IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/126612.html

Sleeping with the Enemy: A General Equilibrium Approach

Author

Listed:
  • Loureiro, Paulo Roberto Amorim

Abstract

This paper develops a general equilibrium model of domestic violence grounded in household bargaining and economic dependence. Inspired by the dynamics portrayed in the film *Sleeping with the Enemy* (1991), the model incorporates exit constraints, enforcement, and social norms as determinants of women’s decisions regarding labor participation and relationship continuity. The analysis shows how insufficient enforcement and limited outside opportunities trap victims in stable but inefficient equilibria characterized by violence and dependency. Comparative statics demonstrate that welfare policies such as shelters, transfers, and employment support shift equilibrium outcomes toward safety and self-sufficiency. The results highlight the role of public intervention in restoring efficiency and individual autonomy when private bargaining fails due to asymmetric power and coercion.

Suggested Citation

  • Loureiro, Paulo Roberto Amorim, 2025. "Sleeping with the Enemy: A General Equilibrium Approach," MPRA Paper 126612, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:126612
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/126612/1/MPRA_paper_126612.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Francis Bloch & Vijayendra Rao, 2002. "Terror as a Bargaining Instrument: A Case Study of Dowry Violence in Rural India," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(4), pages 1029-1043, September.
    2. Anna Aizer, 2010. "The Gender Wage Gap and Domestic Violence," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1847-1859, September.
    3. Tauchen, Helen V & Witte, Ann Dryden & Long, Sharon K, 1991. "Domestic Violence: A Nonrandom Affair," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 32(2), pages 491-511, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Díaz, Juan-José & Saldarriaga, Victor, 2023. "A drop of love? Rainfall shocks and spousal abuse: Evidence from rural Peru," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    2. Ana Tur-Prats, 2017. "Unemployment and intimate-partner violence: A gender-identity approach," Economics Working Papers 1564, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    3. Guimbeau, Amanda & Ji, Xinde James & Menon, Nidhiya, 2024. "Climate Shocks, Intimate Partner Violence, and the Protective Role of Climate-Resilience Projects," IZA Discussion Papers 17529, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Pakrashi, Debayan & Saha, Sarani, 2020. "Intergenerational consequences of maternal domestic violence: Effect on nutritional status of children," GLO Discussion Paper Series 551, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    5. Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Otrachshenko, Vladimir & Popova, Olga, 2024. "Natural Disasters and Acceptance of Intimate Partner Violence: The Global Evidence," IZA Discussion Papers 17172, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Shah,Manisha & Seager,Jennifer & Montalvao Machado,Joao H. C. & Goldstein,Markus P., 2022. "Two Sides of Gender : Sex, Power, and Adolescence," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10072, The World Bank.
    7. Alexander Henke & Lin-chi Hsu, 2020. "The gender wage gap, weather, and intimate partner violence," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 413-429, June.
    8. Kibris, Arzu & Arbatli, Eren & Williams, Cole, 2024. "Adjusting to Toxic Husbands : Normalization of Domestic Violence by Women," QAPEC Discussion Papers 25, Quantitative and Analytical Political Economy Research Centre.
    9. Sonia Bhalotra & Uma Kambhampati & Samantha Rawlings & Zahra Siddique, 2021. "Intimate Partner Violence: The Influence of Job Opportunities for Men and Women," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 35(2), pages 461-479.
    10. Siwan Anderson, 2022. "Unbundling female empowerment," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 55(4), pages 1671-1701, November.
    11. Calvi, Rossella & Keskar, Ajinkya, 2021. "'Til Dowry Do Us Part: Bargaining and Violence in Indian Families," CEPR Discussion Papers 15696, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Sofia Amaral, 2015. "Do Improved Property Rights Decrease Violence Against Women in India?," Discussion Papers 15-10, Department of Economics, University of Birmingham.
    13. Lin-Chi Hsu, 2017. "The Timing Of Welfare Payments And Intimate Partner Violence," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 55(2), pages 1017-1031, April.
    14. Alberto Alesina & Benedetta Brioschi & Eliana La Ferrara, 2021. "Violence Against Women: A Cross‐cultural Analysis for Africa," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 88(349), pages 70-104, January.
    15. Pal, Sumantra, 2018. "Spousal Violence and Social Norms in India's North East," EconStor Preprints 179422, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    16. Selim Gulesci, 2017. "Forced migration and attitudes towards domestic violence: Evidence from Turkey," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2017-110, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Akyol, Pelin & Kirdar, Murat Güray, 2020. "Does Education Really Cause Domestic Violence? Replication and Reappraisal of "For Better or For Worse? Education and the Prevalence of Domestic Violence in Turkey"," IZA Discussion Papers 14001, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Emilia Barili & Veronica Grembi & Anna Rosso, 2021. "Domestic Violence and Gender Stereotypes: Perceptions, Justifications, and Reactions," Development Working Papers 474, Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, University of Milano.
    19. Debayan Pakrashi & Sarani Saha, 2024. "Intergenerational consequences of spousal violence: effect on nutritional status of children," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 67-94, March.
    20. Gulesci, Selim & Puente–Beccar, Manuela & Ubfal, Diego, 2021. "Can youth empowerment programs reduce violence against girls during the COVID-19 pandemic?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:126612. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.