ABSTRACT
A powerful discourse running through the text of web-sites from advocacy and activist agencies has been the identification and debunking of ‘myths’. A myth or unsubstantiated story may lead to attitudes and beliefs which encourage acts as if that story were indeed the reality. The myths debunked here are that domestic violence and abuse are rare events targeted at the ‘deserving’. This was the general accepted view before it was discredited by the pioneering work of Erin Pizzey at the Chiswick refuge. However the process of debunking myths has in turn led to ideologically laden formula stories which have fixed public knowledge about the causes and impact of domestic violence.
Evidence indicates that advocates and survivors frequently buy into, and in turn reproduce, formula stories. Myths about domestic violence from the perspective of some advocates and survivors are, at least in part, psychological defence mechanisms used to defend against the anxieties, helplessness and distress. They also defend against ‘thinking’ which might reduce the impact of advocacy. This is not only true for those who experience it (as victim/survivors and perpetrators, but it is also the case for the various levels of community and professional groups who face its existence and have to act.
