w i l l foster the s o c i a l , emotional and physical well-being of battered women. Summary In t h i s chapter, the researcher discussed the research method used for t h i s study. Phenomenology, a qu a l i t a t i v e approach to research, was described. The selec t i o n of participants, including the c r i t e r i a for selection, the recruitment procedure, and sample size were discussed. The data c o l l e c t i o n and analysis procedures were presented along with measures that were used-to -maintain_.the-validity..._and.-reliability- of t h i s study. F i n a l l y , e t h i c a l considerations relevant to the study were described. 58 CHAPTER FOUR: THE NATURE OF THE EXPERIENCES Introduction In t h i s chapter, the researcher w i l l present the analysis of the data of t h i s study together with her interpretations. The purpose of t h i s chapter i s to provide an accurate description of battered women's experiences of c h i l d custody and access and t h e i r ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. Prior to presenting the analysis, the researcher w i l l discuss demographic data pertinent to the study. Following the discussion of the analysis the researcher w i l l presented a diagrammatic i l l u s t r a t i o n of her conceptualization of the phenomenon under study. This diagram represents the researcher's conceptualization of what battered women were describing as t h e i r experiences of court-imposed custody and access. Demographics Six women were recruited for t h i s study. Five women were interviewed. It was never possible to follow-through with interviewing one of the p a r t i c i p a n t s . A l l fi v e women were interviewed once. Two of the partici p a n t s were interviewed a second time to validate the researcher's impressions of the data, and to gain a deeper-understanding of-the issues - i d e n t i f i e d by the women. Interviews were 1 to 2 hours i n duration. A l l the f i r s t interviews were audio taped. Descriptive notes were kept with the two second v a l i d a t i o n interviews. 59 The women i n the study were between the ages of 35 and 45 years old. Four of the women were separated from t h e i r abusive ex-partners, and one was l e g a l l y divorced. The time frame since the women had l e f t t h e i r abusive re l a t i o n s h i p ranged from six months to almost three years with the average duration being 15 months. A l l of the women's abusers were the fathers of t h e i r c h i l d r e n with the exception of one part i c i p a n t whose abuser was a father to two of her children and a step-father to her other two children. The number of children per women ranged from two to four with the average being three. The ages of the children ranged from two to twenty-one years. Their average age was 9.5 years. A l l of the women i n the study were s t i l l i n the process of negotiating t h e i r custody and access arrangements through the court system. Four of the women had sole interim custody of t h e i r children but shared j o i n t guardianship with t h e i r ex-partners. One woman was i n the process of having interim matters s e t t l e d , thus she had no leg a l custody or guardianship arrangements. The access arrangements varied with each p a r t i c i p a n t . Access times ranged from once a week to one mid-week—access.--plus_e.very.--.week-end Only _two.. women had court-imposed, structured access times. Both of these access arrangements included a mid-week access v i s i t and overnight weekend access, every other week-end for one part i c i p a n t and two out of three week-ends for the other. 6 0 Two of the women's ex-partners were granted l i b e r a l access. This meant that these ex-husbands were free to see t h e i r children whenever they wanted. The access exchange which occurred during the pick up and drop o f f of the children varied between each of the p a r t i c i p a n t s . None of the par t i c i p a n t s had court-imposed supervised access exchange. Four of the partici p a n t s were alone with t h e i r abuser during the access exchange of t h e i r children. One of the partici p a n t s was accompanied by either her s i b l i n g or one of her parents during t h i s exchange. Three of the par t i c i p a n t s ' abusers came to the women's own homes to pick up and drop o f f the children. Four of the participants described incidents where th e i r abusers came d i r e c t l y inside t h e i r homes during access exchange. One par t i c i p a n t h id upstairs i n her bedroom while her abuser came into her home to pick up or drop o f f the children; sometimes t h i s meant hiding for several hours before he would leave. Another pa r t i c i p a n t met her ex-husband alone on a street corner not far from her home. This woman was a f r a i d that her ex-husband would f i n d out where she and the children ..were - l i v i n g . Another__participant....tried..unsuccessfully to use friends' houses as a place for access exchange. She had to abandon t h i s idea because these friends f e l t i t was too s t r e s s f u l a burden for them to cope with. This same women resorted to using a busy public 61 restaurant for the access exchanges because i t had three close exits that she could escape through i f she needed to get away from her abuser. None of the partici p a n t s used any formal support service to a s s i s t with the supervision of access exchange. Four of the partic i p a n t s had psychological assessments (Section 15) court-ordered to determine custody of t h e i r children. A "Section 15 - Expert witness provisions respecting family matters" of the B r i t i s h Columbia Family Relations Act (1979) includes the following: In a proceeding under t h i s Act, the court may, on application, including exparte application, d i r e c t an investigation into family matters by a person who a) has had no previous connection with the parties to the proceedings or to whom each party consents; and b) i s a family court counsellor, s o c i a l worker, probation o f f i c e r or other person approved by the courts for the purpose (p.5) . T-hese-women -were -under - the-constant- scrutiny of a family court o f f i c e r who was allowed to v i s i t t h e i r home at any time to observe and pass judgement on t h e i r a b i l i t i e s as parents. This process also involved several interviews with a court-appointed psychologist, 62 for both the woman and her children to determine her psychological s t a b i l i t y as a parent. Presentation and Interpretations of the Data As i s consistent with the methodology, the analysis of the data w i l l be presented using the verbatim words of the participants i n conjunction with the researcher's interpretations of the data. This allows the reader to come to an independent conclusion regarding the v a l i d i t y of the research findings. Each of the i d e n t i f i e d components w i l l be discussed along with i t ' s i d e n t i f i e d themes. The women described t h e i r experiences as having three components: 1) SAFETY: Living with Ongoing Danger; 2) STRESS: Living with the Imposed Restrictions of the Law and the Legal System; 3) FORMAL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT. Each of these components had separate themes. These experi e n t i a l components were i n t e r r e l a t e d as each component had an impact on the others. They were also sequential i n that formal systems of support were seen as being es s e n t i a l to enable women to reach the fourth and f i n a l component which was, HEALING AND MOVING FORWARD IN LIFE. A l l of the women described a need to heal from their-abuse- and move- forward -with-their - l i v e s . This a b i l i t y to heal was d i f f i c u l t to achieve without adequate formal systems of support that would provide for t h e i r personal safety and a s s i s t i n coping with the stresses related to custody and access. 63 A l l of the women were l i v i n g i n great fear for t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children. The ongoing danger, as well as l i v i n g with the imposed r e s t r i c t i o n s of having to comply with the unreasonable demands of the law and the l e g a l system, was extremely s t r e s s f u l . The i n t e r n a l stress and increased danger experienced by the women ultimately affected t h e i r physical health and psychological well-being. The health effects described by the pa r t i c i p a n t s included but were not l i m i t e d to the following: s i g n i f i c a n t weight loss, insomnia, chronic diarrhea, headaches, amenorrhea, nervousness and/or increased anxiety, fatigue and physical exhaustion. The emotional and physical well-being of the women's children was also affected and included such things as: nightmares, d i f f i c u l t y sleeping, bedwetting, aggressiveness, withdrawal, abusive behaviour between s i b l i n g s and/or towards t h e i r mother, protectiveness of t h e i r mother, stomach aches, diarrhea and worry. Most of the ef f e c t s on the children were reported immediately before or d i r e c t l y following access v i s i t a t i o n s . SAFETY: Ongoing Danger . A l l of the-participants described their-concern for t h e i r ongoing safety and the safety of t h e i r children. Ongoing danger was an integrated rather then fragmented experience which endured throughout t h e i r experiences of l i v i n g with issues related to custody and access. The 64 l e v e l of danger escalated for a l l of the pa r t i c i p a n t s a f t e r leaving t h e i r abusive partners. The experiences of l i v i n g with ongoing danger are described within three separate themes: 1) fear, 2) hyper-vigilance, and 3) emotional dilemma. Access v i s i t s provided the means for ex-partners to continue t h e i r abuse. "My husband uses the access drop of f and pick up times to be very v e r b a l l y abusive...he does i t i n front of the children..." A l l of the women f e l t t h e i r ex-partner was using his access v i s i t s as a means to continue to harass, threaten, manipulate, and control them; " . . . i t seems l i k e these men use the access as an opportunity to get back at t h e i r partners i n some way." One woman recounted how, when her ex-partner disobeys the no contact order, i t i s i n r e l a t i o n to his access v i s i t s : It i s coming to the front door when he i s not supposed to. He i s not suppose to come on the property. He i s not supposed to t a l k to me. He i s not supposed to phone me, t r y to tal k to me on the phone, he has been doing a l l that...(Do you f e e l safe having him come to your house?) No. No I . - don't. —. • . . - • - — . Women also expressed concern for t h e i r children's safety and psychological well-being because they continued to be exposed to abuse and discord. The 65 iitvmediate response to l i v i n g with the r i s k of ongoing danger was fear: I mean, that i s part of t h i s whole abuse, i s that he has t o l d me many times that he has a plan, you know that I won't l i v e long...I won't l i v e long i f I t r y to take the kids away from him...The family court counsellor confided i n me recently that he talked to her about weapons, and guns, and how he knows how to use them...So she said to me, I think that you r e a l l y would be wise to get out of Vancouver, and r e a l l y make sure that you are safe...when i t becomes r e a l i t y to him that he i s losing his family, and his home, and everything, he i s not going to very happy...(That has got to be a very scary f e e l i n g to have to l i v e with now). Well, I keep thinking maybe l a t e l y , I don't want to be Nicole Simpson, you know, I r e a l l y don't (begins crying). Fear A l l of the women expressed fear for the safety of both themselves and t h e i r children. Fear was not a time li m i t e d experience but endured throughout t h e i r experiences with t h i s phenomenon. A l l of the par t i c i p a n t s described.-specific ..examples of, the ongoing abuse that they and t h e i r children continued to be exposed to because of t h e i r ex-partners' l e g a l r i g h t to custody and access. The women's fears encompassed the t o t a l i t y of l i v i n g day-to-day with ongoing danger. 66 Women who had i n i t i a l l y gone into hiding when they l e f t t h e i r abusive partners were shocked to discover that even a f t e r the courts had granted them r e s t r a i n i n g orders and interim occupancy of the house, t h e i r abusers were given access and custody rights to the children. One woman's experience i l l u s t r a t e s her d i s b e l i e f i n her husband's permission to access his children: We had gone into hiding before I got the r e s t r a i n i n g order...So despite everything that was said,...my a f f i d a v i t , the fact that we did get a r e s t r a i n i n g order and the fact he did have to be out of the house, they s t i l l gave him access. Right away,...I couldn't believe that happened, because surely, they must have r e a l i z e d , . . . the emotional impact that a l l that would have had on him, getting a copy of the res t r a i n i n g order, being asked to leave, and a day later,...he gave access to the children. For a l l of the women, i t took an enormous amount of strength to act u a l l y leave t h e i r abusive partners. A l l stated that part of t h e i r abuse was the threat that i f they ever l e f t , t h e i r partners would 'threaten t h e i r l i v e s ' and t r y to take the children away. L i v i n g with the-fear_o.f danger, and- o f - l o s i n g .-her... childr e n - i s c l e a r l y described by t h i s p a r t i c i p a n t : Well, the abuse never ended. When I decided to leave my ex-husband, i t took me seven years to b u i l d up the courage to leave, a year of counselling 6 7 before I left...The f i r s t threat came the year before, when he t o l d to me to get out of the house and leave the kids. One woman f e l t that, i f her husband ever saw her with another man, th i s would be his tri g g e r to harm her or even k i l l her. "Yah, I won't l i v e long i f I t r y to take the kids away from him...he has t o l d me that. He said i f I can't have you no other man can have you." Another woman was rel i e v e d that a l l of the horror s t o r i e s that she had imagined might happen i f she l e f t , hadn't happened. Yet, she s t i l l l i v e d with these fears every day: I thought he might be so mad at me that he might t r y to k i l l me, or you know, ste a l my kids...he would be so angry he would run away with my k i d s . . . a l l these awful scenarios that I imagined might happen that scared me from leaving him... Women's fears about the repercussions of leaving became a r e a l i t y . Four of the women's ex-partners were i n the process of challenging them for custody of the children. A l l of these men wanted sole custody. The women were a f r a i d that they would either l e g a l l y lose - - custody,—or their-ex-partners might- kidnap-their children. One woman was t e r r i f i e d that something might happen to her and the children i f she got sole custody: I am scared...if he doesn't get exactly what he wants, and I don't think he ever w i l l . . . I don't know 68 how I am going to deal with that...I w i l l be a f r a i d not only for myself, but that he w i l l take the kids. This woman's fears were confirmed when her seven year o l d son had t o l d a fr i e n d that his dad was going to take him and his s i s t e r to the United States, and that "...a judge down there was going to l e t them l i v e with his dad." Women were a f r a i d because access v i s i t a t i o n meant t h e i r safety was i n jeopardy, sometimes four times a week, as each access exchange involved at lea s t two encounters with t h e i r abuser. " I t i s l i k e four times a week,... things are just going okay, and then i t i s access time...it's r e a l l y an emotional r o l l e r coaster..." Women were f e a r f u l that there would be confrontation with each exchange. "What was happening, of course, was every time that he would come to pick up the kids i t was supposed to be his time for them, but a l l his energy was redirected to me." Only two of the women were able to get res t r a i n i n g orders. Both of these women f e l t that the res t r a i n i n g orders offered them l i t t l e protection because t h e i r abusers s t i l l had access to the children, thus access to them as well: I'm just nervous the whole time dealing with the ~ -access anyway,...nervous about-him showing up, nervous about him not showing up, that kind of thing...and I never know whether I should be phoning the p o l i c e . . . I hear so much,...oh, the p o l i c e are not very responsive to domestic issues...so there 69 has been that concern, you know. Some of the fathers came into the house to pick up the children and drop them o f f a f t e r access; "...when I got sole occupancy I didn't know many things. He would come to pick them up and walk through the door...he wouldn't knock, he would just walk i n . " One woman who could not prevent her ex-husband from coming into the house during access, hid i n her room u n t i l he l e f t . Sometimes t h i s lasted for a few hours: I would wait i n the bedroom u n t i l he had picked up the kids and they had gone out of the house...I mean, I was imprisoned i n my bedroom, and I would just have to l i s t e n to what was going on downstairs . . . i n order to avoid a confrontation. Another woman describes how she had a l l the locks changed, because she was so a f r a i d her abuser would just walk i n the house: I was just too scared. I thought, what i f he walks i n i n the middle of the night...so I had the locks changed...When I got home, he had busted and broken the door and the door jam. He walked ri g h t up to my nose and said, don't you ever lock the door on me - .