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Fea ures
Sunday, October 16, 2011
A new field study on family violence in Oman
 Causes: irresponsible husband and abusive wife
 Insults, wife battering, and divorce being major aspects
 Religious values and the media to fight this phenomenon
10 per cent of the Omani families in the
Governorate of Muscat.
Findings
V
iolence between spouses has
long been considered a serious
global problem. In GCC societies
where a conservative family pattern is
widely thought to be dominant and abuses
happen behind closed doors, there is ample evidence provided by court cases, divorce litigation, the press, and the police
statistics that there is domestic violence.
On the other hand, an increasing number
of studies and conferences address this
problem through suggesting preventive
procedures, solutions, and even mental
and social rehabilitation of domestic violence victims.
The problem should not be underestimated, for, such socio-cultural practices
as physical and verbal abuses can only be
viewed as part of a broader phenomenon
that could destabilise the security of both
the family and the society.
Addressing this issue, Dr Shaikha bint
Salem al Musallamiyya and Dr Manal
Farouq Sayyid, at the Department of
Sociology and Social Work, SQU, have
conducted a joint study which involves
the application of a number of variables
in examining violence in the Omani
family.
The research work is aimed at identifying domestic violence within the Omani
family and explaining the various forms
of family violence so as to come up with
a tentative and preventive framework for
defining the problem in terms of causes,
effects, and solutions.
Significance of the study
This study is an important endeavour
made from a sociological perspective, given the small number of studies that have
addressed the phenomenon in the GCC
region and particularly in the Sultanate. It
also comes at a time when forms of family violence are increasingly witnessed in
Arab countries.
The two researchers apply tools of sociology and social work in an attempt to
enrich the theoretical framework of the
problem and find professional solutions.
The study has come up with interesting results concerning spousal abuse. As
to the causes of violence attributed to the
wife, the researchers have found that the
problem is to do with a commanding wife
having her husband under her thumb, ignoring her role in the family, disrespecting
her husband and his relatives, and children, and neglecting herself. On the other
hand, a violent husband shows signs of
wife abuse, disrespect, lack of communication, volatile temperament, sense of irresponsibility, and excessive force against
wife and children.
Most families have pointed to general causes of violence including lack of
awareness of spousal obligations, acrimonious marriages, others poking into fam- Lack of awareness
Objectives of the study
ily affairs, economic burdens, and negaThe study suggests that there is insufThe two academics have investigated tive models highlighted in the media and
ficient societal awareness of the family
manifestations and factors of family vio- surroundings.
violence, which calls for all societal orlence in Oman so as to come up with posganisations to exert more efforts in order
sible ways and means that would help
to define the mechanisms of dealing with
eradicate it from the society.
this problem. More emphasis is placed on
Academically, the study is concerned
conducting further research in this area.
with conceptualising the role assumed by
sociology and social work in addressing
Specialised institutions
the problem.
The majority of those surveyed in the
Being descriptive in nature, it aims to
study have confirmed that there are no
gather accurate information using all posprofessional services and only few famsible research tools about current realities
ily counselling and awareness centres. Up
of a specific social class, phenomenon,
to 95 per cent of the divorces are due to
situation, set of conditions, group of peofamily violence. Most of the surveys have
ple, or certain events.
underlined the significant role of religion,
The study has applied the case study
the media, and the family counselling
methodology in the local cultural context
programmes to put an end to this probincluding common social attitudes. It atlem. Further research is also needed for
tempted to classify the basic facts of sothe purpose of educating spouses ahead of
cial behaviour relative to an individual,
marriage so as to overcome hurdles.
family, institution, or a community within
The role of society
a certain period of time. The field work
The findings have accentuated the
is based on a sample of 300 families, ie
Dr Shaikha al Musallamiyya
important role of society in tackling family violence. What is acutely needed is
awareness among family members and
spouses of techniques and skills of communicating and interacting. Lectures,
educational workshops and symposia are
also a welcome in this regard. At a wider
scope, legislations are also called for to
address the phenomenon, and social associations must be in place to defend abused
individuals.
