Advanced Methods in Research


Animal Cruelty and Human Violence


How does exposure to physical abuse as an African-American young male induces them to become adult offenders of animal cruelty?


1. Introduction to the problem


            This paper will present an overview of the study of how exposure to physical abuse could eventually lead to becoming adult offender of inflicting various forms of cruelty to animals. The research will particularly focus on African-American young male.  Establishing the causality of exposure of physical abuse with adult offending of animal cruelty among young African-American male is the main purpose of this research. Interviews, structured observation and document analysis are the methodologies that the researcher will employ to arrive at the in-depth investigation on the relationship between the two variables. Through this study, it is hope that the prevalence of physical abuse and adult offending as animal cruelty could be address and how these issues impact criminal justice.


            In finding out how exposure to physical abuse could likely to result in adult offending like animal cruelty. Physical abuse will be defined in this context as an abuse that involves contact that is intended to cause feelings of intimidation, pain, injury and physical suffering and/or harm.  Animal cruelty, on the other hand, is the intentional infliction of suffering and/or harm to animals as an end in and of itself. There is the existence of a recurrent problem that is the influence of exposure to physical abuse that could cultivate pessimistic and unconstructive outlooks leading to inflicting animal cruelty. Criminality of these young males in the future will definitely cause changes in criminal justice systems thus it is a requirement to address the issue now prior to making the problem more severe.


With this, in what ways and to what extent does exposure to physical abuse influences acts of animal cruelty. It would be also important to determine the specific behaviors that will be developed because of iterative exposure to physical abuse. Whether animal cruelty reflects a practice of future offending among young African-American male is not known. Thus, it would be also critical to know how these young males perceive their acts. Lastly, how does local police force and court address the issue and what are they doing in behalf of the offenders. Whether young males committing animal cruelty are treated as victims or perpetrators or both will be also determined.


This research will be significant to better understand the interplay between the experiences of witnessing physical abuse and animal cruelty. Promoting awareness of the relationship between the two could simply alert the criminal justice practitioners as animal cruelty could be regarded as an indicator of aggressive behaviors that could likely result in serious offending in the future. Aside from future criminality, the behavioral manifestations of violence and aggressiveness of young African-American male could be also established through this study. Maximizing literatures about physical abuse and animal cruelty is central to this research especially that upon the completion of the course, I will assume a role in the criminal justice practice.


2. Background of the problem/topic


            Because animal cruelty is perceived to be a sign of future interpersonal violence, cruelty to animals is considered a dangerous psychopathology. Inflicting pain or hurt to animals is a channel by which young males, in particular, perform to release own painful or hurtful feelings brought by various levels of exposure to physical abuse. Animal cruelty, usually of pets, occurs in places such as in homes and in neighborhoods where physical abuse is prevalent. The problem is that the prevalence of animal cruelty is not treated seriously although there are previous researches that there is a strong correlation between exposure to violence and animal cruelty. However, it is not yet known in what specific ways exposure to physical abuse could lead to animal cruelty. The confluence between the two as taken from the perspectives of the young African-American males is the main theme of the research.


The effects of repetitive witnessing of physical abuse leading to cruelty to animals as an element of externalizing problems as experienced will be discussed in the actual study. A framework will be developed in three overlapping elements: exposure to physical abuse, animal cruelty and implications to criminal justice practice. This framework will also reflect how the study will be conducted which will start from investigating the exposure to various forms of physical abuse. Next, how such an exposure led to animal cruelty will be the second phase. A separate yet distinct investigation is the implications of exposure to physical abuse and animal cruelty to criminal justice practice will be the third phase. The first two parts will involve the participation of young African-American males who will be interviewed and observed while the last part will involve interviews of criminal justice practitioners.



Figure 1 Framework of the Study


Various studies that were conducted since the 1980s reflect the fact that the myriad of problems relating to exposure to physical abuse and animal cruelty as a resultant was a problem already and the very same problem still exists today. Characteristics of physical abuse are not known particularly those leading to adult offending with animal cruelty as the most common. Determining the factors leading to animal cruelty which stems from exposure to physical abuse could lead to long term objectives of reducing the number of future criminals by means of treating animal cruelty as an indicator. There is the necessity then of investigating and analyzing exposure to physical abuse and animal cruelty as an adult offense. Physical abuse often has negative and short long term effects to children which are manifested through inflicting cruel acts to animals. Animal cruelty therefore is abuse-related.


