Bare Marriage Episode 246: How Toxic Marriage Advice Mirrors Coercive Control
Aug 15, 2024
Bethany Jantzi, an expert on coercive control, delves into the unsettling parallels between toxic marriage advice and manipulative tactics found in cults. She highlights how certain marriage books promote psychological dependency, suppress critical thinking, and encourage compliance—all warning signs of coercive control. Bethany critiques the dangers of rigid marital roles and emphasizes the importance of recognizing emotional abuse, advocating for women's autonomy and the need for healthier marital dynamics within faith communities.
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Complementarianism as a Risk Factor
- Complementarianism, framing male headship as protective, actually increases women's vulnerability to abuse.
- It undermines their ability to recognize and respond to abuse due to distorted interpretations of scripture.
Multi-Layered Entrapment
- Complementarian theology creates multiple layers of entrapment for women in abusive relationships.
- Leaving becomes harder as it involves extricating oneself from the abuser, faith community, and perceived divine mandate.
Power Imbalance and Coercive Control
- Complementarianism's inherent power imbalance, where husbands hold authority, creates a risk for coercive control.
- This is masked by spiritual language, making it difficult to detect.