Intimate Coercion

Recognition and Recovery

By (author) Marti Loring, Melissa Scardaville

Not available to order

Publication date:

21 August 2015

Length of book:

158 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781442254336

This book explores the foundation and causes of intimate coercion, focusing specifically on the identification of the issue and subsequent healing process. Coerced by a relation, friend, or lover, the victim commits acts that are contrary to their normal behavior, and often, illegal in nature. Marti Loring and Melissa Scardaville reference an extensive list of case studies to examine the varying dynamics and experiences of intimate coercion among the wide subset of the population that is affected; this list includes immigrants, disabled individuals, children, and elders. To aid therapists working with coerced individuals, Intimate Coercion defines coercive mechanisms, identifies distinct elements in the coercion process, and provides transformative tools for use with coerced individuals. Based on Loring’s years of work in the courtroom and Scardaville’s work with battered women, Intimate Coercion unveils the driving force of coerced behavior and explains how therapists can help treat this trauma.

Chapter 1: Research Review
Chapter 2: Therapy with the Traumatized and Abused
Chapter 3: Recognizing Intimate Coercion
Chapter 4: The Foundation of Intimate Coercion
Chapter 5: A Closer Look at the Coerced
Chapter 6: Understanding Coercers in Relationships
Chapter 7: The Coercive Process: Overt and Covert Emotional Abuse
Chapter 8: Evaluation of Coercion
Chapter 9: Coercion in Other Groups: Immigrants, People with Disabilities, Gay Couples, Church Partners, Children, Adolescents, and Elders
Chapter 10: Transformation of the Coerced
Chapter 11: Therapeutic Intervention with the Coerced

This extraordinarily well-written book needs to be read by anyone who works in the criminal justice system; it fills a void in the literature. The authors have achieved their stated aim of 'making the lives of the coerced come alive' and offer practical pathways for lawyers, therapists, and others.