Violence against Women in India: Evidence from Rural Gujarat

Abstract

The nature of domestic violence, its causes, and its prevalence must be fully understood in order to plan effective prevention and intervention strategies. Research should examine not only the determinants and consequences of violence but also relevant economic, social, and cultural factors. Most of the current Indian literature focuses primarily on the linkages between the socialization of women into subordinate positions, male patriarchy, and
domestic violence (Krishnaraj 1991; Heise et al. 1994; Miller 1992). However, these explanations do not provide an understanding of how violence seeps into certain relationships or why husbands abuse their wives. As determinants of violence, proximate factors like economic stress, alcohol consumption, and allocation of time, need to be explored empirically and theoretically. This community-based study presents a picture of domestic violence as reported by married women in rural Gujarat.