Recourse Seeking and Intervention in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence in Vietnam

Abstract

This qualitative study examines attitudes toward recourse seeking and intervention in cases of intimate partner violence (IPV) against women in periurban Vietnam. The data come from 20 open-ended interviews, 4 focus group discussions, and 40 cognitive interviews conducted with married men and women. The findings indicate that many people hold contradictory beliefs and inconsistent attitudes about IPV and IPV intervention. Also, most informants know about the law against domestic violence in the abstract, but have limited knowledge of, and confidence in, potential mechanisms for recourse provided under the law. Strategies intended to undermine IPV and promote recourse seeking and intervention in Vietnam should be strategically designed to address ambivalence concerning IPV and recourse, and there should be a focus on changing norms associated with masculinity. Further efforts are needed to disseminate information about existing laws and mechanisms of recourse.

Emotional violence and maternal mental health: a qualitative study among women in northern Vietnam

“…This has led to important investigations of dominant gender ideologies in Vietnam – ideologies that emphasize women’s obligations to maintain marital harmony and men’s positions as “pillars” of the family. These notions of masculinity and femininity draw on long-standing Confucian moral prescriptions for appropriate gender behaviours and are re-interpreted and re-circulated in new guises by present-day social authorities [ 24 , 25 ].…”

Men’s Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence in Vietnam

“…The questionnaire was adapted from the one used in the National Study on Domestic Violence against Women in Vietnam (General Statistics Office of Vietnam 2010) and revised based on formative qualitative research (Schuler et al 2014;Yount et al 2014a). The questionnaire included questions on participants' demographic and socioeconomic background, attitudes about IPV against women and their recourse after IPV, women's exposure to and men's perpetration of IPV, and experiences of violence in childhood (Yount et al 2014a(Yount et al , 2014b.…”

Depression and its associated factors among pregnant women in central Vietnam

“…These important findings raise a critical question about how to screen for psychological abuse and violent tactics, and how to remove social barriers and encourage women to disclose experiences of violence. Though domestic violence has become less acceptable among Vietnamese women ( Trinh et al, 2016 ), there is still a perceived social norm that emphasizes women’s responsibility to maintain the harmony and reputation of the family, and to build the “cultural family” and “cultural village” ( Schuler et al, 2006 ) which can prevent disclosures of IPV ( Kwiatkowski, 2011 ; Schuler et al, 2016 ; Tran et al, 2018a ; Vu et al, 2014 ). Moreover, the influence of Confucian social norms may also inhibit women from disclosing family issues ( Tran et al, 2016 ).…”