Battered Women Syndrome-FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY

Name Institution Course Lecturer Date Battered Women Syndrome Purpose: The purpose of this research is to allow the student reflect on the collaborative role between psychology and law. Lenore Walker a great psychologist and prominent feminist academia, defined battered women syndrome as a set of distinct psychological and behavioral symptoms resulting from prolonged exposure to situations of intimate partner violence (Walker 136). According Walker’s hypothesis, the abuse of spouses generally occurs in cycles that are characterized by different degrees of severity. Walker explains that in the first stage (tension building), the victim is exposed to verbal and emotional abuse and physical violence is very minimal. As away of responding to this abuse, the victim tries to mollify the techniques used by the abuser that have been effective previous. Walker gives the second stage as ‘discharge of tension’ which will automatically lead to a third stage of ‘loving contrition’. In this stage the batterer demonstrates conciliatory behaviors and tries to convince the victim of their purposes to change. Walker’s exposure of the issue made BWS to become a common way of justifying criminal conduct of women charged with the murder of their husbands. But, the ideas only enjoy success in some clinical circles and legal jurisdiction, BWS was never empirically confirmed by scientific research as a bona fide condition. Because of this, BWS has not enjoyed great support from psychologists who practice clinical and forensic psychology (Walker 138). The battered women syndrome was originally used to help women in their struggle for equality in the legal system, but this has changed as the effect is now two way traffic. It is through the use of law that battered women syndrome situations can be dealt with effectively in the society (Bickenbach 280). This work will explore how the families are enacting the law in solving the battered women syndrome and how the situation is psychological viewed even when the matter is taken to court. It will focus on how the psychological views about the situation determine the decision made in the court or how it influences the country laws. This study will therefore give insights into the workings of Walker that view the battered women syndrome as a psychological issue, but without forgetting how the Canadian law is implemented to deal with the situation to get the effective solution (Bickenbach 280). Carrying out this study in this particular way will help the students to reflect on the collaborative role between the law and psychology Background Society awareness of the battered women syndrome has increased over the last two decades. People are aware of the domestic and family awareness and what should be done incase it occurs. This increased awareness has led to substantial legal reforms to assist the victims of battered women syndrome. This includes the victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. A great deal of controversies and confusion surround the term battered women syndrome i.e. how the term is used and the basis on which it claims legal attention. When explaining the behavioral and cognitive patterns of battered women, the battered women syndrome achieves legitimacy in psychological and legal cycles u...