NCJ Number
221816
Journal
Violence Against Women Volume: 14 Issue: 3 Dated: March 2008 Pages: 310-325
Date Published
March 2008
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article reports on qualitative findings related to the influence of gender role stereotyping on women’s experiences of female same-sex intimate partner violence (FSSIPV).
Abstract
The findings in this article indicate that gender role stereotyping shapes women’s experiences of FSSIPV, a serious problem that affects the safety and health of lesbian and bisexual women, by influencing individual, familial, community, and societal perceptions and responses to this phenomenon. The article provides examples of the ways in which dominant Western gender-role stereotyping affects women’s ability to identify intimate partner violence (IPV) in their same-sex relationships and to access appropriate services in the community when experiencing it. A mixed methods study was conducted to identify shared and unique risk and protective factors for FSSIPV. The sample consisted of women, age 15 and older, who self-reported current or past-year IPV from a same-sex partner or ex-partner and women, age 15 and older, who self-reported perpetration of IPV in a same-sex relationship. A total of 52 women were included in the study, and 7 identified as the perpetrator of violence against a female same-sex partner. Individual and semistructured group interviews were used to collect data about the women’s experiences of FSSIPV. Analysis occurred concurrently with the data collection, and included thematic analysis, exemplars, and biographical comparisons. Four themes were identified in the analysis of gender role stereotyping on women’s experiences of violence: girls don’t hit other girls; the myth of a lesbian utopia; cat fight; and playing the feminine victim. Implications for practice, policy, and future research are discussed. Table, references