- again.. - — -.. Women were concerned about the physical and psychological safety of t h e i r children. The mothers f e l t that the negative emotional climate was adversely a f f e c t i n g them. A l l the partic i p a n t s described s p e c i f i c 70 instances of abuse that t h e i r children had witnessed. The following i s an e x p l i c i t description of why one woman was f e a r f u l for her daughter's safety: He went to the house, he cut the phone l i n e and then he started banging on the door...my daughter was ri g h t there, she saw him,...he ran around to the side and he kicked i n the basement door...there were two four-by-fours n a i l e d across the opening and he kicked the whole thing in...my mother... took my daughter upstairs, and they were hiding i n my son's bedroom. It was r e a l l y scary for them. My mother didn't know what was going on...she t o l d C. (daughter) to be quiet, and the two of them just sat i n there and hid...about 20 minutes. This incident occurred during access time. The father was subsequently arrested because he broke the r e s t r a i n i n g order, not because of what he had done at the house. After the father's release from j a i l , t h i s mother received a fax requesting an extra access day because he had been arrested during access time; "...he had done a l l t h i s and s t i l l there was no sense of remorse about anything...in fact he wanted more access." Safety--was -the -mothers L_.main ..fear during, access exchange(s). Women described the access exchange location as c r u c i a l to t h e i r safety; "...the drop o f f location i s supposed to be i n a s p e c i f i c spot inside, because there i s always people around, no matter what, 71 and we have got three e x i t s . . . " Although the women t r i e d to e s t a b l i s h ways of protecting themselves, t h e i r ex-partners would often manipulate the access arrangements; thus putting the women at r i s k of danger: ...what he i s doing now i s he i s walking with the kids towards my house...And he does not know my address or my phone number, and he wants to know, and I keep t e l l i n g him and I'm not ready to give i t to him, and up u n t i l now he has waited for me i n the car at the corner where we meet. And now i f I am two minutes late or f i v e minutes l a t e , I f i n d he i s almost down at the corner of my stre e t . And I said to him once, i f I were seven minutes l a t e , would you just keep walking and have the kids lead you to our door? Because, that i s what he i s doing. He's getting too close for comfort. As a means of dealing with t h e i r fears around safety, the women were hyper-vigilant; one way t h i s expressed i t s e l f was as a hype r - s e n s i t i v i t y to the cues given by t h e i r ex-partners . Hyper-vigilance Many of the women became hyper-alert to t h e i r experiences -as-.a-way_.~of-..coping_with_their...fears. Some of the women described a need to be present during the transfer of the children to ensure both the safety of themselves and t h e i r children: I think that because the kids are so small, I want 72 f i r s t contact with him. I want to see what his moods are, I want to see what the kids reactions are l i k e to him. I want to pick up on the l i t t l e innuendoes... I want to be sort of monitoring i t or supervising t h i s transfer that i s going on...I am reading him a l l the time. Some women described t h e i r need to maintain contact with t h e i r ex-partners because there was comfort i n what was f a m i l i a r : Seeing him i s fami l i a r , there i s a ce r t a i n comfort received i n being able to pick up on his moods and being able to predict his behaviour. I can see that the bad side of that i s that I am s t i l l hanging on to his moods, and I'm s t i l l dependent on him. While l i v i n g with t h e i r ex-partners, women were able to continuously monitor the cycle of the abuser's behaviour. A f t e r leaving, however, the women could no longer maintain a constant watch. "Well, that was the way I had l i v e d for ten years, but th i s was l i k e a hundred times more i n t e n s i f i e d , because I didn't have a clue i f he was going to explode at any time." Another way the women demonstrated hyper-vigilance -was—in-describing- t h e i r - fear -of -meeting t h e i r -abusers i n public. "I am worried, you know, l i k e , I'm always thinking I'm going to bump into him again, because he sort of hangs around the same area." One woman f e l t that her ex-partner was keeping tabs on her comings and goings 73 and could predict where she might be. "He was following me around...showing up i n places, i t was r e a l l y hard...he had been violent, so I was a f r a i d of him." Another woman's ex-husband hired a private investigator to follow her; "I mean he hired a private investigator to have me followed two months afte r we separated." This constant v i g i l a n c e was p h y s i c a l l y and emotionally draining on the women. It became emotionally d i f f i c u l t to continuously maintain t h i s watchful waiting; "I am also r e a l l y scared because I am just getting r e a l l y worn out by a l l of t h i s . " Emotional Dilemma The laws of custody and access mandated that these women continue to have ongoing contact with the men of whom they l i v e d i n great fear. Mothers recognized both t h e i r need for safety and that of t h e i r children. These mothers perceived that t h e i r children needed to f e e l safe, yet because of court-imposed custody and access, they were unable to keep them safe. This emotional dilemma became a central theme i n the mothers' experiences. Many of the fathers used the chi l d r e n to manipulate the mothers. This was just one more way the . women.-.we re ...unable._ to._pr.otect .their., .children: Right now, the pattern i s when they come back they are usually upset. They are upset because of the situation...he asks them a l o t of questions about me, and he i s always t r y i n g to make them f e e l 74 responsible some how for what i s happening. A l l of the mothers seemed aware of the impact that t h i s phenomenon was having on t h e i r children. The women f e l t torn as they watched t h e i r children caught i n the middle and often forced to choose sides: It i s not normal for somebody to harass you and not leave you alone...and i n my children's mind they see that as his love...that he loves me, and he i s fi g h t i n g for t h i s r e l a t i o n s h i p . One father had his children pick out flowers to give his ex-wife. "He sends me flowers through the kids which makes i t doubly hard...they pick out the flowers, they bring them to me and then I don't want them." This mother f e l t that by re j e c t i n g the flowers she was rej e c t i n g her children; "...they f e e l l i k e I am being such a t e r r i b l e person, how could I possibly be so awful." Some of the women perceived that t h e i r c h i l d r e n f e l t a need to defend t h e i r father; "..they usually don't t e l l me that they understand...they usually defend t h e i r father." Conversely, other women described t h e i r children's protectiveness over t h e i r mother. These women - f e l t that t h e i r - c h i l d r e n -were- aware._of .the-mother' s need for safety, thus they became overly protective of her: I think that they are af r a i d , I think that they just walk around on the same eggshells that I do...you know, what he w i l l do when he i s angry...they don't 75 want me...to come to access, they want me to wait i n the vehicle. They are worried about my safety ...they want to see t h e i r dad, but they are scared about what t h e i r dad w i l l do,...you know, for a seven year-old and a three year-old that's a l o t on th e i r shoulders. The mothers had c o n f l i c t i n g b e l i e f s about t h e i r ex-partners' rights and needs to be with t h e i r children. They also recognized t h e i r children's need to have a father; "..no matter what, my husband i s s t i l l t h e i r father, and there i s s t i l l that l o y a l t y , and everything there." Although they acknowledged his r i g h t s as a father, they often had doubts about his a b i l i t y to be a responsible parent. "Umm, my dilemma i s I know that he loves the kids and he r e a l l y wants to see them...but he has never been a very responsible person." The mothers described t h e i r worry that t h e i r ex-partners may not be capable of providing for t h e i r children's safety. "What I worry about sometimes...when he comes to get them he seems so depressed...I often wonder i f he w i l l have an accident...or i f he i s going to lose one." Mothers were torn over how they could o f f e r t h e i r ..children-protection -when..they_wer.e~powerless, to change the l e g a l system which guaranteed the father his l e g a l r i g h t s . Some of the mothers f e l t distressed that t h e i r children had to v i s i t with t h e i r dad even when they may have been a f r a i d of him. The day af t e r one of the 76 fathers was released from j a i l a f t e r having been arrested for breaking into the children's home, he was allowed to resume access v i s i t a t i o n as usual. This mother's son was surprised that, a f t e r what had just happened, he was going to see his father: My son was r e a l l y surprised that he was going to see his dad. I f e l t g u i l t y because I f e l t , . . . t h a t I, you know, that he was thinking that I was sort of pushing him towards his dad when he r e a l l y didn't want to go. (Do you think that he was a f r a i d to see his dad?) I think he was. Although the mothers f e l t that i t was important that t h e i r children have some sort of contact with t h e i r dad, a l l of the women expressed a desire to move away from t h e i r abuser. The women were faced with the dilemma of providing for t h e i r family's safety versus t h e i r children's needs for th e i r father: ...I think,... that i s very sad for the children, because i t would be very easy for me i f he weren't here. It would make my l i f e a l o t easier, but I think for the kids, i t i s important that they see each other. -One.woman f e l t - t h a t -..her.-only. hope....f or her ..safety was to move away, even i f i t meant having to leave her children: I f e e l sorry for my children, I r e a l l y do. I think that i t i s going to tear them apart having to decide, l i k e , which parent they want to l i v e 77 with...I don't know i f I w i l l ever be able to have a l i f e . . . a n d r e a l l y f e e l safe i n the same c i t y . . . This woman's comment was representative of a l l of the women who f e l t that custody and access provided the means for ongoing danger and abuse. The r e a l i t i e s of l i v i n g with the father's l e g a l r i ght to custody and access were a s i g n i f i c a n t component of the battered women's unique concern for safety. As previously stated when discussing the women's safety, the mothers described t h e i r need to move away from t h e i r abusers. The women were faced with the emotional dilemma of providing for t h e i r family's safety versus t h e i r children's need for t h e i r father. A l l of the par t i c i p a n t s perceived that the only hope for safety was to escape from t h e i r abuser. The mothers described a sadness when contemplating t h i s notion of rel o c a t i n g . This sadness was a r e a l i z a t i o n that, f i r s t , l i f e would be a l o t safer i f t h e i r children did not have to see t h e i r father and, second, that escaping might mean that t h e i r children would be forced to choose between t h e i r parents. Although the mothers acknowledged the e f f e c t s that 'escaping' might have on t h e i r children, they f e l t that their-actions—would be-serving- the /.best-interests' of the children. Escaping may be t h e i r only means of stopping the children's exposure to ongoing abuse and discord. 78 In summation, ongoing and often increased danger was a common component of a l l the pa r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. So fundamental was th i s concern that i t established the context i n which they c a r r i e d out t h e i r d a i l y l i v e s . Women l i v e d i n constant fear for both themselves and th e i r children. These fears were j u s t i f i a b l e as the women continued to be exposed to ongoing harassment, control, manipulation and abuse from t h e i r ex-partners. The women's fears about the repercussions of leaving became r e a l i t y . The women were not only a f r a i d for t h e i r safety but of losing t h e i r children either through custody bat t l e s or kidnapping. L i v i n g i n constant fear, the women became hyper-sensitive to the cues of t h e i r ex-partners as a means of providing for t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children. Battered women are often hyper-sensi t i v e to the cues of t h e i r partner while s t i l l i n the marriage, yet, these women expected to end t h i s behaviour once they l e f t t h e i r abuser. Instead, the context i n which they c a r r i e d out these behaviours changed and i n t e n s i f i e d . This watchful waiting became a means of coping with t h e i r fears. The women perceived that t h e i r children needed to f e e l safe, yet, they were unable to -secure t h e i r children's -safety. - .This emotional dilemma i n t h e i r role as a mother was a central theme of the women's experiences of t h i s phenomenon. L i v i n g with ongoing stress and danger affected the women's physical and psychological health. 79 STRESS: Liv i n g with the Imposed Re s t r i c t i o n s of the Law and the Legal System The women described the experiences of having to comply with the unreasonable demands of the le g a l system as s t r e s s f u l . Stress was an in t e g r a l part of the women's experiences. The stressors associated with l i v i n g with the imposed r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the l e g a l system were i n t e r r e l a t e d and often inseparable from the ongoing danger that these women faced. The stresses r e l a t e d to the law and the leg a l system i n regards to custody and access of t h e i r children took t h e i r t o l l on the women, and, as a resu l t , t h e i r health was affected: Umm, I l o s t eighteen pounds i n a matter of three weeks, out of the sheer fear of l i v i n g . I, I didn't sleep well for weeks...from the stress of l i v i n g l i k e that. I had chronic diarrhea,... and I went from 130 pounds down to 112 pounds. I was skin and bones, I s t i l l haven't put on back a l l the weight that I l o s t and th i s i s two and a ha l f years l a t e r , and I smoke l i k e a chimney.. Umm, I am a nervous wreck, sometimes I have improved on i t , . . . b u t every time I tal k to K.