Abstract
In this article, the authors present the main findings from a qualitative study of processes undergone by women who have left abusive male partners. Three overlapping leaving processes are described: Breaking Up, Becoming Free, and Understanding. Breaking Up covers action (i.e., the physical breakup), and the turning point by which it is preceded or with which it coincides is analyzed. Becoming Free covers emotion and involves release from the strong emotional bond to the batterer, a process that entails four stages. Understanding covers cognition, and is a process in which the woman perceives and interprets what she has been subjected to as violence and herself as a battered woman.
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