Lived Experiences of Women Staying in Physically Abusive Relationships

Women are more at risk of experiencing violence involving people at home or close acquaintances, than from virtual strangers and outsiders. Domestic violence affects as many as one in two women in South Africa. Most women may keep secret abusive relationships and this might reside in a deep-seated fear of further abuse or as be frowned upon by a community that endorses social taboos which prohibit speaking about or even implying the reality of incidents of domestic violence. This phenomenological study investigates the actual experiences of women staying in physically abusive relationships