Våldet, kvinnan och djuret - definitionen av psykiskt våld mot kvinnor i relation till våld mot djur.

Sammanfattning: Research has shown that there is a link between violence against women and pets in domestic relationships. The violence against the pet is often used to harm the woman in different ways and the consequences of the violence against the pet often brings psychological and emotional harm to the woman (Holmberg et al. 2017; Holmberg 2011; Adams 1995; Diesen & Diesen 2009; Faver & Strand 2003; Flynn 2000b; Isdal 2001). Since violence against pets affects women psychologically it could be considered as a part of the psychological violence against women. However, do social workers which works with battered women at the social services consider violence against pets as psychological violence against women? The aim for this essay was therefore to examine social worker’s perception of psychological violence and their knowledge about the importance and role of the animal in the exerted violence in domestic violence. This is to examine, from a social constructivism perspective, how the social worker’s definition of psychological violence in domestic relationships is concerned and whether it involves violence against animals or not. By applying social constructivist theory, victimization and earlier research on answers from four qualitative interviews with social workers in Malmö stad the study showed that violence against pets is not a part of the definition of psychological violence. Only two out of the four interviewed social workers mentioned the direct link between consequences of violence against pets and psychological violence against women. However, in these cases the social workers only connected the controlling effects of violence against the pet with psychological violence against woman, not the emotional effects. This despite that all the four social workers mentioned the emotional effects when they accounted for the effects violence against pets has on women. This may be due to problems with the internalization of the consequences of violence against animals in the definition of psychological violence, in the social problem of domestic violence and in the concept of abuse against women.