“Thy Will Be Done”: Exploring the Effects of Religious Salience on Intimate Partner Violence
Files
Publication Date
Summer 2024
Digital Publisher
Digital Commons at St. Mary's University
Collection
McNair Scholars Symposium
Keywords
intimate partner violence; domestic violence; religion; Christianity; religious salience; IPV; religious counseling; male gender role
Description
Religious beliefs bear a great significance on our lives, as they shape our personal belief systems and affect our relationships with others. Religion has been found to have a positive correlation with intimate partner violence (IPV), an increasingly prevalent issue when looking at male and female relationships. The traditional values such as purity culture and male gender roles associated with patriarchal societies and traditional religious beliefs may magnify the possibility of IPV perpetration. The Bible may also be taken literally by Christianity and misinterpreted to corroborate perpetrators’ abuse. In addition with the lack of proper IPV education and prevention, religious communities may be contributing to the IPV statistics. Several studies show that Christian leaders will encourage IPV victims to stay in their relationships due their unbelief in divorce. This analysis used data from the Crime, Health, and Intimate Partner Problems Survey (CHIPPS), a cross-sectional probability sample of St. Mary’s University undergraduate students (n = 180) designed to analyze differences in partner violence and religion. The focal variables asked participants a variety of examples in which it might be considered okay to hit your partner and religiosity according to religious attendance and personal affiliation. A chi square test was conducted between the variables and the results remain complex throughout. IPV poses a daunting subject amidst the traditional values associated with religion. Future research would be advised to consider variables such as socioeconomic and cultural factors and differences between different denominations of Christianity when examining IPV.
Disciplines
Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence | Sociology of Religion
Format
MOV
Size or Duration
15:42 minutes
City
San Antonio