(ex-partner) I am a basket case. . . - - A-f ather.Ls-rights—to custody.-of ~ and-access to his children allow him to continue to control and manipulate his ex-wife. The women i n th i s study perceived that t h e i r ex-husbands were now using the le g a l system to continue to control and manipulate them. Four of the 80 p a r t i c i p a n t s were involved with psychological assessments (Section 15) ordered by the courts. These assessments were major sources of data from which custody decisions were made. The women were t e r r i f i e d at the thought of losing custody of t h e i r children to t h e i r abuser. They were also t e r r i f i e d that complete strangers were l e g a l l y allowed to make t h i s decision about t h e i r l i v e s and future roles as mothers. The women described f e e l i n g l i k e they were constantly under watch, not only from t h e i r abuser but from the scrutiny of the family court o f f i c e r s writing the custody reports. Two pa r t i c i p a n t s e x p l i c i t l y describe t h i s experience: "I fe e l . . . t h a t I am l i v i n g i n a fishbowl,...that I am constantly under surveillance." "Trying to normalize your family l i f e , there are figh t s with your kids, there are arguments but you have got the family court o f f i c e r viewing you a l l the time." The stress of l i v i n g within the laws that govern c h i l d custody remained r e l a t i v e l y constant throughout the descriptions of the par t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. Three themes were i d e n t i f i e d which capture the essence of the women's experiences within t h i s component: 1)anger, .2) powerlessness .and .3). despair. 81 Anger When the women were asked to describe t h e i r experiences with custody and access there was a unanimous f e e l i n g of anger. One woman had d i f f i c u l t y l a b e l i n g her feelings as anger because to her anger meant abuse. Anger was expressed i n r e l a t i o n to both s p e c i f i c experiences and t h e i r o v e r a l l feelings about having to l i v e with the associated stresses of t h i s phenomenon: ...my experience i s r e a l l y f r u s t r a t i n g - f r u s t r a t i n g , and aggravating, because the pattern i s s t i l l continuing even though he i s not l i v i n g here i n t h i s house, per se, he i s s t i l l manipulating a l o t and try i n g to control everything. A l l the women f e l t that t h e i r abusers perceived themselves as being above the law; "R's attitude i s that rules don't apply to him, and he i s above the law. Nobody has t o l d him otherwise. Have the p o l i c e t o l d him? No. Have the family court o f f i c e r s t o l d him? No. Has the judge? No." This made the women angry because they f e l t that t h e i r rights as human beings were being v i o l a t e d . One woman was angry that the p o l i c e could not protect her from the verbal threats that her ex-husband -had-made-.on her_life_and-described-herself as having less rights than the average person on the stre e t . The mothers were angry because the laws and the lega l system guaranteed t h e i r ex-partner rig h t s to his children thus ongoing access to her. The women f e l t 82 angry because they perceived that t h e i r ex-partners placed l i t t l e importance on the separation; " . . . i t makes me f e e l r e a l l y upset and angry, because he i s not taking the separation or anything seriously... i t i s quite obvious he just thinks for him, that t h i s i s more or less a waiting game." Some women stated that they f e l t t h e i r ex-partners were i n t o t a l denial that the marriage was over, thus these men f e l t j u s t i f i e d i n not obeying the rules around custody and access. Women also perceived that they were being blamed for the break up of the family: . . . p r a c t i c a l l y every time there are words,...and I can hardly get away. Or else he i s hugging and kiss i n g me,...and he i s wearing t h i s b i g g r i n on his face l i k e i t i s a big joke. So that just makes me mad,...and i t i s also t h i s f e e l i n g that he i s mocking me,...that the whole scenario i s r i d i c u l o u s . He has t o l d me t h i s , that uh, he resents being treated l i k e a criminal who has to meet his family i n the str e e t , . . . and denying that he d i d anything wrong, and that I am the one who has got a r e a l l y bad problem, and he i s a victim, and he has been so -patient, and i t i s time, to -stop a l l t h i s nonsense and get back together. One of the participants wrote a poem for the researcher which describes her experiences of l i v i n g with 83 the imposed r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the l e g a l system. This poem i l l u s t r a t e s her anger: Hey you. I don't t r u s t you. Judge One. My husband kicked me i n the back When I was seven months pregnant. You t o l d me i t didn't count because the violence happened too long ago. Judge Two. He was using the phone to harass and threaten me. When I wouldn't answer i t , You said I didn't have the right to screen my c a l l s , You said, I was being too sensitive Policeman One. Policewoman Two. When he kicked i n my bedroom door and broke the lock You t o l d me to reconcile because i t would be better for the children. You l e f t me there Alone with him. The family doctor. You knew about the abuse. You were supportive and then when I l e f t He accused me of giving him a sexually transmitted disease. On my next v i s i t , You decided i t was time for my Pap test and i n t e r n a l and questioned me on how many sexual partners I had. Family Court O f f i c e r . When he walked i n with his s u i t and t i e and professional manner and t o l d you I had gone crazy, Before having even met me, You assumed that I was and treated me that way. When I t o l d you of a l l the incidents of abuse and backed i t up with references by people who knew us both, You didn't believe me. 84 Even i n the face of further threats, further abuse intimidation harassment, v i o l a t i o n of the court order. You l a t e r t o l d me You almost gave Him sole custody. You based i t on He had a f i s h i n g pole and even a lunch packed. He was a good father. Policeman Three. When I showed you the court order giving me sole occupancy of the house and he was there threatening me and wouldn't leave and he was saying he was taking the kids You allowed him to stay and t o l d me he could take the kids for as long as he wanted when he wanted. Your hands were t i e d . Policeman Four. When he threatened me on the phone, according to the law, you said he could come and s i t on my l i v i n g room f l o o r and you couldn't do a thing. Lawyer One. When I l i v e d i n the same house with him because the judge wouldn't help me, You t o l d me i t would be better i f he assaulted me then because i t was the only way I would get help. Lawyer One. Aft e r two years of separation When he kicked i n my door, You t o l d me That I'd better toughen up And get used to i t . When he threatened me abused me intimidated me had me followed harassed me used the children against me 85 used violence against me You made excuses for him You did nothing You heard nothing from my shaky hands from the fear i n my eyes from my bent shoulders my panicked voice begging you. You're dammed fucking r i g h t I don't trust you. (Copied as written by the participant) After reading her poem, the pa r t i c i p a n t stated that she debated her choice of words i n the l a s t sentence, but f e l t that professionals needed to understand what i t i s l i k e for battered women after they leave t h e i r abuser, and that there are children involved: ...these professionals have to know that when you go through abuse l i k e t h a t . . . i t i s not just the man abusing you, i t becomes your whole l i f e . It's how you s t a r t thinking. It just permeates everything. It a f f e c t s your rela t i o n s h i p with your family. This poem graphically i l l u s t r a t e s the anger f e l t by th i s woman. She had very strong feelings about l i v i n g within the leg a l and s o c i a l system, but these feelings .. ..we re-just i f iable. ...based _on ..some-pretty .horrendous experiences: My view on the s o c i a l welfare, j u s t i c e and le g a l systems i n regard to women who suffer spousal abuse, 86 leave and then attempt to maneuver through the system i s l i k e being raped and then going to see the doctor and getting raped again. The experiences described by t h i s woman c l e a r l y depict why many of the women f e l t angry with the l i m i t a t i o n s of the laws and the leg a l system. Within these systems, the women f e l t powerless to protect both themselves and t h e i r children. Powerlessness Common to a l l the partic i p a n t s was the f e e l i n g of powerlessness. Several issues related to custody and access l e f t them f e e l i n g powerless, but the data indicated that women f e l t the most powerless over t h e i r i n a b i l i t y to prevent ongoing abuse and manipulation from t h e i r ex-partners. The partic i p a n t s f e l t that the custody laws forced them to continue to be victims and also exposed t h e i r children to ongoing abuse and discord. Many of the women f e l t unsupported by the l e g a l system. The participants t o l d s t o r i e s of judges, lawyers and other l e g a l professionals playing down the abuse; "...she (court psychologist) undermined the violence and the abuse that had gone on, and at one point i n the report-was-blaming me - for--it. --She-excused, the fact that he beat me up, using his words that he had l o s t emotional control." The data also indicates that the le g a l system seems to completely disassociate wife abuse from the abuser's rights to custody and access of his children. 8 7 "They just, the courts don't seem to be, and the lawyers don't seem to be, I don't know i f they're...numb to the whole idea,...but there just doesn't seem to be any connection...with the l e g a l system..." One woman who's husband had been extremely v i o l e n t describes her experiences with a judge who had previously granted her a r e s t r a i n i n g order and was r u l i n g on custody and access: It was l i k e dealing with two t o t a l l y d i f f e r e n t people. He was r e a l l y upset i n one case with what H. (ex-partner) had done,...and that he wasn't i n any kind of anger management. He seemed to completely disassociate that from the access issue, and any impact i t might have on the children, and he gave him more access. The participants expressed t h e i r f r u s t r a t i o n s at being powerless to protect t h e i r children. A l l of the parti c i p a n t s described incidents where they f e l t that t h e i r children were being either caught i n the middle and forced to choose sides or used by the father to manipulate the mothers: I don't l i k e the kids having as much access with t h e i r dad, because l a s t f a l l , he started using the -kids--in a big way. He started saying things to them about me...that were r e a l l y devastating, and the kids would come home, and...just scream at me. I was a nervous wreck. They didn't know what to think, they were confused. They were torn because 88 t h i s i s the dad that they love and t h i s i s the mum that they love, and the dad that they love i s saying that t h e i r mum i s a t o t a l nut case. Although the mothers could recognize the impact that custody and access were having on t h e i r children, the courts mandated that they continue to have regular contact with t h e i r abusers. This l e f t the women f e e l i n g powerless. A l l of the women f e l t that the telephone provided a means for the abuser to continue to manipulate and threaten them. The participants described incidents where they received up to 15 c a l l s a day and often during school hours: Oh, on average he would d i a l my house 80 times a month. He would e a s i l y d i a l my number 15 times a day, i f I wasn't around, he would just d i a l every three or four minutes, he would just sort of go nuts on the phone...then I found he was c a l l i n g the kids l i n e during school hours, which was r e a l l y dumb,...or he would phone at 10 o'clock at night, ...but of course they were already i n bed... Fathers' custody included phoning t h e i r c h i l d r e n and/or phoning-the mothers-to-discuss-issues - concerning the children's guardianship. Therefore, the women f e l t powerless to stop the phone harassment, and when they did t r y to l e g a l l y prevent t h i s ongoing abuse, they were not supported by the leg a l system: 8 9 ...we got a judge who said that I had no ri g h t to have an answering machine or a c a l l display i n a j o i n t guardianship s i t u a t i o n , that I was being too sen s i t i v e . Even though my l i s t showed an average of six to seven c a l l s per day. The mothers i d e n t i f i e d that, not only d i d the phone allow t h e i r abuser to continue to t r y control them, but i t also served as another means of involving the children: ...he has t o t a l control, he can c a l l whenever he wants, and he upsets not one person, he upsets everybody i n the house...he w i l l say something to the kids, and then get them upset, and then I get upset, and then the next thing that you know, everybody i n the house i s upset because he has made one phone c a l l . Two of the participants t r i e d to prevent phone harassment by communicating with t h e i r ex-partners by fax; however, t h i s only presented another form of ongoing abuse, but i n the written form: . . . i t i s just there constantly,... faxes are coming i n a l l the time,...I have a three inch thick f i l e of -access,-.-this...constant. .intimidation...of ..all t h i s s t u f f , and even though I don't read them, I have someone else f i l t e r out a l l of the crap,... sometimes I do read them, and ...there i s always s t i l l that kind of hook... 9 0 A l l of the participants were s t i l l i n the process of l e g a l l y negotiating custody and access. One woman described t h i s experience as l i k e being i n a 'twilight zone'; "...I am i n th i s bizarre t w i l i g h t zone c a l l e d interim custody, I have to tow the l i n e i n the le g a l system i f I want to get permanent custody." By 'towing the l i n e , ' t h i s p a r t i c i p a n t was r e l a t i n g to the fact that she could not deny her ex-partner access since that would be used against her i n the f i n a l custody report. "I had my lawyer say that i f you don't give a l l the access that he wants, t h i s i s what i s going to happen: you may not get custody of your kids." The four women who had psychological assessments (Section 15) done for t h e i r custody reports described t h i s experience as extremely s t r e s s f u l . The mothers f e l t powerless against professionals who would determine the outcome of t h e i r children's custody. A l l of the women stated that they were intimidated by the process of a Section 15, and often f e l t that they were being personally attacked; "...the process i t s e l f i s not well done, I f e l t very attacked,... I was l i t e r a l l y v e r b a l l y attacked by the psychologist." One woman describes how she ...had._to..~deal—on the .defensive.