Constrained, compromised and disconnected : experiences of women in contact with the Magistrates' Court following violence and intimidation from male partners

Grundy, M

Abstract

The thesis explores the experiences of women who had contact with the Magistrates' Court
process as a result of violence and intimidation from men in past and existing relationships.
Drawing on understandings and appropriations of feminist standpoint theory (Harding: 1987;
2004), an interpretive variation of grounded theory (Charmaz: 2007) and features of
structuration theory (Giddens: 1984), the empirical study aimed to provide space for women
to speak and be heard, in order to provide a more in-depth portrayal and understanding of
women's experiences of their interface with the criminal court system, addressing a specific
under-researched area in criminological and socio-legal discourses. Areas of convergence and
divergence between the views of the women and professionals are also identified and a
thematic discussion considers how the women's experiences of the law are structured and
reproduced.
The study found that most women wanted contact with some aspect of the criminal justice
system, if not necessarily the court process, but on their terms: their experience assessed by
their own notion of appropriateness. Women were shown to be knowledgeable agents
strategising and attending to their more immediate priorities, which were not limited to
judicial concerns. Women's agency was compromised and constrained throughout their
experience, with their own legitimate victim status being questioned. The women reported a
disconnection with the court process, and an absence of a sense of ownership, while the
structural demands of the system and pressures brought by involvement were shown to bring
additional complications in women's lives. The experience was deemed isolating, resulting
largely from a dissonance between the women's frameworks of meaning, and those of the
court professionals they came into contact with. The thesis concludes by identifying implications for addressing the normative gendered processes and culture of the criminal legal
system, proposing an alternative approach centred on the needs and rights of abused women.

Citation

Grundy, M. Constrained, compromised and disconnected : experiences of women in contact with the Magistrates' Court following violence and intimidation from male partners. (Thesis). Salford : University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 3, 2012
• Award Date: Jan 1, 2010