American Indian women and domestic violence: The lived experience

During the past 25 years we have witnessed die growth and establishment of domestic violence as a field of inquiry. What has been noticeably absent, however, is research that explores the experience of American Indian women survivors of domestic violence. The data for this study were gathered from audiotaped, in-depth phe-monenological interviews with 13 women from 10 American Indian Nations. This paper reports the findings of the study with particular emphasis on the uncovering of a spiral as a visual representation of the ways in which a woman is both entrapped by, and escapes from, domestic violence. Additionally, implications for social work practice with American Indian women, policy, and research are presented