Oh pukity, puke, puke! God, they make it sound like just because I woman 'works at home' that she lives in isolation and has no friends anywhere to get together with.....give me a break!
She is, however, much less likely to be equipped to support herself and her children, and is therefore much less likely to to leave even if she very much wants to. Ever notice that men who are chronically drunk, violent, unemployed, etc. tend to have stay-at-home wives? Women who are capable of supporting themselves will usually take a hike from a loser husband, while women who aren't are much more likely to stay. Statistics in studies of this sort tend to be heavily skewed by the activities of the dysfunctional classes.