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Canyon College

online domestic violence course at Canyon College

COURSE SYLLABUS: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE


Course Title:
Department:
Instructor:
Domestic Violence
Social Work
Alice Yick Flanagan, Ph.D., M.S.W. E-Mail - Vita


Course Overview:

This course, "Domestic Violence" will provide students with an overview of the theoretical paradigms examining the definitions of, causes of, and interventions for domestic violence. These theoretical paradigms will come from various disciplines such as sociology, women studies, nursing, psychiatry, psychology, and social work. However, an emphasis will be placed on social work implications.

Domestic violence in this class will primarily focus on violence perpetrated by spouses/intimate partners on a female victim. Although the literature has documented that males can be victims of domestic violence, we will focus on female victims because the prevalence of domestic violence by a male perpetrator against a female perpetrator is higher. This course will not only review spousal abuse, but will cover dating violence and elder abuse. Assessments and clinical interventions and policies will be reviewed. There will also be a section on how culture, race, and ethnicity impacts on domestic violence and how interventions may need to be modified in order to meet the diverse needs women affected by violence in ethnic minority and immigrant groups.

Course Objectives:

At the completion of the course, students will be able to:

1. Explain the theoretical paradigms that have been offered to explain domestic violence. In addition, students will come to understand that each theoretical paradigm offers different definitions about what constitutes domestic violence, tenets regarding the causes of domestic violence, and implications for interventions and policies.

2. Explain the political underpinnings of terms such as violence against women, domestic violence, spouse abuse, family violence, and conjugal violence.

3. Describe the historical, social, and political forces that brought domestic violence unto the national agenda.

4. Discuss various assessments to identify the signs of spousal abuse, dating violence, and elder abuse.

5. Identify components that go into developing a safety plan for victims of domestic violence.

6. Explain the how culture, race, and ethnicity affect the phenomenon of domestic violence and how interventions may need to be modified in order to be more culturally-relevant for domestic violence victims from different ethnic groups.

Course Format:

1. Lecture on the web
2. Completion of assignments for corresponding sections
3. Periodic e-mails to the instructor

Required Texts: Online Bookstore

** "Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
Visit: http://www.jhuccp.org/pr/l11edsum.stm (Free)

** Selected articles from Northernlight.com. This is a very unique database where you can search by topics. It contains articles on web-sites and in academic journals. Articles from academic journals are in their Special Collections, and the cost is very reasonable ($3.95 for a long article). Some articles for this course are in Northernlight. Visit www.northernlight.com. Type in the title of article, and place quotation marks around the title in the search engine. You will have to establish an account by using your credit card.

** There are also selected articles from non-profit, commercial, and government web-sites. These are free.

Supplemental Texts, Articles, and Reports:

These books are not required, but you might find them helpful in your social work practice. In addition, you may find it useful as reference for your final assignment. You will find them in the bookstore.

Pirod-Good, M. and Stets, J.E. (1989). Violence in dating relationships. Praeger. (ISBN #: 0275933539)

Quinn, M.J. and Tomita, S.K. (1997). Elder abuse and neglect: causes, diagnosis, and Intervention strategies. (2nd edition). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Co. (ISBN #: 0826151213)

Roberts, A.R. (1998). Battered women and their families: Interventions, strategies, and treatment programs. Springer.
(ISBN #: 0826145914)

Rudo, Z.H. (1996). Family violence: A review of the literature.
http://www.fmhi.usf.edu/institute/pubs/rudo-powell-violence.html

Tatara, T. (1999). Understanding elder abuse in minority populations. Philadelphia, PA: Taylor and Francis.
(ISBN #: 0876309198)

Tjaden, P. and Thoennes, N. (2000). Research Report, Extent, Nature, and Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence (From National Institute of Justice)
Visit: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/victdocs.htm (Look at Year 2000 category). You can download this report free.

