Abstract
Victims of familial or interpersonal abuse are often trapped in silence. Issues of the victim's willingness and ability to disclose, contexts of telling, as well as victim-listener interaction, have great significance on the outcome of the victim's storytelling experience. In this study, 12 abuse survivors were interviewed and narrated their experiences of relational abuse and survivorship. Participants included residents of a shelter for victims of domestic violence and abuse as well as self-selected volunteers. The victims' narratives were audio-recorded, transcribed, coded for emergent themes, and reanalyzed for styles of discourse. Results indicate two major themes: disempowerment, which perpetuates silence, and empowerment, which facilitates change in the victims' lives. Narrating their experiences requires victims to confront constraints that prevent empowerment, including conformity to roles, a false hope the abuser will change, and the social construction of victimization. Telling such stories can also represent an important means of achieving healthier family relationships.
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