Surviving Childhood Summary

In the Surviving Childhood chapter, the author found out that a large amount of women who grew up in the domestic violence family would have higher chance lead them into intimate partner abuse relationship when they are in adulthood (Potter 2008). This is a tragic circulation that caused black women lived a miserable life. Therefor, Dr. Potter studied the elements of black women grew in an abusive household and how it related to the adulthood relationship. She concluded that there is three major type of abusive childhood which included being abused in childhood, witnessing encroachment among parents or stepfamily, being antagonized social structural and cultural pressure (Potter 2008), lead them to end up with another abusive relationship in adult life.
Being Abused in Childhood The women who experienced verbal, emotional, sexual and physical abuse in the childhood, the majority of them have been reported with low self-esteem and unable recognize the healthy relationship in adulthood (Potter 2008). The victims of domestic violence sometimes believed they are not deserved other people’s love, this low self-esteem belief which lead them to intimate partner abuse and could not escape from it (Potter 2008). …show more content…
The author concluded that there are two reasons may be significant. First, the child in the family may play the caretaking role that helps the victim away from the violence (Potter 2008). However, this role led them to believe that they are the protector and cannot be depart from an abusive relationship, otherwise, they cannot protect the people they loved (Potter 2008). Moreover, the child grows in intimate partner abuse may think that it is a normal interact between couples which guide them into an abusive relationship in adulthood and hard to disconnect it (Potter