-because her ex-husband had t o l d the family court o f f i c e r that she was crazy: When I walked i n , the f i r s t thing she t o l d me was that t h i s should be a j o i n t custody s i t u a t i o n , and without me having said two words to her. He had 91 convinced her that I had gone crazy and that i s how she treated me. I walked i n , my shoulders are shaking, and I am just a nervous wreck, and I have dropped 18 pounds, and she looks at me l i k e I am crazy. Well lady, there might be a reason why I look l i k e I am f a l l i n g a part. It i s because I am. I am going through H e l l . Not only were the women intimidated by the process of a Section 15, but for one part i c i p a n t , her safety was i n jeopardy when the psychologist requested that he interview her with her ex-partner i n the same room: ...he knew that there was a r e s t r a i n i n g order, and...I was dumbfounded when he phoned and asked me that...and f i n a l l y I said to him, you know that there i s a r e s t r a i n i n g order i n place don't you? And he said to me, yes, well, do you r e a l l y think that i t applies i n t h i s case? Feeling powerless against the psychologist, t h i s p a r t i c i p a n t then turned to her lawyer for support, but was again shocked when her lawyer would not support her on her decision not to attend t h i s j o i n t interview: . . . I asked i f she could send a l e t t e r to Dr. M. -.saying that .she-, was -recommending... that, for me not to go, that I was af r a i d , and she said, well, I am not going to do that because I don't agree with that...she said that I think that i t i s r e a l l y important that Dr. M. sees how your husband treats 92 you. So I was r e a l l y shocked by a l l that too, I, I don't want to be a vi c t i m or anything for the rest of my l i f e , but I am a f r a i d of my husband. This woman f i n a l l y took back her power by refusing to go to t h i s meeting against her lawyer' advice. However, she s t i l l f e l t powerless as she viewed i t as a lo s i n g s i t u a t i o n no matter what she did: ...I f e l t that i t was a lose-lose, s i t u a t i o n and i t didn't matter how he behaved, i t wasn't going to turn out very well for me at a l l . If he behaves r e a l l y i n his usual abusive manner, and I wasn't able to take i t , I mean I am nervous enough going to see Dr. M. l e t alone having my husband there. A l l of these t r a n s c r i p t excerpts indicate that women, as well as f e e l i n g angry, f e e l powerless against both t h e i r abuser and the le g a l system which grants his rights to custody and access. Powerlessness seems to translate into despair as partic i p a n t s describe feelings of hopelessness at the thought of ever t r u l y breaking free from t h e i r ex-partner because of court-imposed custody and access. 9 3 Despair C h a r a c t e r i s t i c of a l l the par t i c i p a n t s was the fe e l i n g of despair. Women f e l t despondent i n r e l a t i o n to having to l i v e with the imposed r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the leg a l system and t h e i r ex-partners' a b i l i t y to manipulate the laws around custody and access. The mothers described f e e l i n g hopeless at being able to change t h e i r situations i n r e l a t i o n to t h i s phenomenon: "Oh yah,...he i s not over i t . He i s going to continue to do anything that he can for a long time,...he i s preoccupied with the leg a l system, and, he i s just going to keep working on i t . " Not only did the women f e e l hopeless about t h e i r custody and access experiences, but the unyielding pursuit by t h e i r abusers was wearing them down both p h y s i c a l l y and emotionally. "Uh, my husband i s just r e l e n t l e s s , you know he i s driven,... and he w i l l not give up...and I am getting r e a l l y worn down by a l l of t h i s . . . " Implicit i n a l l the par t i c i p a n t s ' descriptions was the f e e l i n g that they had a defeated future. The women f e l t that the r e a l i t i e s of custody law and the re l e n t l e s s determination of t h e i r ex-partners would prevent them -from -ever—truly—breaking- free-.- -The-children • s bond to th e i r father also made i t v i r t u a l l y impossible to l i v e separate from t h e i r abuser. The despair experienced by the participants i s e x p l i c i t l y described by one woman: I just don't think that he w i l l ever leave me alone. 94 I think that he w i l l do everything i n his power to destroy, destroy any type of l i f e I t r y to create for myself. I can understand, I can r e a l l y r e l a t e to other women who have to move across the country. I just want to be free, to f e e l safe,...I know that i f I have to l i v e with him any more that I would be the one to die, I would just, you know, s a c r i f i c e my l i f e for him,...and for his family,...and I would have to give up a l l my dreams and hopes and my freedom, l i k e I would be a prisoner again,...and I don't want to l i v e that way anymore. A l l of the participants stated that the only way that they would t r u l y be free would be to move away. Yet, t h i s one hope of freedom i s complicated by a father's right to custody of and access to his childre n . The l i m i t a t i o n s of the law only contributed further to the women's despair and feelings of having a defeated future. The following excerpt i l l u s t r a t e s these women's feelings: ....I mean, i f i t was l e g a l l y the r i g h t thing to do, the best thing for us would have been to just run away somewhere, and be t o t a l l y away from him, and that ...whole-influence. ._.I_..know„that- he..is t h e i r father but I r e a l l y don't think that he has t h e i r best interests i n mind. I think that I w i l l never be able to leave i n some ways,...it scares me, I don't want to be pessimistic about i t . . . 95 The desire to escape t h e i r ex-partners was also i d e n t i f i e d by the participants when they discussed t h e i r despair over the r e a l i t i e s of custody and access laws. The women described f e e l i n g helpless at being able to change t h e i r s i t u a t i o n i n r e l a t i o n to t h i s phenomenon. These women f e l t that the re l e n t l e s s determination of th e i r ex-partners would prevent them from ever t r u l y breaking free. When the women talked about t h e i r feelings of despair, they also recognized that the best means to secure any future for both themselves and t h e i r children was through formal systems of support which served i n th e i r best i n t e r e s t s . Yet, i r o n i c a l l y , the l e g a l system and mandated professionals such as psychologists, were not seen as systems of support. The pa r t i c i p a n t s i d e n t i f i e d these systems of support as necessary to enable them to heal from the abuse and move forward i n l i f e . Stress was seen to be an i n t e g r a l part of the women's experiences p e r s i s t i n g throughout t h e i r experiences with the phenomenon under study. L i v i n g with ongoing stress ultimately affected the women's physical and.-.psychological-well-being...... In-summation, i n examining the nature of stresses associated with the ongoing re l a t i o n s h i p with an abusive ex-partner, the stressors were categorized into three separate but i n t e r r e l a t e d themes; anger, powerlessness, and despair. 96 The l e g a l process of determining custody and access meant that the women were subject to the scrutiny of both t h e i r abusers and leg a l professionals. Women described t h i s experience as l i k e ' l i v i n g i n a f i s h bowl.' They were isolated , under scrutiny, and unable to access needed support. The mothers were angry that they continued to experience abuse. The r e a l i t i e s of custody and access laws l e f t the participants powerless to prevent t h i s ongoing abuse and manipulation. Women described themselves as having defeated futures. Formal systems of support were i d e n t i f i e d as c r u c i a l to help them to heal from t h e i r abuse and move forward with t h e i r l i v e s . Yet, even with support, these systems of support did not recognize the ongoing abuse that the women endured, and, because of t h i s , may have contributed to making the abuse continue. The women f e l t that they would never t r u l y be free from t h e i r abuser because of court-imposed custody and access. FORMAL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT As previously stated each of the three components -Safety, Stress and Formal Systems of Support - are in t e r r e l a t e d since each component often impacts the others.. However, these components^are also.sequential i n that formal systems of support are a necessary precursor to achieving the fourth and f i n a l component of healing and moving forward i n l i f e . Although each p a r t i c i p a n t was able to i d e n t i f y i n d i v i d u a l informal systems of 97 support they might draw upon to a s s i s t them i n coping with t h e i r experiences of t h i s phenomenon, the need for formal systems of support was common to a l l of the women. Only two of the women described experiences i n which they were supported by t h e i r family. A l l the women f e l t the abuse they had suffered and continued to endure was too much of a burden for t h e i r family and friends to cope with. When discussing custody and access, the partici p a n t s described how they did not see s o c i a l support as coming from informal networks such as family, friends or colleagues. However, the par t i c i p a n t s d i d describe how formal systems of support provided informal networks of support. Follow-up support groups for battered women provided a means of meeting other women who were experiencing s i m i l a r issues around custody and access. Formal systems of support were viewed as necessary to ensure ongoing safety of the women and a s s i s t them i n dealing with the stresses of the l e g a l system and custody and access laws. Formal systems of support were described as an int e g r a l part of the par t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. The partici p a n t s discussed various forms of formal systems of support Individual. experiences-~with. formal - systems of support varied from supportive to non-supportive. Many of the women indicated that they had l i t t l e or no formal systems of support available to them to cope with issues related to custody and access of t h e i r c h i l d r e n . What 98 the women seemed to experience was the i l l u s i o n s and r e a l i t i e s of the formal systems of support. That i s , one of the sources of di s t r e s s for the women was thinking that the 'system' would be supportive, or would be able to be supportive and then finding out that t h i s i l l u s i o n was not necessarily well founded. The essence of these women's experiences w i l l be presented by describing four s p e c i f i c formal systems of support i d e n t i f i e d by the par t i c i p a n t s : 1) Police, 2) The Legal System, 3) The Health Care System, 4) Transition Houses and Referral Services. Police A l l of the participants remained i n great need of protection from t h e i r abuser. Police are held out as the resource to c a l l upon when i n need. Support from p o l i c e was, however, at times an i l l u s i o n , and only occasionally a r e a l i t y . Yet, only two of the par t i c i p a n t s were able to obtain r e s t r a i n i n g orders against t h e i r abusers; "...I had to do i t myself, and I also had to adapt the si t u a t i o n with the kids by myself,...because we weren't getting the protection that we needed." S t i l l , for the women who had no contact orders, i t seemed almost worthless-.-when...they., were, legally, .forced, to have regular contact with the man whom they feared. The women did, however, receive some sense of comfort i n knowing that they were l e g a l l y allowed to c a l l the p o l i c e i f t h e i r abuser infringed upon the no-contact order; " . . . i f I 99 didn't have the support of the po l i c e and the law ri g h t now...nothing would keep him away from here." The women's experiences with the p o l i c e varied and seemed to depend on the po l i c e o f f i c e r s ' knowledge and understanding of wife abuse. One woman who c a l l e d the pol i c e when her ex-partner kicked i n her bedroom door and wouldn't leave, describes her anger and shock at the police's lack of understanding: ...he was drinking and I was f e e l i n g very threatened so I c a l l e d the p o l i c e , . . . and I mean I was t e r r i f i e d , and she (policewoman) b a s i c a l l y said to me...you r e a l l y should t r y to reconcile, because so many of the young offenders we have come from broken homes, and i t i s r e a l l y better for your children i f you remain i n t h i s s i t u a t i o n . I mean, l i k e , I can't believe that t h i s i s happening to me, you know,...I am t o l d that there i s support i n the community... Some of the participants f e l t supported and validated by the po l i c e ; " I did get support from the poli c e , along the way i n the f i r s t year..." Conversely, other participants described f e e l i n g disappointed by the .lack_of..support--they-received....from...-the p o l i c e . One of the participants talked about how she f e l t powerless to protect herself against her abuser even with p o l i c e involvement: ...why am I going to c a l l the police? They don't 100 do anything...I came within inches of going and buying a gun,...because nobody i s helping me. It has been two years and I am not getting any support. There have been times when I have r e a l l y thought that maybe he might come and k i l l me. This same woman described several incidents where the po l i c e had been unable to protect both her and her children because she was s t i l l l e g a l l y married to her abuser and only had interim custody: I c a l l e d the p o l i c e . T o t a l l y useless...I showed them the court order because he was threatening to take the kids that night when he wasn't supposed to...and they said to me 'lady, there i s nothing we can do. He could take them for the next s i x months'...because i t was interim (custody) and there was nothing i n the...court order that stated that the p o l i c e had any j u r i s d i c t i o n to do anything about i t . And I was i n t o t a l shock. To be standing there with t h i s paper i n my hand and being t o l d that i t didn't mean anything, nothing! It was l i k e the bottom f e l l out of my l i f e . Like I was handed a pack of l i e s . This whole system was just a farce. There, was no. support. — -.. . The Legal System As the preceding excerpt i l l u s t r a t e s , lack of po l i c e support was often related to the inadequate support from the l e g a l system. Overall, the women talked about 101 receiving i n s u f f i c i e n t support from the le g a l profession; "...I didn't get the support I should have got from the leg a l system." Most of the women f e l t that the lawyers, judges, family court o f f i c e r s and other l e g a l professionals did not understand abuse and the ramifications i t had for women and t h e i r children: From the leg a l system, I don't f e e l that i t has been very p o s i t i v e at all...we have seen evidence of what my husband can do, and uh, they have berated him for i t , and yet they have given him more access. There was a consensus that the le g a l profession d i d not seem to associate the man's abuse as having any bearing on his l e g a l right to custody and access; "he'd breached the r e s t r a i n i n g order, he'd broken into the house, and they... confirmed access time as usual on Wednesday, and the lawyer,...my lawyer did i t matter-of-factly,... there doesn't seem to be any connection...with the l e g a l system..." One woman describes the lack of support she received from her lawyer when she asked her lawyer to recommend that she be excused from attending a j o i n t psychological interview with her abuser: . . . i t would put me i n the same loc a t i o n as him --coming and-going, ... I- don't--think that she took any of that into account. She was more concerned about Dr. M. seeing how my husband treated me. She was quite w i l l i n g to put me through a l l that. 102 This excerpt c l e a r l y i l l u s t r a t e s how lack of support from the leg a l system can create stress i n the l i v e s of these women and, i n turn, jeopardize t h e i r safety: "There doesn't seem to be any support with the l e g a l system, and I am also r e a l l y scared because I am just getting r e a l l y worn out by a l l of t h i s . " The partici p a n t s who were involved with Section 15 custody reports describe f e e l i n g t e r r i f i e d and iso l a t e d , because they had no support to cope with t h i s experience: To know what i t i s l i k e to have to go through a Section 15, and have somebody watching you at a l l times,... that i s t e r r i f y i n g , and you don't know what...to do about i t because you have no support from anybody. The Health Care System The support that the partic i p a n t s received from the health care profession varied with each p a r t i c i p a n t . Some women had no contact with health care professionals, outside of the researcher, while others had accessed more than one health care support service. One of the partici p a n t s had received both medical and nursing support from the Domestic Violence Unit i n a major t e r t i a r y — h o s p i t a l . -This pa r t i c i p a n t discussed how the nurse at the Domestic Violence Unit had counselled her on issues of abuse and made r e f e r r a l s to other support services. This support service was seen as extremely h e l p f u l and supportive i n educating the p a r t i c i p a n t about 103 her l e g a l rights and the a v a i l a b i l i t y of other formal systems of support. One of the participants whose health had deteriorated due to ongoing abuse i n r e l a t i o n to custody and access described having mixed feelings about her family doctor and the support that he had provided: My doctor was supportive i n some ways but not i n others...I mean how many times i n the l a s t two and a a h a l f years that I have been i n to see him, t e l l i n g what t h i s i s doing to me ph y s i c a l l y , and h e ' l l just blame i t on an ailment...but I mean I have t o l d him that the abuse had been going on for years,... that t h i s i s what i t does to me...to t h i s day I don't trust him...his idea was to hand me a pre s c r i p t i o n drug. Transition Houses and Referral Services A l l of the women i n th i s study were receiving some form of formal support from the r e f e r r a l agency. Battered women support groups and in d i v i d u a l counselling were i d e n t i f i e d as po s i t i v e formal system of support. These systems fostered the development of informal networks of support people who shared s i m i l a r -.experiences. Two. of-the women, had. attended, a custody and access support group through a second stage counselling service. A l l the women f e l t that these services were v i t a l to help them cope with t h e i r abuse and issues concerning custody and access. Yet, these women also 104 described f e e l i n g that a l l of the e f f o r t s i n t r y i n g to heal themselves were being countered by t h e i r ongoing contact with t h e i r abuser. A l l expressed the common need to heal from t h e i r abuse and move forward with t h e i r l i v e s . This healing was d i f f i c u l t to achieve without adequate formal systems of support. Healing and Moving Forward i n L i f e A l l of the mothers expressed a need to heal from t h e i r abuse and move on i n l i f e . The women f e l t that t h i s was d i f f i c u l t to achieve with court-imposed custody and access: " A l l the progress that I am making i s being countered by his weekly v i s i t a t i o n s . It only ends up with zero because his behaviour cancels out my progress of healing myself." Although some of the pa r t i c i p a n t s f e l t that they were making some progress towards healing, they were aware of how f r a g i l e t h i s progress was without adequate formal systems of support: I want to help the kids heal, I want to help myself heal...we have been nervous wrecks...to have some degree of normalcy i n t h i s t o t a l l y b i z arre si t u a t i o n , but you have got a l l these people looking at you through a microscope. No, there i s no time for healing. My...healing. took „.up u n t i l , two years...before I even got a chance to s t a r t looking at i t . Some of the mothers described f e e l i n g depressed af t e r seeing t h e i r ex-partner at access exchanges because 10 i t would bring back o ld emotions and feelings of g u i l t over the loss of t h e i r marriage: At the beginning, there was a l o t of apprehension and dread...of seeing him. (How did that make you feel?) Depressed. It would bring i t a l l back. The very recent separation, and the recent upheaval... Just the sadness of the whole situation...that t h i s i s my husband, t h i s i s the si t u a t i o n that my marriage has turned into . In order to t r u l y heal from t h e i r abuse, a l l of the partici p a n t s i d e n t i f i e d the need to withdraw themselves from t h e i r abuser; "...I f e e l that I am recovering, and just for today I am here, but I might have to distance myself p h y s i c a l l y from him to r e a l l y get away, you know, break free from him." As previously stated, the women also i d e n t i f i e d that they may never be able to t r u l y break free of t h e i r abuser because of court-imposed custody and access. The sadness of t h i s dilemma which was impairing the woman's a b i l i t y to heal from her abuse i s e x p l i c i t l y described by one of the mothers: ...I f e e l l i k e he i s constantly t r y i n g to drag me back. It's l i k e I want to get on with my l i f e . I - know that I- have • got a-wonderful l i f e , out there...that God has a wonderful plan for my l i f e , that I don't have to l i v e a defeated l i f e , that I can l i v e a vi c t o r i o u s l i f e . And i t i s l i k e my husband,...is constantly t r y i n g to hook me in,...1 10 don't want to go back, I want to go forward, and I know he i s back there, and he wants me to go back with him. Conceptualization of the Experience This conceptualization of the experience represents a summative e f f o r t of the researcher's inve s t i g a t i o n into t h i s phenomenon of inquiry. This conceptualization of the experience was developed a f t e r careful and intensive analysis of the data to i d e n t i f y common themes and components of the women's experiences. The f i n a l synthesis and integration of the themes into a description of the phenomenon l e d to the creation of t h i s conceptualization. Figure 1 i s a diagrammatic i l l u s t r a t i o n of the researcher's conceptualization of the women's experiences. 107 Conceptualization of the Experience - Battered Women's Experiences with Custody and Access: The Ongoing Exposure to Abusive Ex-partners Figure 1: Conceptualization of the experience TO HEAL AMD MOVE FORWARD IN LIFE FORMAL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT / SAFETY: ONGOING DANGER -Fear -Hyper-vigilance -Emotional Dilemma Affects Physical Health and Emotional H e l l -being STRESS: LIVING WITH THE IMPOSED RESTRICTIONS OF THE LAW AND THE LEGAL SYSTEM -Anger -Powerlessness -Despair 108 Summary In t h i s chapter, the researcher presented both the analysis of the data and interpretations of t h i s study of battered women and c h i l d custody and t h e i r ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. The women i n t h i s study described t h e i r experiences as having three components: 1) SAFETY: Living with Ongoing Danger; 2) STRESS: Living with the Imposed Restrictions of the Law and Legal System; 3) FORMAL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT. Each of these components had separate themes. These themes were discussed and supported by excerpts from the data. Safety and Stress were seen to be i n t e r r e l a t e d components with each one impacting the other. Three themes were discussed within the component of Safety. These themes included: 1) fear, 2) hyper-vigilance and 3) emotional dilemma. A l l of the women i n t h i s study continued to experience ongoing abuse from t h e i r ex-partners. As a result, the women feared for both t h e i r own safety and that of t h e i r children. As a means of coping with t h e i r fears, the women became hyper-vigilant to t h e i r surroundings. The women described a need to be able to continue to read t h e i r ex-partners' behaviour . during_..access ...exchanges .in .order, to predict .their moods and, i n turn, ensure t h e i r own safety and that of t h e i r children. A l l expressed a desire to escape and distance themselves from t h e i r abuser. Yet, these mothers also 109 described f e e l i n g torn over t h e i r children's need for a father and t h e i r f a m i l i e s ' need for safety. In t h e i r experiences, the women endured various le v e l s of stress and concern for t h e i r safety. The ongoing stress and often increased danger experienced by the women ultimately affected t h e i r physical health and psychological well-being. Three themes were discussed i n r e l a t i o n to l i v i n g with the imposed r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and le g a l system: 1) anger, 2) powerlessness and 3) despair. The participants were the most angry over t h e i r i n a b i l i t y to prevent ongoing abuse. The women f e l t that access served as a means for t h e i r abusers to get back at t h e i r partners i n some way. Usually, t h i s was through ongoing abuse, harassment, threats, intimidation, and using the children against the mother. The fathers' l e g a l r i g h t s to custody and access of his children l e f t the women fe e l i n g powerless against the ongoing abuse. Four of the partici p a n t s were involved i n Section 15 custody reports. The women described f e e l i n g both t e r r i f i e d and powerless with t h i s experience. The l i m i t a t i o n s of the law and lack of available support for the women l e f t them with -feelings—of despair...-The-women.-described themselves as having defeated futures because of court-imposed ongoing contact with t h e i r abusers. In order to enable the women to manage the stresses related to l i v i n g with custody and access, there was a 110 need for support from formal support systems. One of the sources of di s t r e s s for the women was thinking that the 'system' would be supportive or would be able to be supportive and then finding out that t h i s i l l u s i o n was not necessarily well-founded. Formal systems of support are needed to enable women to develop s p e c i f i c strategies for dealing with custody and access and the ongoing abuse they experience. The fourth and f i n a l component described by a l l of the parti c i p a n t s was the need to be able to heal and move forward i n l i f e . The women discussed how i t was v i r t u a l l y impossible to heal from t h e i r abuse and move forward i n l i f e with court-imposed custody and access. The women described how they f e l t unsupported by both the law and the leg a l system. Knowledge and understanding of abuse were seen to be c r u c i a l factors i n determining the outcomes of successful formal systems of support. The depth and breadth of the findings presented have c l e a r l y i l l u s t r a t e d how d i f f i c u l t i t can be for a battered woman once she leaves her abusive partner when custody and access are involved. The same threats of repercussions made by the abuser that may have once prevented-a woman from-.leaving her abuser are now acted out. These women l i v e i n constant fear as the dangers a c t u a l l y escalate once they leave. The r e a l i t y of custody and access laws i s that women are forced by law to continue to have contact with men who they fear. The I l l ongoing danger and stress involved with t r y i n g to l i v e and cope with these laws takes i t s t o l l on the women ph y s i c a l l y and psychologically. As a f i n a l note to her interview, one of the participants summarized her experiences by saying; " . . . i f someone had t o l d me I would go through a l l of t h i s two and a ha l f years ago, I would never have l e f t him." This statement supports what i s already known and has been found i n t h i s study: that women are not supported when they leave an abusive relationship, and, i n fact, women may choose to remain i n abusive relationships because i t i s safer than i f they leave (Henderson, 1990). 1 1 2 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION OF THE CONCEPTUALIZATION Introduction In t h i s chapter, the researcher w i l l present a discussion of the conceptualization of t h i s study. In the previous chapter, the researcher presented her interpretations of the data and addressed each aspect of the conceptualization as i t related to the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences of the phenomenon. Although several of these dimensions merit further discussion, the scope of t h i s chapter dictates that only some of the most s i g n i f i c a n t aspects of the findings receive in-depth discussion. The researcher has i d e n t i f i e d three dimensions for discussion i n thi s chapter: safety, escaping, and healing. The l i t e r a t u r e which was presented i n chapter two, as well as, additional l i t e r a t u r e , w i l l be used to i l l u s t r a t e the significance of the findings of t h i s study. Safety Ongoing and often increased danger was a common component of a l l of the pa r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. A l l of the women described t h e i r concerns for t h e i r own safety and that of t h e i r children. The women's fears for safety-were justifiable--as they continued to be. exposed to ongoing harassment, control, manipulation and abuse from t h e i r ex-partners. For a l l of the women, fears about the repercussions of leaving became t h e i r r e a l i t y . Ongoing danger was an integrated experience p e r s i s t i n g 113 throughout t h e i r experiences of l i v i n g with issues related to the custody and access of t h e i r c h i l d r e n . The women's concern for safety was so fundamental that i t established the context i n which they c a r r i e d out t h e i r d a i l y l i v e s . Just as t h i s study has revealed, abuse does not end when a woman i s separated or divorced from her abusive partner (Henderson, 1990; Jacobson, 1982; Pagelow, 1984; Sonkin, Martin & Walker, 1985; S t a t i s t i c s Canada, 1993; Zorza, 1995). This study supports other l i t e r a t u r e which states that separation or divorce only serves to increase the danger for many battered women (Pagelow, 1984). The findings of t h i s study also support the need for health care professionals to acknowledge the danger that battered women face upon leaving t h e i r abuser. In examining the formal systems of support u t i l i z e d by the partici p a n t s i n t h i s study, i t became evident that many of the professionals involved with these women assumed i n c o r r e c t l y that the violence ends when the parti e s separate or divorce. This misconception thus a f f e c t s the establishment of s u f f i c i e n t services to ensure the protection of battered women (Zorza, 1995). The .seriousness of ...this~.concern_f or ...the.-..safety- of. battered women i s c l e a r l y i l l u s t r a t e d i n the American s t a t i s t i c which states that "...three quarters of a l l women hos p i t a l i z e d because of domestic violence are separated or divorced" (Zorza, 1995, p.147). 