1. “BUT MEN ARE ABUSED TOO”: THE MYTHS AND FACTS OF MALE ABUSE
Rus Ervin Funk, MSW

2. Myths of Gender Symmetry
“Women are as abusive as men.”
“Domestic violence goes both ways.”
“Where’s the battered men’s shelter?”
“The laws are biased against men…”
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

3. What is meant by gender symmetry?
That women hit as often as men?
That equal numbers of women and men hit each other?
That women’s motivation for using violence is the same as men’s?
That the consequences of women’s use of violence are the same as the consequences of men’s use of violence?
That women use the same kinds of violence as men?
That women hit as hard as men?
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

4. Domestic Violence Overview
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

5. © 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved
What CTS Misses
There is a difference between initiating acts and defensive acts.
Sexual abuse is a-symmetrical
Post-relationship violence is a-symmetrical.
Violence in general -- from war, to street crimes, to stranger assaults, to hate crimes, is almost universally a male behavior.
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

6. © 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved
Impact and Effects
Women are 6 times more likely than men to require medical care as a result of domestic violence.
Female victims make up 70% of all intimate murder victims.
33% of women killed are killed by a partner or ex, compared with only 4% of men.
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

7. Impacts and Effects (II)
Since 1976 (when domestic violence programs began to be increasingly available)…
men murdered by people who loved them dropped by 69%
women murdered by people who loved them remained stable until 1993, and has dropped by only 15%
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

8. Impacts and Effects (III)
How boys and men respond to women’s and girls violence
How girls and women respond to men and boy’s violence
How men adjust their lives to the threat of women’s violence
How women adjust their lives to the threat of men’s violence
Who are men afraid of???
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

9. © 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved
Self-reporting
Men
over-report their victimization
under-report their use of violence
Women
under-report their victimization
over-report their use of violence.
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

10. Implications for Family Therapy
“Just say no” to “relationship violence.”
Recognize domestic violence as more than an inter (and/or intra) personal issue
Interrupt men’s use of violence
Undermine sexism
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

11. © 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved
Men’s Victimization
1 in 5 gay men experience dating violence.
Men experience:
disbelief
shame
denial
minimization
self-blame
depression
anger
sadness
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

12. Additional Challenges
Police are assumed to be non-supportive to hostile
Extra barriers to legal protections.
Social service agencies are often homophobic.
Gay or bisexual men face continuing abuse if they don’t come forward, and potentially being bashed if they do
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

13. Additional Challenges Con’t.
Lack of awareness to identify primary aggressor.
The myth that there is no power imbalance in same-sex relationships.
DV programs are ill-prepared to respond to gay men.
Gay service providers are ill-equipped to respond to DV.
Gay communities make it hard for men to come out
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

14. © 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved
It’s Still Sexist
Domestic violence and sexual assault are based on power and control.
Verbalizations during the assault
Domestic & sexual violence occur in a social context in which women are systematically under-valued while men are systematically over-valued…and these systematic values are institutionalized
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

15. An Assault on Masculinity
DV & Sexual Assault are assaults against women.
Questioning their masculinity.
Questioning their sexuality
© 2008 Rus Ervin Funk, all rights reserved

16. Rus Ervin Funk www.rusfunk.com rus@rusfunk.com (502)494-9044
Thank-YOU!!!
Rus Ervin Funk
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