Wife beating: A measure to deal with marital disharmony or a license for misconduct

Wife beating is not a new phenomena rather it has been practiced from pre historic time till date. This was due to the fact that in all the civilizations and under all religions, woman was considered subjugated to men. Her natural physical weakness had also made her vulnerable for violence. Islam reinforced womanhood by protecting her rights and providing her respect in the family and society at large. However, it is not interpreted accurately in male dominant society due to the existence of a patriarchal social setup. Adding to the ignorance regarding the position of women in Islam, the presence of injustice and mal practices in contemporary Muslim societies has been taken up as a weak point of Islam by non Muslims as well by less informed Muslims. The reasons for denying women’s rights in Pakistani society could be summed up as lack of education, ignorance about Islamic teachings, feudal and tribal cultural traditions, male dominated patriarchal attitudes, poverty, unemployment and misinterpretations regarding precise teachings of Quran and Sunnah. There are many misconceptions regarding the stance of Islam on wife beating as well. It is commonly understood that Islam gives permission for wife beating in the Quranic verse 4:34. This article will describe the relationship between husband and wife in the light of Quranic verse4:34 and will explore the sanctions of wife beating and its dimensions. Furthermore, it will aim to remove misunderstandings and prejudged opinions related to the concerned issue, in the light of Quran and Sunnah.

Marital loss, mental health and the role of perceived social support : findings from six waves of an Australian population based panel study

Objectives: To investigate the impact of transitions out of marriage (separation, widowhood) on the self reported mental health of men and women, and examine whether perceptions of social support play an intervening role. ---------- Methods: The analysis used six waves (2001–06) of an Australian population based panel study, with an analytical sample of 3017 men and 3225 women. Mental health was measured using the MHI-5 scale scored 0–100 (α=0.97), with a higher score indicating better mental health. Perceptions of social support were measured using a 10-item scale ranging from 10 to 70 (α=0.79), with a higher score indicating higher perceived social support. A linear mixed model for longitudinal data was used, with lags for marital status, mental health and social support. ---------- Results: After adjustment for social characteristics there was a decline in mental health for men who separated (−5.79 points) or widowed (−7.63 points), compared to men who remained married. Similar declines in mental health were found for women who separated (−6.65 points) or became widowed (−9.28 points). The inclusion of perceived social support in the models suggested a small mediation effect of social support for mental health with marital loss. Interactions between perceived social support and marital transitions showed a strong moderating effect for men who became widowed. No significant interactions were found for women. ---------- Conclusion: Marital loss significantly decreased mental health. Increasing, or maintaining, high levels of social support has the potential to improve widowed men's mental health immediately after the death of their spouse.

Acculturation stress in South Sudanese refugees : impact on marital relationships

A qualitative approach was used to explore the impact of acculturation stress on the marital relationships of South Sudanese refugees settled in Brisbane, Australia. Thirteen refugees, who were currently or previously married, participated in three gender specific focus groups. The perceived causes and possible solutions of conflict were thoroughly explored. Hypothetical scenarios were used to facilitate group discussion. Major issues causing conflict between couples were identified as: the management of finances and lack of family and social support. Several other areas of acculturation stress also emerged as factors associated with marital stress. There was a dissonance regarding the adherence to cultural gender roles. Freedom provided to women in Australia caused tension between the couples. Law enforcement officers were perceived as lacking cultural understanding and misinterpreting the couple distress. Finally, limited information provided to refugees pre and post migration was considered to hinder adjustment. The participants suggested a number of practical solutions to these issues which are potentially useful in guiding future refugee settlement programs.

Marital power process of Korean men married to foreign women : A qualitative study

This study explored how Korean men married to migrant women construct meaning around married life. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 10 men who had had been married to migrant women for ≥ 2 years. Data collection and analysis were performed concurrently using a grounded theory approach. The core category generated was the process of sustaining a family unit. The men came to understand the importance of a distribution of power within the family in sustaining the family unit. Constituting this process were four stages: recognizing an imbalance of power, relinquishing power, empowering, and fine-tuning the balance of power. This study provides important insight into the dynamics of marital power from men's point of view by demonstrating a link between the way people adjust to married life and the process by which married couples adjust through the distribution and redistribution of power.

