POLICE ASSOCIATION OF NOVA SCOTIA 95 continued Why does abuse happen? There are many other complex reasons why a partner abuses. A partner may abuse because they: • learned this behaviour in their own family • feel it is acceptable for men to control women • believe abuse is a way to have power • have low selfesteem/are insecure • are unemployed or live in poverty • think that there are few, if any, consequences to their violent acts • have a mental illness or suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder, or • abuse alcohol or drugs Many factors can influence why people choose to be violent. For example, traditional gender roles may lead family members to believe the man is the legal head of the household and should control the family. There is no easy answer to why abuse happens. Some men are brought up to believe that it is okay to use force to control their female partners or solve family problems. Some women report feeling like they are being treated like property, belonging first to a father or other male relative and later to a husband. Traditional gender roles can also influence the dynamics of abuse in samegender relationships and relationships in which one or more of the partners are transgender. LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) women, for example, may be Designed by Freepik
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTM0NTk1OA==