114 A l l of the women i n th i s study recounted e x p l i c i t incidents of ongoing harassment, threats, manipulation, control and abuse from t h e i r ex-partners. As well, each of the participants described s p e c i f i c instances of abuse that t h e i r children had witnessed. The women were concerned for both t h e i r own physical and psychological safety and that of t h e i r children. The mothers f e l t that the negative emotional climate i n which they l i v e d was adversely a f f e c t i n g both themselves and t h e i r c h i l d r e n. These concerns for safety have been i d e n t i f i e d i n other studies (Henderson, 1990; Jacobson, 1982). The ef f e c t s on children of witnessing abuse are well documented (Ericksen & Henderson, 1992; Hershorn & Rosenbaum, 1985; Hilberman & Munson, 1978; Hughes, 1986; Jaffe, Wolfe, Wilson & Zak, 1985, 1986a, 1986b; Levine, 1975; Owens & Straus, 1975; Rosenbaum & O'Leary, 1981; Westra & Martin, 1981), as are the eff e c t s on children of being exposed to the ongoing discord of t h e i r parents (Emery, 1982; Jour i l e s , Murphy & O'Leary, 1989; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980; Zaslow, 1988, 1989). The Canadian Panel on Violence Against Women (1993) concurred that custody and access serves as a means for a batterer to continue his abuse .and-expose _his-...children_to... ongoing. violence and discord. A study on protection for battered women coordinated by Jacobson (1982) found that women had s p e c i f i c concerns about custody and access. Two of the women's most 115 c r i t i c a l concerns were, f i r s t , the ongoing danger to the mother and, second, the concern for the physical and psychological safety of t h e i r children (Jacobson, 1982). In the presentation of these findings, Jacobson (1982) merely states that women have concerns about custody and access, but does not discuss the women's perceptions of these concerns. This study supports the previous work of Jacobson (1982) by e x p l i c i t l y describing the women's perceptions of t h e i r need for safety i n the face of ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. A l l of the participants f e l t that t h e i r ex-partners were using custody and access as a means of continuing t h e i r abuse. The findings of t h i s study are supported by l i t e r a t u r e which have described how abusive men w i l l often extend t h e i r control through custody and access (Chesler, 1986; Henderson, 1990; Zorza, 1995). Zorza (1995) stated that even i f p r i o r to separation the abuse was only focussed on the mother, an abusive partner w i l l " . . . s h i f t his focus to control of the c h i l d as a way to continue the terro r and violence against the mother" (p.147). Si m i l a r l y , Henderson (1990) found that several fathers—were-using t h e i r ..children -to...carry.-messages back to t h e i r mothers. The mothers i n Henderson's (1990) study perceived that the children were being further disturbed by the access v i s i t s as they were often forced to take sides. The findings of t h i s study support the 116 work of Henderson (1990). In t h i s study, the mothers described t h e i r emotional dilemma at seeing t h e i r children being caught i n the middle between t h e i r two parents. Although the women acknowledged t h e i r children's need for t h e i r father, they had doubts about his a b i l i t i e s as a parent. The mothers i n th i s study s h i f t e d t h e i r thinking from t h e i r o r i g i n a l notion that t h e i r children needed a father no matter how t e r r i b l e he might be, to a perception that t h e i r family's safety could not be guaranteed unless there was a break i n the bond between the children and t h e i r father. A father's r i g h t to custody and access of his children jeopardized the safety of both the mother and her children. Escaping A l l of the participants i n t h i s study discussed a need to escape from t h e i r abusive ex-partners. The notion of needing to escape was described by the women within two of the categories i d e n t i f i e d by the researcher: 'Safety' and 'Stress'. The notion of 'escaping' i n r e l a t i o n to the phenomenon of custody and access has not been described in-other, research .studies. This, may., be. due to that fact that issues surrounding battered women and c h i l d custody have only recently been i d e n t i f i e d ; however, to date these issues have not be recognized as r e s u l t i n g i n credible problems ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family 117 Violence, 1992). Support for t h i s notion of escaping can be found i n some of the th e o r e t i c a l l i t e r a t u r e on family violence. In describing how abused women can use the law to protect t h e i r children, Zorza (1995) discusses the women's right to relocate. Zorza (1995) confirms the r e a l i t i e s of what the participants i n t h i s study were experiencing: "Even when a parent has both sole l e g a l and sole physical custody of a c h i l d , the parent may not be free to move the c h i l d to wherever she or he chooses" (p.157). Court cases to determine i f a parent can relocate a c h i l d are becoming increasingly more common (Zorza, 1995). Zorza (1995) states that these cases are often among the most gender-biased decisions that the courts make. The courts usually view the father's reasons as legitimate, yet the mothers' reasons are often viewed as less important, s e l f i s h or a v i n d i c t i v e attempt to deny the father access (Zorza, 1995). The mothers i n t h i s study wanted to escape from t h e i r ex-partners because they perceived that t h i s would be the only way to secure t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children. Canadian provinces have yet to enact statutes that-.make-wife- abuse^at least--relevant i n ..custody and access cases (Department of Justice Canada, 1993). As such, the courts are also u n l i k e l y to view wife abuse as having any bearing i n deciding whether a women has the rig h t to relocate (Zorza, 1995): 118 The court may be unwilling to see that the continued battering demoralizes the mother and hence hurts the children. Or i t may believe that her desire to move i s purely v i n d i c t i v e or that she exaggerated or even fabricates the abuse to give her reason to leave" (Zorza, 1995, p.157). The women i n th i s study wanted to escape the ongoing violence but were aware of the po t e n t i a l d i f f i c u l t i e s because of the father's l e g a l r i g h t to access to his children. The courts may view t h e i r moving as a means of denying the father his l e g a l access (Zorza, 1995). Zorza (1995) states that the courts "...do not view the women's moving as protective of themselves and t h e i r c h i l d r e n and, hence, something that should be encouraged" (p.158). Healing Throughout a l l of the interviews with the partic i p a n t s , there was evidence that custody and access was a form of persistent, unrelenting stress and uncertainty. This persistent stress was experienced as continued abuse which prevented them from healing and moving forward i n l i f e . Adequate formal systems of support were seen as necessary to enable women to o f f s e t ..the. stressors associated with ..custody and .access and to support women i n seeking change within the system. For th i s change to occur, there needed to be recognition of th i s abuse so that the women can begin healing and moving forward i n l i f e . The findings of t h i s study indicate 119 that not a l l of the formal systems of support recognize t h i s ongoing abuse, and, because of t h i s , may contribute to i t s continuance. A l l the participants discussed t h e i r need for formal systems of support rather than informal systems, such as, family and friends. These findings are supported by Bowker (1983) who noted that when battered women l e f t t h e i r abusers t h e i r help-seeking behaviours switched from informal support networks to formal systems of support. Bowker (1983) states that battered women found formal systems of support to be more h e l p f u l . Many of the women stated that they f e l t unsupported by some of the formal systems of support they had encountered. Formal systems of support which serve i n the best inter e s t of battered women are es s e n t i a l to enable them to heal and move forward i n l i f e . The findings of t h i s study c l e a r l y indicate that s p e c i f i c formal systems of support for battered women are needed which recognize the problem of ongoing abuse r e l a t e d to issues of custody and access of children. These systems of support can provide women with s p e c i f i c strategies for minimizing the uncertainties and feelings of .vulnerability associated..with., t h i s ...type, of. abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p . Formal systems of support are also needed to ensure that women receive accurate information about t h e i r l e g a l r i g h t s . Professionals within these s p e c i f i c services for battered women can assume advocacy roles by 120 continuing to expose unrecognized inequities i n a le g a l system that places abusive men's rights before the right s of women. Battered women have the strength to heal from t h e i r abuse and cope with custody and access issues i f they are adequately supported. Campbell et a l . (1993) outline a recovery process that battered women go through a f t e r leaving t h e i r abuser. These authors describe t h i s recovery process as a search for meaning i n experiences (Campbell et a l . , 1993). Successful recovery depends upon the support given to abused women working through t h i s process of recovery and healing (Campbell et a l , 1993). These authors suggest that nursing can be instrumental i n providing t h i s formal system of support (Campbell, 1993). Overall, the participants f e l t unsupported by the leg a l system, and t o l d s t o r i e s of judges, lawyers and other l e g a l professionals undermining the abuse. The mothers f e l t that l e g a l professionals did not understand abuse and the ramifications i t had for women and t h e i r children. Formal systems of support have long been recognized as major external resources that indi v i d u a l s and families can. draw-upon-in-coping ..(Caplan, . 1974, 1982). The participants i n t h i s study f e l t v ictimized by the issues of custody and access because of the lack of formal systems of support to a s s i s t them to heal and move forward i n l i f e . As such, they f e l t an ongoing 121 v u l n e r a b i l i t y to the continuing abuse through the ongoing contact with t h e i r abusive ex-partners that they were l e g a l l y forced to uphold. The need for organized formal systems of support to aid battered women i n th e i r pursuit of freedom from violence has been well documented i n the l i t e r a t u r e (Brendtro & Bowker, 1989; B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force of Family Violence, 1992; Campbell, Smith McKenna, Torres, Sheridan & Landenburger, 1993; Henderson, 1990; 1993; Tilden, 1989). Henderson (1990) states that battered women need support to help them deal with the demands they face upon leaving t h e i r abuser. Henderson (1990) discusses how parenting preparation can help women anticipate the poten t i a l problems involved with custody and access and the ongoing contact with abusive ex-partners. In her a r t i c l e , Henderson (1990) i d e n t i f i e s that women need clear information about the services to which they are e n t i t l e d . Inappropriate or i n s u f f i c i e n t formal systems of support for battered women i s also well documented ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992; Drewitt, 1993; Henderson, 1990; 1993; McMahon & Pence, 1995;- Campbell e t - a l . , 1993) The women i n t h i s study f e l t unsupported by the leg a l system and the professionals working within t h i s system. There i s the o r e t i c a l l i t e r a t u r e which supports these women's negative views of the leg a l system. 122 McMahon and Pence (1995) state that: Women come to believe they can tr u s t neither the courts nor s o c i a l service agencies. These agencies have, l i k e the men who abused them, the power to separate them from t h e i r children, characterized them as u n f i t mothers, and interpret the meaning of th e i r experience and behavior (p.198). McMahon and Pence (1995) also state that the practices of human services and the courts discount the e f f e c t s of violence on women and children when determining the 'best in t e r e s t s of the c h i l d . ' The practices that these authors are r e f e r r i n g to include psychological assessments (Section 15), data gathering, report writing, and the education and t r a i n i n g of agency and court s t a f f (McMahon & Pence, 1995). McMahon and Pence (1995) claim that these practices used to determine c h i l d custody " . . . f a i l to see the harm that violence does to both battered women and th e i r children and thus threatens the welfare of both" (p.198). Four of the participants i n t h i s study had to endure psychological assessments (Section 15) to determine i f they were ' f i t parents.' The women described t h i s -experience as- frightening. A l l of- the women perceived these reports to be biased against them, and that the professionals who wrote the reports played down the abuse. These p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences are supported by McMahon and Pence (1995) who state that psychological 123 assessments are often gender-biased and take l i t t l e or no account of the fact that these women at the time of these assessments are recovering (or attempting to recover) from years of abuse. McMahon and Pence (1995) state that the psychological damage, low self-esteem and g u i l t suffered by battered women w i l l "...no doubt a f f e c t the resu l t s of psychological assessments and home v i s i t s done by case workers" (p.198). These authors also claim that i t i s not uncommon for psychological assessments to construct a battered women as an u n f i t parent and as the parent who has put her children at r i s k ; "...a battered women's rel a t i o n s h i p with a vio l e n t man i t s e l f may be constructed as a ' f a i l u r e ' to protect her chil d r e n " (McMahon & Pence, 1995, p.198). In examining the current practices used to determine custody, McMahon and Pence (1995) question why i t i s that a father's parenthood i s conceptualized i n terms of his rights to the c h i l d versus his r e s p o n s i b i l i t y to "...heal the harm done by violence?" (p.199). McMahon and Pence (1995) state that the s p e c i f i c items which the law says are relevant to "the best interests of the c h i l d " , such as emotional and economic s t a b i l i t y , do not account for the .effects of.abuse:~ .. On the surface t h i s kind of concern with children's welfare i s both reasonable and j u s t i f i e d . However, domestic violence i s i t s e l f responsible for many of the conditions and phenomena that then are used as 124 independent grounds for assessing what represents children's welfare. In t h i s sense, not only i s violence not addressed, but i t ' s workings also are deeply and i n v i s i b l y embedded i n how we resolve questions of children's i n t e r e s t s . McMahon and Pence (1995) suggest that the courts need to rethink the notions of parents' rig h t s and children's interests, because the children do not stand separate from the eff e c t s of violence. The authors also state that taking the standpoint of the c h i l d means r e v i s i t i n g the meaning of family where children can not conceptually separate themselves from the harm done to mothers, brothers and s i s t e r s (McMahon & Pence, 1995). The fears and stresses experienced by the women i n t h i s study are supported by McMahon and Pence (1995) who state that no matter how well intended, the current practices of the courts and the leg a l system "...present a new set of r i s k s to women who have experienced violence... and to th e i r children" (p.200). S u m m a r y In t h i s chapter, a discussion of some of the most s i g n i f i c a n t dimensions of t h i s study was presented. In the previous.chapter, the researcher-presented her interpretations of the data; the scope of t h i s chapter dictated that only a sel e c t i o n of the most notable aspects of the findings be discussed. Three dimensions were i d e n t i f i e d and discussed i n d e t a i l : safety, escaping 125 and healing. Literature presented i n Chapter Two as well as additional l i t e r a t u r e was used to i l l u s t r a t e the signi f i c a n c e of the findings of t h i s study. A l l of the participants described t h e i r concern for t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children because a l l continued to be abused by t h e i r ex-partners. The women's concerns for t h e i r safety permeated t h e i r entire experiences, and they established the context i n which they c a r r i e d out th e i r l i v e s . Although issues of safety have been reported i n l i t e r a t u r e which c i t e s that divorce and separation only serve to increase the danger for battered women (Pagelow, 1984), these issues have not received s i g n i f i c a n t attention. Also supported by the l i t e r a t u r e was the need for health care professionals to acknowledge the increased r i s k that battered women face upon leaving t h e i r abuser. The fact that custody and access serves as a means for the batterer to continue his abuse and expose his children to violence and discord has been supported by the l i t e r a t u r e . This study shows how formal systems of support can attenuate that abuse. The participants described a desire to escape from their., abuser-.to.ensure ..their.