Help ease the secret suffering of lesbians in abusive relationships!Why is woman-on-woman violence so often ignored or discounted? Intimate Betrayal: Domestic Violence in Lesbian Relationships uncovers the hidden problem of lesbians who hurt the women they love. This long-needed book brings together theory, practice, and research to suggest new and fruitful ways to understand, prevent, and treat this common problem. Intimate Betrayal provides new empirical research into the psychological and sociocultural causes of abuse. As several of the chapter authors demonstrate, neither traditional feminist theories about power nor heterosexist paradigms explain the causes, dynamics, or treatment of this problem. However, the new research presented here suggests helpful diagnostic criteria and effective treatments. Intimate Betrayal analyzes the factors that contribute to lesbian domestic violence, including:

• heterosexism and homophobia
• minority stress
• emotional isolation and lack of community ties
• revictimization of women who have previously suffered abuse

The thorough literature review included reveals the paucity of attention that has been paid to this problem. Intimate Betrayal suggests exciting new models for freeing women from domestic violence, including the use of clinical and community resources and liberation theology. Community activists, counselors, and psychologists will be intrigued by the insightful analysis of the root causes of lesbian-on-lesbian violence and the valuable treatment suggestions. Researchers will welcome the new avenues it opens for additional research.

About the Author
Ellyn Kaschak, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology at San Jose State University, California. She is author of Engendered Lives: A New Psychology of Women's Experience, as well as editor and co-editor of numerous books, including Minding the Body and The Next Generation. She has had more than 30 years of experience practising psychotherapy, is past Chair of the Feminist Therapy Institute and of the APA Committee on Women, and is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association among other organisations. She is also co-editor of the journal Women & Therapy.

Reviews
"Thought provoking, well written and informative." - Beverly Greene, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology, St. John's University, New York "A groundbreaking examination of a taboo and complex subject." - Dr. Marny Hall, author of The Lesbian Love Companion



Book Information
ISBN 9780789016638
Author Ellyn Kaschak
Format Paperback
Page Count 146
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Inc
Weight(grams) 270g