Shame, Family Honor, and Dating Abuse: Lessons From an Exploratory Study of South Asian Muslims

Generally, South Asian Muslim communities reject dating and view it as shameful. Despite this, many South Asian Muslims still engage in dating. These traditional norms, however, remain influential and a part of the cultural context in which dating abuse occurs. This exploratory study examines South Asian Muslims' perceptions of how cultural norms forbidding dating and constructing it as shameful may affect women's experiences of dating abuse. Findings indicate these cultural norms may prompt fear of parental and community reactions to dating as well as strong relationship attachment. These then have implications for disclosure, help seeking, and ending abusive relationships.