Why Do Domestic Violence Victims Recant?

It's surprisingly common forvictims of domestic violenceto decide to recant their testimony and not follow through on pursuing charges against an intimate partner. In some states, laws have been passed requiring mandatory arrest and prosecution of the cases whether the victim cooperates or not.

如果家庭暴力的受害者拒绝作证，或者记录并证明这一事件没有发生，它会使定罪更难。相反，施虐者从监狱释放，避免后果，以及cycle of violenceis free to repeat itself.

Here are some of the reasons a victim of domestic violence may recant their story.

威胁更多暴力

Advocates and counselors working with people who have experienced domestic violence used to believe that victims recanted their stories because they were afraid of more violence. The thought was that victims changed their minds about pursuing charges because the perpetrators threatened them.

然而，最近的研究表明，滥用者用来摇摆他们的受害者来改变他们的故事并不是威胁。相反，这是一种复杂的情感上诉，通常通过五个不同的阶段来实现，旨在尽量减少他们的行为并获得受害者的同情。

The Recantation Process

出于安全原因，许多监狱和拘留中心记录囚犯拨打电话的对话。参与者知道他们的谈话正在被录制，因为在通话开始时发布了公告。

By studying many hours of recorded conversations between male inmates facing felony charges ofdomestic violenceand their female victims who later decided to recant researchers were able to gain insight into the recantation process.

次要的五个步骤

研究人员已经确定了一个次要的五步过程。它始于受害者强行捍卫自己，并以肇事者为单位结束，并规划他们如何改变其证词。

第1步：坚强并解决

早期的电话谈话通常是关于导致暴力行为的事件的争论。在这些初始呼叫中，受害者强大，抵制犯罪者的事件。

In the first or second calls, the victims are almost always resolved to see the abuser prosecuted for their actions. As the calls continue, that resolve begins to erode.

第2步：最小化滥用

In later calls, the perpetrator tries to convince the victim that the incident was not that serious. More importantly, it is during this stage that the abuser tries to gain the sympathy of the victim by casting themselves as a victim (e.g. suffering in jail, miss the family, etc.)

This is a critical turning point in the process when the real victim begins to see the perpetrator as a victim. Once the victim begins soothing and comforting the abuser, the next three steps of the process tend to occur relatively quickly.

第3步：“他们不明白我们。”

Once the abuser has gained the victim's sympathy, the pair begins to bond over their love for each other. The couple becomes united in a fight against a world that "doesn't understand" their relationship.

Step 4: Lie for Me

Now that it's them against the system, the state, or an uncaring society, the abuser will simply ask the victim to recant their accusations. Once the victim agrees, they move into the last stage.

Step 5: Developing the Plan

当受害者同意改变他们的故事时，那对夫妇一起努力发展（和证实）他们的故事。

Preparation Could Be Key

奥米州立大学人类发展和家庭科学副教授Amy Bonici在滥用者及其受害者之间进行了一系列的分析。

BONONI认为，调查结果将为倡导者和辅导员提供如何与亲密合作伙伴暴力的受害者合作的新模式。

具体而言，如果受害者是提前准备的，因为他们的滥用者可能使用同情的吸引力和最小化技术，因此受害者可能不太可能堕落，并更容易通过起诉。

Bonomi concludes that without such help, it may be difficult for some victims to disentangle themselves from violent relationships.