Internet Resources:

Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) - Has a search engine and has brief articles on various human right issues such as domestic violence and violence against women.
http://www.ahrchk.net/index.html

Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA) - This is an excellent clearinghouse with a lot of information.
Visit: http://www.mincava.umn.edu/index.asp

Stepping Together (Organization focused on Muslims and domestic violence. Has some short articles on this topic.
http://www.steppingtogether.org/

Violence Against Women Office - (There are lot of free reports, easy to download).
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/vawo/statistics.htm

Women's Issues - 3rd World
http://women3rdworld.miningco.com/newsissues/women3rdworld/

NEWSFLASH (An e-mail newsletter sponsored by Family Violence Prevention Fund).
To subscribe to NEWSFLASH send a blank email message, with no subject, to: fvpf-news-subscribe@igc.topica.com.

Course Requirements and Evaluations:

1. Assignments from the Study Guide.

2. Mid-term Assignment - Refer to the guidelines at the end of the course outline. (Due after completion of Unit 4). You must complete and submit the mid-term essay prior to starting Unit 5).

3. Final Paper/Project -- Refer to the guidelines at the end of the course outline. (Due one week after Unit 8).

Students will be evaluated using the following criteria:

** Assignments from the Study Guide (25 points)
** Mid-term assignment (30 points)
** Final paper/project (45 points)

There are a total of 100 points for the class. The following points determine the final grade for the class:

97-100 points = A+
96-92 points = A
91-89 points = A-
88-85 points = B+
84-81 points = B
80-74 points = B-
73-70 points = C+
69-65 points = C

Virtual Office Hours:

I check my e-mail several times during the day. Therefore, feel free to drop me an e-mail with questions about lectures, questions/exercises in the study guide, or just to say hello.

Course Outline:

Unit 1:

Introductions to Course
The Emergence of Domestic Violence as a Social Problem
The Role of Social Work in Domestic Violence

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
-- Read Chapter 2 ("Intimate Partner Abuse")

Domestic Violence is a Serious, Widespread Social Problem in America: The Facts
Visit: endabuse.org/newsdesk/facts/

Unit 2:

Feminist Theories and Sociological Theories to Explain Domestic Violence

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
-- Read the section titled: "Explaining Intimate Violence" in Chapter 2. Be sure to review Figure 1: "Ecological Model of Factors Associated with Partner Abuse"

Unit 3:

Psychological Theories and Public Health Perspectives on Domestic Violence
Health and Mental Health Effects of Domestic Violence

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
-- Continue with the reading in the section titled: "Explaining Intimate Violence" in Chapter 2

-- Read Chapters 4 ("Impact on Reproductive Health") and 5 ("Threats to Health and Development). Be sure to review Figure 3: "Health Outcomes of Violence Against Women"

**Submit a topic and a research question you think you would like to pursue for the final assignment.**

Unit 4:

Domestic Violence in Ethnic Minority Communities

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
-- Read the "highlights" section of the report entitled: "Culture: A Double Edge Sword"

"Immigrant Populations as Victims: Toward a Multicultural Criminal Justice System "
Visit: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/victdocs.htm (Look under 1998). You can download this in Adobe acrobat.

Jejeebhoy, S. J. and Cook, R. J. (1997). State accountability for wife-beating: the Indian challenge. Lancet, 349 (9052), SI10-113. You can obtain this article by visiting www.northernlight.com. Type in the title in the search engine.

Yukiko Tsunoda, Y. (1995). Japanese women confront domestic violence. The Journal of the International Institute, Vol. 3, No. 1. Visit: http://www.umich.edu/~iinet/journal/. Click on Vol. 3, No. 1.

