According to the 2002 syndicated study Public Attitudes Towards Family Violence, many Canadians still believe that domestic violence is caused primarily by family stress (54%) or alcohol and drugs (33%). While these factors can escalate the violence in the household, they are not a root cause.
Domestic violence occurs when one person needs to control another to feel powerful. Women continue to make up the majority of victims of domestic violence because many men feel that they are entitled to have more power than women.
According to the same survey, 2/3 of Canadians (a sad 66%), believe that domestic violence is often or always just a family matter (they don’t want to intrude). But when we refuse to lend a hand – or an ear – to help, we are allowing the cycle of violence to continue.