The fine link between migration and domestic violence: a short glimpse of victims' perceptions and experiences

Abstract

This study is important in order to identify the fine link between migration and domestic violence. Through qualitative research, the study is based on three face-to-face semi-structured interviews, conducted via Zoom, between June 2021 and January 2022. The interviewed subjects are women, victims of domestic violence in their family of origin, aged between 22 and 37 years old, who migrated to Romania. The short fragments of their testimonies provide a unique perspective about victims' perceptions and experiences on the subject, revealing factors of domestic violence and the main risks and problems faced by migrant women who were abused in their family of origin. Secondary data analysis and specialized literature review are being pursued in order to create a comprehensive overview of the subject. The main two limitations consist in the lack of multiple perspectives offered by the specialized literature and analyses based exclusively on the link between migration and domestic violence, but also the limited number of interviews. The findings confirm the fact that women are more vulnerable to the risk of becoming victims of domestic violence, being abusive parenting practices, while migration becomes the right solution to escape the terror at home. The factors emerging from the study show that the excessive consumption of alcohol, financial problems and marginalization, often lead to domestic violence in the intimate family space.