Unit 5:

Dating Violence

Chase, Kenneth A. et. al. (1998). Specificity of dating aggression and its justification among high-risk adolescents. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 26(6), 467-474. Visit: www.northernlight.com

Feldman, S. Shirley et. al. (1998). Conflict negotiation tactics in romantic relationships in high school students. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 27(6), 691. Visit: www.northernlight.com

Rhynard, Jill et. al. (1997). Sexual assault in dating relationships. Journal of School Health, 67(3), 89. Visit: www.northernlight.com

Unit 6:

Elder Abuse

"Elder abuse and neglect" by Linda Woolf
Visit: http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/abuse.html

Marshall, Charles E. (2000). Elder abuse: Using clinical tools to identify clues of mistreatment. Geriatrics, 55 (2), 42. Visit: www.northernlight.com

** Submit a brief outline of your final assignment**

Unit 7:

Assessments and Mandatory Reporting Laws

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
Read Chapter 6 ("Health Providers Play a Key Role") and review the Pullout Guide

"Rodriguez, M.A. et. al. (1998). Patient attitudes about mandatory reporting of domestic violence: Implications for healthcare professionals" The Western Journal of Medicine, 169(1). You can obtain this article by visiting www.northernlight.com and type in the title in their search engine.

Gerbert, B. et. al.., (2000). Simplifying physicians' response to domestic violence. Western Journal of Medicine, 172, 329-331.
Visit: www.ewjm.com. Click "Search Articles." Then you can put in the author's name. You can download this article for free in Adobe Acrobat or in full text.

"Mandatory Reporting of Domestic Violence: Understanding the Risks versus the Benefits" by Patricia R. Salber
Visit: http://www.armadoc.com/dv_reporting.htm

Unit 8:

Social Work Interventions and Policies for Domestic Violence

"Population Reports: Ending Violence Against Women"
Read Chapter 7 ("An Agenda For Change")

Summary of Criminal Provisions of the Violence Against Women Act
Visit: www.ojp.usdoj.gov/vawo/laws/vawa_summary.htm

The Violence Against Women Prevention Act of 1998
Visit: www.mincava.umn.edu/tempvaw2.htm

“Do Batterer’s Programs Work” by Jeffrey L. Edleson
Visit: www.mincava.umn.edu/papers/battrx.htm

“Detection and treatment of domestic violence by Janice Asher”
Contemporary OB/GYN
Visit: www.findarticles.com
Type the title of this article in the search box. (Do not put quotation marks around the title)

"The Criminalization of Domestic Violence: Promises and Limits" by Jeffrey Fagan
Visit: http://ncjrs.org/txtfiles/crimdom.txt

Midterm Assignment

You are a social work faculty member in University X. You have been known to assign unique assignments to students. As a mid-term exam, you decide to design and administer a crossword puzzle. You will need to develop "Across" clues and "Down" clues. Be sure that the crossword puzzle taps into key concepts from Unit 1 to end of Unit 4. Be sure to submit the "Across" and "Down" clues, a blank crossword puzzle grid, and an answer key.

This is due after completion of Unit 4. You must complete and submit the mid-term essay prior to starting Unit 5.

Please send the mid-term assignment along with a self-addressed envelop with appropriate postage so that your assignment will be returned to you. You may send the assignment to:

Alice Yick Flanagan
1915 Midwick Drive
Altadena, CA 91001

Final Assignment

In consultation with your instructor, select a topic in the area of domestic violence, you would like to cover in greater detail. Be sure to narrow your question that you will research on, otherwise, you will find yourself scattered. For example, if you want to write a paper on gay and lesbian battering, that is too general. Try to narrow it down. Let's say, you decide to apply feminist and sociological theories in explaining gay and lesbian battering and its merits and limitations of its use. That is more specific.

I am open to creativity. The goal is for you to learn and get excited about a topic. So, if you have another idea, feel free to consult me.

All papers should be 15-20 pages (double space, not including references). All papers should be in APA format.

You may e-mail the final assignment via attachment in Microsoft Word 7.0.

Remember, you must complete and turn in your assignment one week after completion of unit 8. Final grades cannot be turned in until you have completed your final assignment.