-safety... and ..that of t h e i r children. The mothers, however, f e l t that r e l o c a t i n g was complicated by the father's r i g h t to custody of and access to his children. Although the notion of 'escaping' was not e x p l i c i t l y conceptualized by any other 126 research studies, there was t h e o r e t i c a l l i t e r a t u r e to support the women's experiences. The l i t e r a t u r e supported the women's feelings that they may never be able to t r u l y break free of t h e i r abuser because of custody and access laws. These laws can l e g a l l y prevent women from relocating when children are involved. This i s i n contrast to the usual view that the mother's reasons for relocating are v i n d i c t i v e attempts to deny the father his l e g a l r i ght to access (Zorza, 1995). A l l the participants provided evidence of an i n a b i l i t y to heal and move forward i n l i f e because they could not resolve the demands that custody and access made on t h e i r l i v e s . The need for formal systems of support which serve the needs of battered women and as s i s t them to cope with issues of custody and access were supported by the l i t e r a t u r e . As well, the inappropriate or lack of available formal systems of support for battered women was also supported by the l i t e r a t u r e . The negative feelings that the pa r t i c i p a n t s held towards the leg a l system and the laws that govern custody and access were validated by the l i t e r a t u r e . The fears and stresses that custody and access imposed-upon the-women were-supported by l i t e r a t u r e which stated that current custody and access laws presented a new set of r i s k s for battered women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n (McMahon & Pence, 1995). The r i s k s involved for these women ultimately affected t h e i r physical and emotional 127 well-being. The ramifications that custody and access have i n terms of the health of battered women have not been found i n any other research studies. Lack of other research studies to support the findings of t h i s study i s l i k e l y due to the fact that issues concerning battered women and custody and access of t h e i r c h i l d r e n have, to date, not been recognized as a credible problem ( B r i t i s h Columbia Task Force on Family Violence, 1992). This study provides an in-depth understanding of the nature of ongoing abuse experienced by women who have l e f t abusive relationships and are l i v i n g with issues of custody and access. The leg a l system holds and protects an abusive man's rights at the expense of women. This was noted by the women i n thi s study and had been reported i n related l i t e r a t u r e presented i n t h i s chapter. Such issues of inequality exist and must be addressed as they i l l u s t r a t e the need for change within the le g a l system and other formal systems of support. Such change could begin by recognizing women's rights and society's o b l i g a t i o n to support and protect victims of violence. 128 CHAPTER SIX: SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING Summary Abuse against women i n intimate relationships represents a major s o c i a l and health problem i n North America: wife abuse has become epidemic i n Canada (MacLeod, 1987). Research supports that abuse does not end when a woman separates or i s divorced from her abuser, but, i n fact, the danger for many women increases (Henderson, 1990, Jacobson, 1982; Pagelow, 1984; Sonkin Martin & Walker, 1985, S t a t i s t i c s Canada, 1993) . In the United States, i t has been reported that three quarters of a l l women ho s p i t a l i z e d because of domestic violence are separated or divorced from t h e i r abusers (Zorza, 1995) . For battered women, the decision to leave an abusive partner i s d i f f i c u l t (Henderson, 1990). When she does leave, a women i s seeking to terminate her v i o l e n t marriage and b u i l d a new l i f e free of violence (Pagelow, 1992). A father's l e g a l right to custody of and access to his children and the children's bond with t h e i r father make i t d i f f i c u l t i f not impossible for a battered woman _to truly...-break..free~of her ..abuser. Custody, and access can serve as a means for a batterer to continue his abuse and expose his children to ongoing violence and discord. Literature on how custody and access issues are a f f e c t i n g battered women i s limi t e d . 129 The researcher i n i t i a l l y became interested i n battered women's experiences with custody and access through her role as a f a c i l i t a t o r of a parenting support group for battered women. During weekly sessions, the researcher came to see that leaving an abusive partner did not usually mean the end to the abuse. Women continued to experience abuse from t h e i r ex-partners through involvement with court-imposed custody and access v i s i t s . The ongoing abuse and stress suffered by these women ultimately affected t h e i r physical and psychological well-being. There are c r i t i c a l issues involving custody and access which can adversely a f f e c t the health and welfare of abused women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . Although some of these issues had been i d e n t i f i e d i n other studies, the researcher could f i n d no other studies which described the women's perceptions of these issues. Key de t a i l s about t h i s phenomenon were not known. Hence, the researcher employed the q u a l i t a t i v e research methodology of phenomenology to study battered women's perceptions of custody and access and t h e i r ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. It was th i s researcher's b e l i e f that i n -depth.exploration of t h i s phenomenon.would..provide insight for nurses and other professionals who cared for battered women. In addition, the researcher believed that information from t h i s study would provide knowledge 130 that could be used by battered women and ultimately contribute to t h e i r l i b e r a t i o n . Five participants volunteered for t h i s study. These participants were single mothers who had l e f t abusive relationships and were at the time sharing custody and/or access v i s i t a t i o n s of t h e i r c h i l d r e n with t h e i r abusive ex-partners. Unstructured non-directive interviews were conducted to e l i c i t spontaneous descriptions from the p a r t i c i p a n t s . A l l of the f i r s t interviews were audio-taped and subsequently transcribed verbatim by the researcher to ensure accuracy of the descriptions and par t i c i p a n t c o n f i d e n t i a l i t y . Descriptive notes were kept on second interviews which served to validate the descriptions of the findings with the p a r t i c i p a n t s . Direction for data analysis was taken from the s p e c i f i c steps outlined by Giorgi (1975). As the researcher read the tran s c r i p t s , meaning units and inherent themes were i d e n t i f i e d . Each interview was analyzed and then used as a basis for structuring subsequent interviews. As themes emerged from the data they were validated by the p a r t i c i p a n t s . The goal of the -analysis.was-to-.-make-explicit a -deeper understanding of the p a r t i c i p a n t s ' experiences. Once the themes were i d e n t i f i e d , they were elaborated upon and rel a t e d to each other as a whole. The researcher subsequently integrated her insights into a descriptive structure of the 131 phenomenon of battered women's experiences with custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. The women described t h e i r experiences as having four components: 1) SAFETY: Living with Ongoing Danger; 2) STRESS: Living with the Restrictions of the Law and Legal System; 3) FORMAL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT; and 4) TO HEAL AND MOVE FORWARD IN LIFE. Each of these components had separate themes which were discussed and supported by excerpts from the data. The findings of thi s study indicated that a l l of the women were l i v i n g i n great fear for t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children. The p a r t i c i p a n t s ' concern for safety i s well supported by recent l i t e r a t u r e . The ongoing danger and stress of l i v i n g with the r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the l e g a l system took i t ' s t o l l on the women and ultimately affected t h e i r physical health and psychological well-being. The experiences of l i v i n g with ongoing danger were described within three separate themes: 1) fear, 2) hyper-vigilance, and 3) emotional dilemma. The r i s k of danger escalated for a l l of the pa r t i c i p a n t s a f t e r leaving--their... abusive-partners . ...As .a. r e s u l t , the women l i v e d i n fear for both t h e i r safety and that of t h e i r children. To protect themselves from abuse and ensure t h e i r safety they coped by becoming hyper-vigilant to the i r environment. Some of the par t i c i p a n t s described a 132 need to continue face-to-face contact with t h e i r abuser so that they could read t h e i r ex-partners' behaviour during access exchanges i n order to predict t h e i r moods and, i n turn, ensure t h e i r children's safety. A l l of the participants described a desire to escape and distance themselves from t h e i r abuser. Yet, escaping i s i n r e a l i t y d i f f i c u l t i f not l e g a l l y impossible for battered women. These mothers were torn between t h e i r children's need for a father and t h e i r family's need for safety. Yet, these women could not escape without the le g a l support of the courts to grant the rig h t to relocate. The woman's rig h t to relocate from her abuser and the d i f f i c u l t i e s she faces i n f u l f i l l i n g t h i s dream have been supported by the l i t e r a t u r e . The participants discussed three themes i n r e l a t i o n to l i v i n g with the r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the le g a l system; 1) anger, 2) powerlessness, 3) despair. The women were most angry over t h e i r i n a b i l i t y to prevent ongoing abuse. These women perceived that custody and access served as a means for t h e i r abuser to get back at th e i r partner i n some way. Usually, t h i s was through ongoing abuse, harassment, threats, intimidation, and -using -the-children against- the mother. The women f e l t powerless to end th i s abuse because of the father's l e g a l r i g h t to his children. Powerlessness against both t h e i r abuser and the leg a l system led to feelings of despair. The women described themselves as having defeated futures 133 because of court-imposed ongoing contact with t h e i r abusers. Four of the participants had psychological assessments (Section 15) done to determine which parent would receive custody of the children. A l l of the part i c i p a n t s had strong negative emotions about t h i s experience. The women recounted incidents where the professionals writing these reports discounted the abuse and portrayed them as being u n f i t parents. A l l of the partici p a n t s encountered biases i n the writing of the custody reports, the most obvious bias being that wife abuse was not seen as having any impact on the children or on the husband's a b i l i t y to be a father. Formal systems of support which serve i n the best in t e r e s t of battered women were i d e n t i f i e d as being ess e n t i a l to enable women to heal and move forward i n l i f e . The participants discussed how they f e l t unsupported by the law and the le g a l system. Professionals' knowledge and understanding of abuse were seen to be c r u c i a l factors i n determining the effectiveness of formal systems of support. The need for, yet lack of, formal systems of support to aid -battered-women has been supported by the l i t e r a t u r e . Inherent i n a l l of the women's descriptions was the need to heal and move forward i n l i f e . The pa r t i c i p a n t s discussed how healing was v i r t u a l l y impossible to achieve with court-imposed custody and access and without the 134 help of formal systems of support. The women f e l t that any attempts made to heal from t h e i r abuse would be discounted by t h e i r ex-partners during weekly access v i s i t s . The abuser's threats that may have once prevented the women from leaving are now acted out through his ri g h t to custody of and access to his children. The r e a l i t i e s of custody and access laws are that these women were forced to have ongoing contact with the men who they l i v e d i n fear of and of whom they wished to escape. The ongoing danger and stress experienced by these women ultimately affected t h e i r physical health and emotional well-being. Conclusions The findings of t h i s study support several important conclusions about battered women's experiences with custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. Most s i g n i f i c a n t i s the woman's concern for her safety and that of her children. So fundamental was thi s concern for safety that i t established the context i n which they c a r r i e d out t h e i r d a i l y l i v e s . This study suggests that custody and access provides a means for an abuser.-to-continue his ...abuse and expose his childr e n to ongoing violence and discord. More s p e c i f i c conclusions derived from t h i s study are stated as follows: 1) L i v i n g with ongoing danger and the stresses of 135 l i v i n g with the r e s t r i c t i o n s of the law and the lega l system ultimately a f f e c t s the women's physical and psychological health. 2) The threats that may have once prevented a woman from leaving her abuser are now acted out by the abuser: These women l i v e i n fear for t h e i r l i v e s and with the fear of los i n g t h e i r c h i l d r e n . 3) Battered women perceive that custody and access adversely affects the physical and psychological health of t h e i r children. 4) Battered women are faced with the emotional dilemma of providing for t h e i r family's safety and the society's view that children need t h e i r father. 5) Escaping and distancing themselves from t h e i r abuser i s seen as the best way to l i v e a l i f e free from violence, but any hope of freedom i s complicated by the abuser's l e g a l r i g h t to custody of and access to his children. 6) Battered women f e e l unsupported by the le g a l system which completely disassociates wife abuse from the abuser's rights to custody and .access-.of. his .children. 7) Battered women perceive that psychological assessments (Section 15) are gender-biased. As well, these reports discount the abuse and the fact that women and t h e i r children are victims 136 of violence who have suffered physical and psychological damage which, i f not taken into consideration, can be used to construct mothers as 'unfit' or unstable parents. 