Rural Malawian Women’s Resistance to Systematic Oppression, Violence, and Abuse by Their Husbands

Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu; Wendy S. Bauer; Patricia E. Stevens; Loren W. Galvao; Katarina M. Grande; April Yerges; Lindsay Emer; Thokozani Mwenyekonde; Lance Weinhardt

doi:10.1177/0886260516682518

Rural Malawian Women’s Resistance to Systematic Oppression, Violence, and Abuse by Their Husbands

Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu, Wendy S. Bauer, Patricia E. Stevens, Loren W. Galvao, Katarina M. Grande, April Yerges, Lindsay Emer, Thokozani Mwenyekonde, Lance Weinhardt

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

In Malawi, 41% of women aged 15 to 49 report ever experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Although there is evidence of the pervasiveness of IPV in Malawian society, the context in which it occurs and how women respond is not well described. The purpose of this study was to describe experiences of IPV of rural Malawian women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 rural Malawian women aged 21 to 75 years (M = 39) as part of a larger, mixed-methods study. This qualitative thematic analysis highlights husbands’ IPV against wives and women’s actions to protect themselves and their children, and to thrive despite the violence. Our use of a postcolonial feminist perspective led us to acknowledge Malawian women’s acts of resistance in the midst of the harsh realities of IPV and gender inequality. We contend women’s resilience and resistance against oppression within intimate relationships are critical tools in the process of reducing IPV. Structural interventions that (a) address the multiple distal and proximal factors affecting IPV, (b) are tailored to and owned by local populations, and (c) involve both men and women as architects and active participants, we believe, hold the greatest promise for reducing IPV in Malawi.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	268-293
Number of pages	26
Journal	Journal of Interpersonal Violence
Volume	35
Issue number	1-2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260516682518
State	Published - Jan 1 2020
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Mkandawire-Valhmu Lucy 1 Bauer Wendy S. 1 Stevens Patricia E. 1 Galvao Loren W. 1 Grande Katarina M. 1 Yerges April 1 Emer Lindsay 1 Mwenyekonde Thokozani 2 Weinhardt Lance 1 1 University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, USA 2 CARE International Malawi, Lilongwe, Malawi Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu, College of Nursing, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, P.O Box 413, Milwaukee, WI 53210-0413, USA. Email: [email protected] 1 2020 35 1-2 268 293 © The Author(s) 2016 2016 SAGE Publications In Malawi, 41% of women aged 15 to 49 report ever experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Although there is evidence of the pervasiveness of IPV in Malawian society, the context in which it occurs and how women respond is not well described. The purpose of this study was to describe experiences of IPV of rural Malawian women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 rural Malawian women aged 21 to 75 years ( M = 39) as part of a larger, mixed-methods study. This qualitative thematic analysis highlights husbands’ IPV against wives and women’s actions to protect themselves and their children, and to thrive despite the violence. Our use of a postcolonial feminist perspective led us to acknowledge Malawian women’s acts of resistance in the midst of the harsh realities of IPV and gender inequality. We contend women’s resilience and resistance against oppression within intimate relationships are critical tools in the process of reducing IPV. Structural interventions that (a) address the multiple distal and proximal factors affecting IPV, (b) are tailored to and owned by local populations, and (c) involve both men and women as architects and active participants, we believe, hold the greatest promise for reducing IPV in Malawi. intimate partner violence rural Malawi women’s resistance oppression typesetter ts1 We are grateful to the women who took time out of their schedule to share with us their experiences, many of which were difficult. Our gratitude also goes to the reviewers whose comments served to strengthen the article. Declaration of Conflicting Interests The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. Funding The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01-HD055868) to Lance S. Weinhardt, PhD.

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2016.

Keywords

intimate partner violence
oppression
rural Malawi
women’s resistance

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1177/0886260516682518

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title = "Rural Malawian Women{\textquoteright}s Resistance to Systematic Oppression, Violence, and Abuse by Their Husbands",

abstract = "In Malawi, 41\% of women aged 15 to 49 report ever experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Although there is evidence of the pervasiveness of IPV in Malawian society, the context in which it occurs and how women respond is not well described. The purpose of this study was to describe experiences of IPV of rural Malawian women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 rural Malawian women aged 21 to 75 years (M = 39) as part of a larger, mixed-methods study. This qualitative thematic analysis highlights husbands{\textquoteright} IPV against wives and women{\textquoteright}s actions to protect themselves and their children, and to thrive despite the violence. Our use of a postcolonial feminist perspective led us to acknowledge Malawian women{\textquoteright}s acts of resistance in the midst of the harsh realities of IPV and gender inequality. We contend women{\textquoteright}s resilience and resistance against oppression within intimate relationships are critical tools in the process of reducing IPV. Structural interventions that (a) address the multiple distal and proximal factors affecting IPV, (b) are tailored to and owned by local populations, and (c) involve both men and women as architects and active participants, we believe, hold the greatest promise for reducing IPV in Malawi.",

keywords = "intimate partner violence, oppression, rural Malawi, women{\textquoteright}s resistance",

author = "Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu and Bauer, \{Wendy S.\} and Stevens, \{Patricia E.\} and Galvao, \{Loren W.\} and Grande, \{Katarina M.\} and April Yerges and Lindsay Emer and Thokozani Mwenyekonde and Lance Weinhardt",

note = "Funding Information: Mkandawire-Valhmu Lucy 1 Bauer Wendy S. 1 Stevens Patricia E. 1 Galvao Loren W. 1 Grande Katarina M. 1 Yerges April 1 Emer Lindsay 1 Mwenyekonde Thokozani 2 Weinhardt Lance 1 1 University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, USA 2 CARE International Malawi, Lilongwe, Malawi Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu, College of Nursing, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, P.O Box 413, Milwaukee, WI 53210-0413, USA. Email: [email protected] 1 2020 35 1-2 268 293 {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2016 2016 SAGE Publications In Malawi, 41\% of women aged 15 to 49 report ever experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Although there is evidence of the pervasiveness of IPV in Malawian society, the context in which it occurs and how women respond is not well described. The purpose of this study was to describe experiences of IPV of rural Malawian women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 rural Malawian women aged 21 to 75 years ( M = 39) as part of a larger, mixed-methods study. This qualitative thematic analysis highlights husbands{\textquoteright} IPV against wives and women{\textquoteright}s actions to protect themselves and their children, and to thrive despite the violence. Our use of a postcolonial feminist perspective led us to acknowledge Malawian women{\textquoteright}s acts of resistance in the midst of the harsh realities of IPV and gender inequality. We contend women{\textquoteright}s resilience and resistance against oppression within intimate relationships are critical tools in the process of reducing IPV. Structural interventions that (a) address the multiple distal and proximal factors affecting IPV, (b) are tailored to and owned by local populations, and (c) involve both men and women as architects and active participants, we believe, hold the greatest promise for reducing IPV in Malawi. intimate partner violence rural Malawi women{\textquoteright}s resistance oppression typesetter ts1 We are grateful to the women who took time out of their schedule to share with us their experiences, many of which were difficult. Our gratitude also goes to the reviewers whose comments served to strengthen the article. Declaration of Conflicting Interests The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. Funding The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01-HD055868) to Lance S. Weinhardt, PhD. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2016.",

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AU - Mwenyekonde, Thokozani

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Rural Malawian Women’s Resistance to Systematic Oppression, Violence, and Abuse by Their Husbands

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Publisher link

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