"Klo-KU-BA", Hans and Elizabeth Krakauer's first marital apartment in the basement of the Jewish Hospital; Hannover, Germany Architecture; Residences; Interior

Digital Image

"Klo-KU-BA", Hans and Elizabeth Krakauer's first marital apartment in the basement of the Jewish Hospital; Hannover, Germany Architecture; Residences; Interior

Digital Image

Women and Marital Breakdown in South India : Reconstructing Homes, Bonds and Persons

Women and Marital Breakdown in South India: Reconstructing Homes, Bonds and Persons is an ethnographic analysis of the situation of divorced and separated women and their families in the South Indian city of Bangalore. The study is based on 16 months of anthropological fieldwork, i.e., participant observation and life history interviews among 50 divorced and separated women from different socio-religious backgrounds in their homes, in the women s organisations and in the Family Court. The study follows the divorced and separated women from their natal homes to their affinal homes through homelessness and legal battles to their reconstructed natal, affinal or single homes in order to find out what it means to be a person within hierarchical gender and kinship relations in South India. Marital breakdown impacts on kin relations and discloses the existing gender relations and power structure through its consequences. It makes the transformability of relational personhood as well as the transformability of relational society and culture visible. Although the study reveals the painful history of women s ill-treatment in marriage, family and kinship systems, it also demonstrates the women s rejection of the domination; and shows their ability to re-negotiate and promote changes not only to their own positions but to the whole hierarchical system as well. The study explores the divorced and separated women s manifold dilemmas, complicated legal battles, and endless arrangements when they have to struggle with the very practical problems of supporting themselves financially, finding and making a new home for themselves, and re-arranging relationships with their kin and friends. As marital breakdown fundamentally transforms the women s relational field, it forces them to recreate substitutive relations in a flexible way and, simultaneously, to re-construct themselves and their lives without a ready or positive cultural or behavioural template. This process reveals the agency of the divorced and separated women as well as shedding light on issues of gender and the cultural construction of the person in South India. This topical study explores the previously neglected subject of marital breakdown in India and shows the new meaning of kinship in South India.

Casamento e estratificação social : um estudo sobre seletividade marital por escolaridade e origem social no Brasil

Buscou-se, nesse estudo, quantificar e avaliar a homogamia, a heterogamia e as barreiras de cruzamento ao matrimônio via escolaridade (anos de estudo) e origem social (categorias ocupacionais dos pais). As tendências temporais desses padrões também foram examinadas. Analisou-se, ainda, a associação entre escolaridade dos maridos, escolaridade das esposas (status realizado), origem social dos maridos e origem social das esposas (status atribuído). Esse trabalho teve o intuito também de discutir o viés de seletividade marital segundo os diferenciais sociais (anos de estudo e origem social). Para isso, foram analisados parâmetros que mostram como se configuram os padrões de nupcialidade (idade média ao casar e celibato definitivo), bem como foram examinados os determinantes da união sob a perspectiva de três níveis de fatores condicionantes (nível das características individuais, nível do status atribuído e nível do status realizado). Verificou-se que as mulheres com alta escolaridade, no Brasil, permanecem num período maior na condição de solteiras (alta idade média ao casar e alto celibato definitivo). Os homens com alta escolaridade também apresentaram uma alta idade média ao casar, entretanto, o casamento demonstrou ser praticamente universal para esse segmento. Os resultados também mostraram que o aumento de um ano na idade dos indivíduos elevam a chance de união em aproximadamente 5%. Ter uma baixa escolaridade também aumenta a chance dos indivíduos se casarem. A variável origem social apresentou um comportamento dúbio ao ser incorporada no modelo com a variável anos de estudo. Constatou-se que há uma alta proporção de uniões homogâmicas por escolaridade. Para efetuar uma análise adequada das tendências temporais na seletividade marital foi proposto modelos log-lineares em que a dimensão do tempo foi incorporada. O ajustamento dos modelos indicou que a interpretação mais plausível para as tendências temporais na seletividade marital por escolaridade é a da estabilidade dos parâmetros indicativos das propensões homogâmicas. Em relação a análise da seletividade marital e origem social os resultados mostraram que a maior proporção de homogamia pôde ser verificada entre os casais que tinham como origem social a categoria de pequenos proprietários rurais. A conclusão mais plausível ao se analisar os modelos que consideraram as tendências temporais é que a variação temporal dos parâmetros indicativos da seletividade marital por origem social é a característica mais forte dos dados analisados. Ao analisar as chances relativas oriundas desse modelo observou-se que as barreiras de origem social de curta distância (entre segmentos de origem social próximos) são as mais fáceis de serem transpostas. Ao passo que as barreiras mais difíceis de serem ultrapassadas estão concentradas nos dois extremos. Verificou-se, ainda, que as associações entre as interações escolaridade do marido e escolaridade da esposa e origem social do marido e origem social da esposa não são independentes. Assim, pode-se presumir que a origem social (status atribuído) continua influenciando a escolha conjugal mesmo quando se leva em consideração o status realizado (escolaridade dos cônjuges)

Recovering a lost inheritance : The marital economy and its absence from the Prehistory of Economics in Britain

Roberts, Michael. 'Recovering a lost inheritance: the marital economy and its absence from the Prehistory of Economics in Britain', in: 'The Marital Economy in Scandinavia and Britain 1400-1900', (Eds) Argen, Maria., Erickson, Amy Louise., Farnham: Ashgate, 2005, pp.239-256 RAE2008