Southeast Asian Communities
CALD Family Violence Resource
eCALD Supplementary Resources
Cambodian community
Relationships and expectations
In a study of attitudes to marital violence in Asian communities, Cambodian respondents strongly endorsed male privilege, were likely to justify violence in certain situations, and were less likely to endorse decisions to leave or divorce a batterer (Yoshioka et al., 2001).
There is strong value placed on keeping the family together, and divorce is thought to be detrimental to the family and the children. In addition, partner abuse is often viewed as the woman’s fault, and divorced women are viewed with disapproval in the community.
When problems arise between a husband and wife in Cambodia, the problem is addressed only within the family. The legal system would not be involved. Community members or the couple’s parents would advise the couple, and a woman would be encouraged to stay with her husband.
Vietnamese community
Relationships and expectations
Vietnamese society is patriarchal, with cultural behaviours based on an interweaving of Confucian and Buddhist traditions. In the Confucian tradition men are respected as they are the head of families. Women are seen as the guardians of familial relationships with their primary duty being to maintain harmony within the family. For women, an intact family is integral to life’s achievements and self-worth.
An investigation of help-seeking behaviours among 34 abused Vietnamese migrant women in the USA found that personal networks (relatives, friends, or religious leaders) were most often the first place women asked for help, emotional support, and advice in resolving problems.
However, although sympathetic, friends and relatives may not always want to intervene because they see partner abuse as “a private matter”. Some friends and relatives may advise the abused women to “accept the abuse or try not to make her husband angry” (Bui, 2003). Despite greater acceptance of divorce by Vietnamese-origin residents in the United States, many women still feared that if they were divorced they would be viewed negatively (Bui, 2003).