Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Encouraging Victims: Responding To A Recent Study Of Battered Women Who Commit Crimes, Carol E. Jordan

Carol E. Jordan

Over many decades, domestic violence statistics have consistently revealed that women from a wide variety of backgrounds are victimized, though the rate of victimization varies depending on a woman’s particular characteristics. Despite this consistency, past and present approaches to domestic violence have failed to attend to the diverse realities of victims. Advocates and researchers first devoted their efforts toward conveying the message that while any woman could potentially become a victim of domestic violence, no woman should become a victim. They then focused on creating laws and policies granting victims greater access to the legal system and making the justice …