Rethinking domestic violence in theory and practice

Drawing on the author's previous work, this article suggests that conceptual advantages result from envisioning domestic violence on a larger continuum of "normalized" to "extreme" sadomasochistic interactions (including gendered interactions that can also range from "ordinary" to "deviant" in how they are perceived). Thereafter, it may be harder to ignore how redressing social inequities involving gender as well as racial and class imbalances can amount, at least in terms of prevention, to anti-domestic violence measures of one important kind. More concretely, proceeding from the assumption that domestic violence remains disturbingly common (even though its exact scope is difficult to ascertain), this article contrasts how this social problem would best be approached in theory and how it often continues to be dealt with in practice. In making this comparison, a cursory review of recent policy developments in this area, from mandatory arrest policies and laws (and the criticisms these have engendered) to more recent interest in restorative justice and collaborative empowerment, is presented and incorporated into the paper's larger argument.