As objects, animals are abused signifiers of violence between humans. There are two main rationales as to why children commit animal cruelty. The first focuses on the psychological and sociological characteristics of children or assaultive children, that is, who assault animals and the other on the developmental relationship between the abuse of animals by children and adolescents and, subsequently, their eventual maturation into violent adults. Animal cruelty is now included in the description of conduct disorder. Assaultive children appear to be overwhelmingly young, male, and of normal intelligence and are themselves often physically abused at home. Assaultive children often live in a family situation of spouse abuse. Other researches focus on the relationship between the abuse of animals in childhood and adolescence, on the one hand, and the concurrent and/or consequent development of antisocial, aggressive, or criminal tendencies among adults on the other.


Particular focus should be given on young African-American males. African American families are more frequently expose to violence and many forms of abuse compared to other minority groups such as Caucasians. Child physical abuse and neglect, for instance, were evident in poor, less educated African-American families. National survey of children and adolescents estimated physical rates for African-American families that is slightly higher above those Caucasian families. Family victimization level for African-American children is also six times higher than national prevalence estimates. African-American parents also make use of belts, cords, straps and switches to punch their children. Further, partner abuse is also apparent in African-American family settings. African-American women are 1.23 times were more likely to experience abuse that Caucasian women and more than twice as likely to be victims of severe violence (Lutzker, 2008).


Animal abuse is a signifier of violence between humans as animals represent as objects that signify the presence of a psychologistic defect of human character particularly for children who can be considered as assaultive (Bierne, 2003). Further, the relationship between the abuse of animals in childhood and adolescence, on the one hand, and the concurrent and/or consequent development of antisocial, aggressive, or criminal tendencies among adults on the other is common that it cannot be ignored (Ascione, 1993). Established patterns of behavior in the adolescents are developed in their childhood which is greatly influenced by the immediate environment. Violence towards animals tends to exist when there is violence particularly toward children. The vortex of violence almost always points to the fact that cruelty to animals is a sign that the child or the adolescent has been exposed to violence or abuse (Boat, 1995). More often than not animal abuse is linked to domestic violence (Faver and Strand, 2003). Assaultive children often live in a family situation where abuse is apparent although the frequency is not known (as cited in Bierne, 2003). Thereby, there is a developmental relationship between the abuse of animals, extent of violence exposure and eventual maturation into violent adults. Animal cruelty is also now associated with multiple personality and dissociative disorders. Nevertheless, what makes analysis difficult is the fact that the question of why some children assault animals has not yet been subjected to sociological analysis.


In what ways and to what extent does growing in a violent environment makes an adolescent cruel to animals is not known. This is particularly true in the criminological discourse wherein animal cruelty brought by precedent exposure of violence receives little attention. Beirne (2003) acknowledge this fact by stating that scholarly studies of animal abuse remain virtually non-existent and that the topic is completely ignored in criminology textbooks. Miller and Knutson (1997) found out that prisoners have been exposed to animal cruelty as children and it is a prevalent behavior in sexual murderers as well (Ressler et al, 1986). As such, it is worth stressing that animal abuse enters criminological discourse here as a signifier of violence between humans (Bierne, 2003). Precisely because animals remain inadequately theorized in criminology, there is a necessity to determine how animal cruelty and physical abuse could lead to interhuman violence.


The causations will be determined in three aspects, the first being the linkage between exposure to physical abuse and animal cruelty among young African-American males. Animal cruelty is symptomatic of a violent personality that was honed due to repetitive exposure to physical abuse. However, conduct disorder of children leading to animal cruelty is increasingly becoming common and the pattern is alarming. Second, the same violent practice witnessed by the young African-American males could be the main reason for inflicting cruel acts to animals. This could be considered as antisocial personality disorders which lead to the development of aggressive behaviors. Third, animal cruelty is embedded on both family and child factors. Animal abuse is often coupled with discovery of human abuse.



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