“It will always continue unless we can change something”: consequences of intimate partner violence for indigenous women, children, and families

Violence against indigenous women and girls is endemic, yet the absence of research on the consequences of this violence from the perspectives of women presents a profound barrier to the development of knowledge, along with violence prevention and mitigation. Although family is central to many indigenous communities, existing research typically examines the consequences of intimate partner violence (IPV) on women or children in isolation, rather than examining its consequences holistically. The purpose of this article is to identify US indigenous women's perspectives about the impact of IPV on women, children, and families. Data were collected with 29 indigenous women affected by violence from a Southeastern tribe in the United States. As part of a larger critical ethnography, pragmatic horizon analysis of life history interviews revealed the consequences of IPV across multiple levels. Women reported profound psychological consequences resulting from IPV. The majority of women had witnessed IPV in their childhood, providing support for an intergenerational cycle of violence. Women reported psychological consequences on children, which paralleled those reported by women, leaving deep impressions on children across their life course. Consequences on children and whole families were extensive, indicating the negative ramifications of IPV transcended personal boundaries and affected children and families across multiple generations. Given the tight-knit nature of indigenous families and communities, the consequences across individuals and families were noteworthy. However, a dearth in research examining consequences of IPV across levels fails to capture the interconnections of consequences for women, children, and families. Given the centrality of family in many indigenous communities, examining IPV from a holistic perspective that incorporates multiple levels is recommended for IPV research and intervention development.

针对原住民妇女与女童的暴力行为已成为普遍存在的社会顽疾，然而现有研究未能从妇女视角出发探讨此类暴力所造成的后果，这为相关知识体系的构建、暴力预防与缓解工作带来了严重阻碍。尽管家庭是诸多原住民社区的核心支柱，但现有研究通常仅孤立地探讨亲密伴侣暴力（Intimate Partner Violence, IPV）对妇女或儿童造成的影响，而非从整体视角审视其带来的后果。本研究旨在明确美国原住民妇女对于亲密伴侣暴力给妇女、儿童及家庭所带来影响的看法。研究团队从美国东南部的一个原住民部落中招募了29名遭受暴力侵害的原住民女性，并收集了相关数据。作为一项大规模批判民族志研究的组成部分，研究人员对人生史访谈资料开展实用视界分析，由此揭示了亲密伴侣暴力在多个层级所引发的后果。受访女性均提及，亲密伴侣暴力给她们带来了极为严重的心理创伤。绝大多数女性在童年时期便目睹过亲密伴侣暴力的发生，这为暴力的代际循环现象提供了佐证。受访女性还提及，亲密伴侣暴力给儿童带来了与她们自身相似的心理创伤，这些创伤将在儿童的整个人生历程中留下深刻印记。亲密伴侣暴力对儿童及整个家庭造成的影响范围极广，这表明其负面影响已超出个体边界，对多代子女与家庭均造成了波及。鉴于原住民家庭与社区具有高度紧密的联结特性，此类针对个体与家庭的影响尤为值得关注。然而，目前缺乏针对多维度亲密伴侣暴力后果的相关研究，无法完整呈现妇女、儿童与家庭所受影响之间的内在关联。鉴于家庭在诸多原住民社区中的核心地位，未来的亲密伴侣暴力研究与干预方案开发，应采用涵盖多维度的整体视角开展相关探讨。