Because Louisiana ranks 5th in the nation for the rate of women murdered by men, we asked the question what causes some men to abuse and or kill women. LSU Health New Orleans Professor of Psychiatry Dr. Rahn Bailey said some men abuse women simply because they are more likely to dominate the physical battle.
“All too often men may tend to think if they’re going to be aggressive, they choose someone that cannot hurt them, women tend to be shorter if not smaller than men in most circumstances,” said Bailey.
The Violence Policy Center report said 89% of women who are murdered are killed by an intimate partner or someone they know. Bailey said that women are more likely to let their guard down around a man they are close to, versus being on alert when approached by one they don’t know.
“We see more men not only hurting women, but we see men killing women and women that they previously had a close, emotional relationship with. It’s very objectional but it’s definitely happening and it’s happening too much,” said Bailey.
Bailey said it often starts with emotional abuse, threats, and then progresses to physical violence. Drugs and alcohol can also play a role and Bailey said for some men it’s often by example in their upbringing to resort to abuse and they lack conflict resolution skills. He said many are unable to control their emotions when it comes to rejection or jealousy.
“But it’s misread and misunderstood and that a man responds in very often a violent, or aggressive or a hostile way,” said Bailey.
All too often Bailey said when counseling female abuse victims they say they didn’t know where to go for help. If you need assistance call the Louisiana Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-888-411-1333.
When Men Murder Women – Violence Policy Center data on Louisiana click here.
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