8) Battered women f e e l that they have defeated futures because the r e a l i t i e s of custody laws and the rel e n t l e s s determination of t h e i r ex-partners w i l l prevent them from ever t r u l y breaking free. 9) Battered women are unable to heal and move forward i n l i f e because of ongoing abuse; adequate formal systems of support are needed to serve i n t h e i r best in t e r e s t s and to recognize the ongoing issues associated with custody and access. 137 Implications f o r Nursing Practice Abuse against women takes i t s t o l l on the health and well-being of women and th e i r children. Nursing knowledge of wife abuse must extend beyond the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of in d i v i d u a l cases of abuse to encompass the dynamics of abuse and the impact that abuse has on the family. Nurses need to recognize that men who abuse women usually do not stop aft e r they are separated; separation/divorce a c t u a l l y increases the r i s k of danger to women (Zorza, 1995). Battered women experience abuse through ongoing contact with abusive ex-partners mandated by custody and access orders. The findings of t h i s study indicate that concern for safety i s a predominant and enduring theme for battered women. The findings of t h i s study serve to enlighten nurses about the nature of ongoing abuse experienced by women who are l e g a l l y forced to share custody and access of t h e i r children with t h e i r abuser. These findings also support the need for assessment and intervention to aid these women who are at r i s k of danger. - -Nurses are i n the - id e a l p o s i t i o n to-intervene i n the cycle of violence. Because of the sheer number of nurses i n a wide var i e t y of practice settings, nurses have the a b i l i t y to contribute to the prevention, detection, and intervention of women and children who continue to be 138 exposed to abuse because of court-imposed custody and access. " C l i n i c a l practice takes nurses into the homes and l i v e s of families i n a co n f i d e n t i a l and intimate way" (Campbell & Humphreys, 1984, p.6). The closeness of the nurse/client r e l a t i o n s h i p allows the nurse to explore sensitive issues such as wife abuse and, s p e c i f i c a l l y , the issues involving custody and access. There i s s u f f i c i e n t l i t e r a t u r e to support the assertion that health care professionals, since they lack knowledge on the issue of wife abuse, are u n l i k e l y to i d e n t i f y women as abused and are reluctant to become involved with situations where they are unclear of t h e i r role (Brendtro & Bowker, 1989; Henderson, 1992; Polk & Brown, 1988). Henderson (1992) states that i t i s unfortunate that health care professionals ignore the threat to both the physical and mental well-being of battered women because, " . . . a l l of the evidence points to the conclusion that abused women would w i l l i n g l y , indeed g r a t e f u l l y accept help i f i t was ava i l a b l e " (p. 30). Battered women who are separated/divorced from t h e i r abuser face an even greater l i k e l i h o o d of being ignored by health care professionals who may wrongly assume that abuse w i l l end.once-a woman-leaves..her abusive partner. A l l women should be assessed as pot e n t i a l victims of violence (Canadian Nurses Association, 1992). In addition, t h i s study supports the need for nurses to assess the safety and well-being of women who are 139 currently sharing custody and access of t h e i r children with t h e i r abusive ex-partners. Nursing assessments need to include assessments of the r i s k of danger to battered women. Danger assessment guides such as the one developed by Campbell (1986) can be used by nurses to a s s i s t them i n determining the r i s k of danger (homicide) which exists for abused women. Research has i d e n t i f i e d several r i s k factors for homicide i n v i o l e n t intimate relationships such as: increased frequency and severity of physical violence; presence of a weapon and threats with weapons; threats to k i l l or bel i e v i n g that he i s capable of k i l l i n g ; v i o l e n t behaviour i n public (Campbell, 1996). It i s important that woman are assisted to assess t h e i r r i s k of danger. This knowledge can be used to aid these women i n developing safety plans which provide for the physical safety of themselves and that of t h e i r children (Campbell, 1986). Nursing administration needs to develop p o l i c i e s and procedures that emphasize a supportive, caring, non-judgmental and empathetic approach to the nursing care of battered women (Boychuk-Duchscher, 1994). .... Nurses can also help .battered women recover from t h e i r abuse by becoming involved with follow-up support groups for battered women (Henderson, 1993). Nurses have the knowledge and the a b i l i t y to encourage s o c i a l support by establishing parenting support groups which could help 140 battered women develop strategies to cope with issues such as custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners (Henderson, 1990). To e f f e c t i v e l y aid these women, nurses need to be knowledgeable about resources i n the community and about s p e c i f i c l e g a l rights and services to which battered women are e n t i t l e d . Education To provide e f f e c t i v e nursing care, nurses must, f i r s t , recognize the problems of wife abuse and, second, look beyond i s o l a t e d incidents of abuse to acknowledge the far reaching effects that wife abuse has on women, children, extended family and society. The findings of thi s study support that i n order to be e f f e c t i v e i n t h e i r care of battered women, nurses need to become more knowledgeable about the s o c i a l , l e g a l and p o l i t i c a l i n e q u a l i t i e s experienced by women and appreciate the power d i f f e r e n t i a l s between genders (Ross, 1994). Participants i n t h i s study validated the fact that the medical model fueled by i t s p a t r i a r c h a l system produces interventions which only focus on tr e a t i n g physical i n j u r i e s or prescribing p r e s c r i p t i o n medication. The medical model of care avoids the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of abuseand the-acknowledgment of the-impact that abuse has on women's health. Education on wife abuse and the dynamics of battering can provide nurses with the necessary knowledge and s k i l l s they need to challenge these p a t r i a r c h a l norms and provide supportive care which 141 encourages women to make informed choices congruent with t h e i r own values, b e l i e f s and personal health goals (Boychuk-Duchscher, 1994). Educational programs directed towards family violence need to be integrated into the curriculum of nursing schools at the l e v e l of diploma, baccalaureate and masters degree. Inservice education and continuing education programs are required to better prepare nurses with the s k i l l s needed to have an impact at a l l three l e v e l s of prevention of wife abuse. The three l e v e l s of prevention are health promotion, i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and intervention, and care during recovery from wife abuse. Nurses also need to support the t r a i n i n g and continuing education of police , l e g a l professionals, s o c i a l workers, physicians, as well as nurses (Campbell et a l . , 1993). The findings of t h i s study c l e a r l y indicate that e x i s t i n g formal systems of support are inadequate because professionals within these systems have i n s u f f i c i e n t knowledge of wife abuse and the far reaching e f f e c t s i t has on women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . "Workshops for professionals and interested key people and public education on abuse are needed and can be conducted by nurses"--(Campbell e t a l . , 1993, . p. 274) . Research The findings of t h i s study c l e a r l y indicate the need for new laws and p o l i c i e s on custody and access as they relate to battered women and t h e i r children. The 142 Canadian Department of Justice (1993) addressed the need for research which would shed l i g h t on the p r a c t i c a l r e a l i t i e s of custody and access issues. The Canadian Department of Justice also acknowledged the fact that wife abuse may not be properly considered by the courts i n determining custody and access. Although caution must be taken when generalizing the findings from a study of th i s nature, the findings of t h i s study support the above statement that wife abuse and the t o t a l i t y of i t s e f f e c t s on the health and well-being of women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n are not considered when determining custody and access. Further nursing research which u t i l i z e s inductive research methods or a r e p l i c a t i o n of t h i s study with other samples of battered women i s recommended to e l i c i t a deeper understanding of th i s phenomenon. More research would also serve to support the need for p o l i t i c a l , l e g a l , and s o c i a l change to empower women and bring about changes to current custody and access laws as they relate to battered women and t h e i r c h i l d r e n . The findings of t h i s study indicate that further research could focus s p e c i f i c a l l y on children's perceptions of custody and access and t h e i r ongoing •exposure-to witnessing-abuse and-discord. Although the women i n th i s study described t h e i r perceptions of t h e i r children's experiences with custody and access, further research i s needed to understand the children's experiences with t h i s phenomenon. 143 Another question of int e r e s t to t h i s researcher i s how battered women come to resolve t h e i r emotional dilemma of t h e i r children's need for a father and t h e i r family's need for safety. The women i n t h i s study began questioning t h e i r values regarding f a m i l i e s . The women began to r e a l i z e that custody and access were not working. Further research i s required to better understand how battered women resolve t h e i r changing values and b e l i e f s around families and t h e i r personal needs for safety. A l l of the participants i n t h i s study were i n the process of negotiating custody and access. Replication of t h i s study should be undertaken but with a sample of partici p a n t s who have the permanent custody decision resolved and have been l i v i n g with custody and access issues for longer than f i v e years. This addi t i o n a l research could be compared to the findings of t h i s study to determine i f the issues experienced by battered women change over the course of years of l i v i n g with custody and access and the continuing exposure to t h e i r abusive ex-partners. In t h i s chapter, the researcher has provided a summary-regarding, t h i s .phenomenological study of battered women's experiences with custody and access and the ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners. Important conclusions from the findings of t h i s study were 144 presented. F i n a l l y , implications for nursing practice, education and further research were discussed. 145 References A l c o r n , P . , S a k a l u k , P . , S o l o m o n , E . M . ( 1 9 8 5 ) . 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Research methodology and po s t d i v o r c e f a m i l y forms. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 58(3), 355-378. 152 Zaslow, M.J. (1989). Sex d i f f e r e n c e s i n c h i l d r e n ' s response to p a r e n t a l d i v o r c e : 2. Sample, v a r i a b l e s , ages and sources. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 59(1), 118-141. Zorza, J . (1995). How abused women can use the law to help p r o t e c t t h e i r c h i l d r e n . In E. Peled, P.G. J a f f e & J.L. Edleson, Cycle of v i o l e n c e (pp. 147-169). Thousand Oaks: Sage. T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A 153 APPENDIX A Participant's Information Letter School of Nursing T206-2211 Wesbrook Mall Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 2B5 Tel: (604) 822-7417 Fax: (604) 822-7466 Dear My name i s Tina Shalansky. I am a Re g i s t e r e d Nurse and a student i n the Graduate Nursing Program at the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia. For my Master's t h e s i s , I am i n t e r e s t e d i n studying b a t t e r e d women's experiences w i t h custody and access and the ongoing contact w i t h abusive ex-partners. This l e t t e r i s to i n v i t e you to p a r t i c i p a t e i n my research study. The t i t l e of my study i s : "Battered Women and C h i l d Custody: The Ongoing exposure to Abusive Ex-partners." To do t h i s research, I would l i k e to t a l k to women who have l e f t abusive partne r s and are c u r r e n t l y i n v o l v e d w i t h s h a r i n g custody and access of t h e i r c h i l d r e n w i t h abusive ex-partners. I i n i t i a l l y became i n t e r e s t e d i n b a t t e r e d women's experiences w i t h custody and access through my r o l e as a f a c i l i t a t o r of a pare n t i n g support group f o r b a t t e r e d women. During the weekly s e s s i o n s , i t became c l e a r to me that l e a v i n g an abusive p a r t n e r d i d not always mean an-.end to the abuse. Many women continued to experience abuse from t h e i r ex-partners through t h e i r involvement w i t h custody and access v i s i t s . Your involvement i n t h i s study w i l l i n c l u d e being i n t e r v i e w e d i n a p r i v a t e s e t t i n g which i s safe and convenient. Interviews w i l l be about one hour i n d u r a t i o n . P a r t i c i p a t i o n w i l l i n v o l v e one i n t e r v i e w w i t h the p o s s i b i l i t y of one or two subsequent i n t e r v i e w s to c l a r i f y and v a l i d a t e i n f o r m a t i o n ; thus your t o t a l time commitment i s one to three hours. With your permission, i n t e r v i e w s w i l l be audiotaped and t r a n s c r i b e d . Only myself and two U.B.C. p r o f e s s o r s w i l l have access to the i n f o r m a t i o n you pr o v i d e . Your i d e n t i t y w i l l be kept c o n f i d e n t i a l . A l l data about you w i l l be kept i n a locked f i l i n g cabinet at my home and subsequently destroyed when the study i s complete. You are under no o b l i g a t i o n to p a r t i c i p a t e i n t h i s study. I f you chose to not p a r t i c i p a t e or to w i t h draw from the study at anytime you w i l l i n no way j e o p a r d i z e your r i g h t to use the 155 Appendix B Interview Questions Sample i n t e r v i e w questions: 1) T e l l me about your experiences w i t h custody and access of your c h i l d r e n and your contact w i t h your ex-partner. 2) What i s i t l i k e to see your ex-partner? 3) How do you f e e l about your current custody and access arrangements? 4) How do you f e e l about having ongoing contact w i t h your abusive ex-partner? 5) I f you could change anything about your curre n t custody and access arrangements w i t h your ex-partner what would i t be? Sample probe questions: 1) So you are saying t h a t . . . 2) So i t was a concern t h a t . . . 3) I t sounds l i k e you are saying t h a t . . . 4) Could you t e l l me a l i t t l e more about... T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A School of Nursing T206-2211 Wesbrook Mall Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 2B5 Tel: (604) 822-7417 Fax: (604) 822-7466 I have r e c e i v e d a copy of t h i s consent form. P a r t i c i p a n t : Date: 158 Appendix D Demographic Data Name ( i n i t i a l s o n l y ) : Age: Place of b i r t h : Education (highest grade completed): M a r i t a l s t a t u s : Number of c h i l d r e n : Age M/F How long has i t been since you l e f t your abusive r e l a t i o n s h i p ? What i s the r e l a t i o n s h i p of your abuser to your c h i l d r e n ? Describe your current custody and access arrangements w i t h your abusive ex-partner:
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Nursing
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Battered women and child custody : The ongoing exposure to abusive ex-partners : A qualitative study
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