Legal Awareness and Attitudes Towards Domestic Violence among Men in Barangay Bolila, Malita, Davao Occidental

Abstract

This study examined men’s awareness of Republic Act (RA) 9262 and their attitudes towards domestic violence in Barangay Bolila, Malita, Davao Occidental. Grounded in the Theory of Planned Behaviour(Ajzen, 1991) and informed by Social Learning Theory (Bandura, 1977), the study assessed awareness of the law’s subjects of protection and liability, acts of violence, penalties, and protective measures, alongside attitudes regarding subjective norms, efficacy, social responsibility, and empathy. A descriptive-correlational design was employed with 150 male respondents selected through purposive quota sampling. Data were collected using an adapted and validated questionnaire and analysed using means and Spearman’s rank-order correlation. Findings revealed a moderate overall level of awareness of RA 9262 (GM = 3.05), with penalties receiving the lowest mean score (M = 2.56), indicating limited understanding of legal sanctions. In contrast, respondents demonstrated generally positive attitudes towards domestic violence prevention (GM = 3.93), with empathy obtaining the highest mean (M = 4.08) and efficacy the lowest (M = 3.63), suggesting an empathy–efficacy gap. A high and statistically significant correlation was found between awareness and attitudes (ρ = 0.72, p = 0.00), indicating that greater knowledge of the law is associated with more positive attitudes towards the prevention of domestic violence. These results highlight the importance of strengthening barangay-level legal literacy initiatives, particularly on penalties and non-physical forms of violence, and of implementing skills-based training to enhance men’s confidence to intervene. Targeted, gender-responsive interventions are essential to translate awareness and empathy into consistent, proactive involvement in preventing violence against women and their children.

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