Separation, Divorce, and Woman Abuse

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Abstract
There has been far too little attention to the violence that women experience at the hands of male partners during and after separation from a marriage. In this article, I provide evidence for the seriousness of the problem of violence during separation and its consequences. I argue that (a) violence is a significant factor causing women to leave marriages and thus contributes to the high rate of divorce; and (b) violence continues to play a role in the divorce process as couples negotiate for assets after separation. The data presented in this article are from a study based on a random sample of divorced women with children from diverse backgrounds. The data make clear that many women experienced violence both during and after the ending of their marital relationships and that the violence caused some women to leave their marriages and caused others difficulty in negotiating for their share of marital resources. These women's experiences have implications both for how we conceptualize divorce and for social policy issues.