Abused and battered : social and legal responses to family violence /

In this multidisciplinary collection, contributors explore persistent problems associated with the unresponsiveness of the police and the criminal justice system to victims of family violence, and the effects of prosecutorial discretion on such victims. Authors also suggest how particular legal and social responses potentially determine prevalence and recidivism rates associated with domestic violence. This collection is more limited in scope than the Handbook of Family Violence, ed. by Vincent B. Van Hasselt et al. (CH, May'88), but it addresses some questions raised in the Handbook about domestic violence as a pariah in the legal system. Although comparable to Violence in the Home, ed. by Mary Lystad (CH, Jul'86), the work under review has a narrower focus, with less emphasis on some of the psychological dimensions of family violence. Contributors come from many disciplines and diverse settings, e.g., medical facilities, crisis centers, universities, and child and family services. Selected chapters have endnotes. Upper-division undergraduates and above. Y. Peterson Saint Xavier College