Gender, Place and Culture 6(1) March 1999 : 49-65

This article examines Samoan women's attitudes towards domestic violence in three different geographical locations: rural Western Samoa; urban Western Samoa; and Christchurch, New Zealand. In particular, women were questioned about what their response would be if they were physically abused by a partner. The authors found that there were variations in women's responses to domestic violence in the three different contexts. In a traditional rural Samoan village, the majority of women stated that they would leave their partner and return to their extended family if they were victim to abuse. In this cultural context, the extended family is considered to be a defence against domestic violence because of the shame that it would bring to the whole family. Interestingly, it was the women who were the main income earners of the family who were least likely to leave their husbands. In urban Western Samoa, responses varied, often depending on the educational level and employment status of the women. Only a slim majority of the women said that they would leave an abusive partner, and in most cases, as in the rural village, these women would return to their extended family for support. Samoan women living in Christchurch were the most likely group to go to support networks and organisations, such as Women's Refuge, if they were experiencing partner abuse. The majority of women interviewed in Christchurch stated that they would leave a violent relationship. The authors conclude that variations in responses between the women in the three different contexts appear to be due to economic, social and cultural effects, and how these influence women's access to support networks. Traditional values also play a large role in women's reactions to domestic violence. However, it is not possible to draw a clear link between geographical context and reactions to physical abuse.