Suggestions
For tackling family violence, the study
calls for an effective part by clergymen to
educate families and spouses of their rights
and responsibilities. It also encourages
further research, collaboration between
civil societies and civil society groups to
cater for counselling programmes, and
developing regulations and legislations on
family violence. Heed should be given to
training courses and curriculums to teach
individuals skills of leading a peaceful life
and building a family.
Cultural DNA in Islamic Geometric Architecture Investigating iron deficiency anaemia in Oman
N
utritional condition of a
population constitutes an important
health indicator. Children and adolescents
are particularly at risk of suffering from
deficient nutritional status. The prevalence
of iron deficiency anaemia (IDA)
worldwide, and particularly in developing
countries, is increasingly observed. Being
the final stage of negative iron balance,
IDA is preceded by latent iron deficiency
(ID) where serum ferritin is below the
normal reference range with normal
haemoglobin (Hb) level. Now, this is the
focus of a fresh study by Dr Nagla Fawwaz
at College of Medicine, SQU, which aims
at assessing the incidence of both ID and
IDA among Omanis.
She says that while iron refractory
iron deficiency anaemia, a recessively
inherited disorder, is rare in the western
society, in a highly blood-related small
population such as Oman, it may reach a
much higher proportion than elsewhere.
Therefore, she wants to see whether, in
ID, the MCV (mean corpuscular volume)
and MCH (mean corpuscular Hb) are in a
A
n SQU academic is examining the cultural code in Islamic
geometric pattern design and its
effect on the commonality in traditional
architecture in the Islamic world.
Dr Hisham Issa, at the College of Engineering, is more interested in the local
Omani dimension, yet his study suggests
that the geometric patterns and its mathematical rules have an embedded code
that retains the commonality of Islamic
architecture around the world regardless
of variation in details and features. Such
normal range or subtly reduced, in cases
where Hb level is normal. MCV refers to
the size of each red blood cell while MCH
stands for the concentration of Hb in each
red blood cell.
Given the inter-subject variations, influenced by a multitude of environmental
factors and potential genetic polymorphisms, she claims, a large epidemiologi-
cal investigation alone can clarify the issue.
For that purpose, the study will examine students newly admitted to SQU to
establish the prevalence of IDA and ID,
and measure the effect of iron therapy on
Hb, MCV and MCH. It will also assess
the potential genetic contribution to such
phenotype in these subjects.
Procalcitonin as a marker of infection in febrile sickle cell disease
a code, he explains, is currently referred
to as cultural DNA, that is, the elements
or units of cultural selection, as compared
to those of biological selection. Thus,
as with DNA in biology, cultural DNA
should have cultural information that
can be preserved and maintained through
generations. The results will highlight
specific rules that can be adopted to generate architectural elements that carry Islamic architecture concepts.
Islamic geometrical design is considered as a wide field of study, says Dr
Issa. Muslim craftsmen have historically
relied on the work of Arab scholarship,
which enlarged the knowledge of fundamental geometry, in producing tiles,
mosaic, plaster and wooden patterns that
were applied to their buildings.
Geometric patterns represent most of
the decorated surfaces in Islamic architecture, forming sophisticated and complex arrangements.
Islamic artists invented a new form of
decoration highlighting the importance
of unity, logic, and order.
P
rocalcitonin (PCT) is a new
parameter for diagnosis of bacterial
sepsis. The measurement of its levels can
be used for diagnosing and evaluating
the effectiveness of treatment. This is the
subject of a new study by an SQU scientist
who intends to test the ability of serum
PCT estimation in evaluating sickle cell
patients who come to the Accident and
Emergency with fever. The purpose is
to determine whether or not they have
bacterial sepsis as indicated with a rising
PCT levels on serial testing.
Dr Mohammed al Hanini says that
febrile patients with normal PCT may be
managed without prophylactic antibiotics.
The work is the first of its kind to compare the utilisation of PCT in sickle cell
patients with fever to exclude the presence of bacterial sepsis, he remarks.
Based on the available current literature, he adds, the study will help establish
PCT as a routine test in the diagnostic
work-up of febrile patients to rule out serious bacterial sepsis in due course.