Reimagining Desistance from Male-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence: The Role and Experiences of Female Victim-Survivors

Preface
Acknowledgements
Contents
Acronyms
List of Tables
List of Case Study
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Desistance Theory and Its Relevance to Intimate Partner Violence
	2.1 Desistance Theory
		2.1.1 Ontogenetic Models of Desistance
		2.1.2 Sociogenic Models of Desistance
		2.1.3 Agentic Models of Desistance
		2.1.4 Integrated Desistance Models
	2.2 The Relevance of Desistance Theories to IPV
		2.2.1 Differences in the Underlying Motivations of Acquisitive Offences and IPV
		2.2.2 The Dyadic Element of IPV
	2.3 What Do Existing Frameworks Say About the Role of Social Relationships in Desistance Processes?
	2.4 The Role of Victims of Crime in Desistance Processes
	2.5 A Theoretical Justification for Including Victims of Crime in Desistance Frameworks
		2.5.1 Routine Activities Theory
		2.5.2 Restorative Justice
	2.6 Chapter Summary
Chapter 3: Desistance from Intimate Partner Violence and the Role of Victims-Survivors
	3.1 Offender Characteristics Associated with IPV Desistance
	3.2 Victim-Survivor Characteristics Associated with IPV Desistance
	3.3 Relationship Characteristics Associated with IPV Desistance
	3.4 Characteristics of the Violence and Abuse Associated with IPV Desistance
	3.5 The Mechanisms Underpinning Behaviour Change
	3.6 The Role of Victims-Survivors in IPV Desistance Processes
	3.7 Chapter Summary
Chapter 4: Study Methods
	4.1 Operational Definitions of Desistance and Persistence
	4.2 Recruitment Processes
		4.2.1 Recruitment Site: The Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
	4.3 Interview Process
	4.4 Analysis
		4.4.1 Ethics
	4.5 Final Sample
	4.6 Limitations
	4.7 Chapter Summary
Chapter 5: Understanding Context: Abuse Perpetrated Against Women and Their Children and Its Impact
	5.1 Types of Violence and Abuse Experienced by Women
		5.1.1 Physical Violence
		5.1.2 Sexual Violence and Reproductive Coercion
		5.1.3 Emotional/Psychological Abuse and Gaslighting
		5.1.4 Coercive Controlling Behaviours
		5.1.5 Threatening Behaviours and Self-Harm
		5.1.6 Property Damage
		5.1.7 Financial Abuse
		5.1.8 Stalking
	5.2 Violence Experienced by Children
	5.3 Experiences of Intergenerational and Other Violent Behaviours
		5.3.1 Male Partners
		5.3.2 Female Participants
	5.4 The Impact of Violence and Abuse on Participants
	5.5 Chapter Summary
Chapter 6: Strategies Used by Female Victims-Survivors to Keep Themselves Safe and Initiate and Support Desistance Processes
	6.1 Strategies Focused on Adapting or Changing Participant Behaviour
		6.1.1 Compliance and Being the Perfect Partner
		6.1.2 Avoiding Triggers
	6.2 Strategies Focused on Changing Their Partner’s Behaviour
		6.2.1 Talking About the Violence and Its Impact
		6.2.2 Asking Their Partner to Get Help
		6.2.3 Establishing Boundaries
	6.3 Third-Party Help-Seeking
		6.3.1 Talking to Friends and Family
		6.3.2 Talking to the Partner’s Friends and Family
		6.3.3 Relationship Counselling
		6.3.4 Government and Non-government Services: The Police and Domestic Violence and Child Protection Services
	6.4 Differences in Strategies Used by Participants Who Experienced Persistence and Desistance
	6.5 The Impact of Strategies: Views of Participants
		6.5.1 Measuring Desistance – What About Deceleration?
	6.6 Chapter Summary
Chapter 7: The Desistance of Violence and Abuse as Described by Female Victims-Survivors
	7.1 Defining Desistance
	7.2 Causes Attributed to the Desistance of Men’s Abusive and Violent Behaviours
		7.2.1 Increasing Consequences and Risk of Detection
		7.2.2 Capable Guardianship and Target Hardening
		7.2.3 Appeasing Men’s Desire for Control and Dominance
		7.2.4 Dissolution of the Abuser’s Attachment to their Partner
		7.2.5 Mitigation of Emotional Stressors – Gender Role Strain and Shame
		7.2.6 Mitigation of Mental Health Issues That Exacerbated Violent Behaviours – Abuser Involvement in Mental Health Support and Treatment
		7.2.7 Evoking Feared Selves
	7.3 Resumption of Violence and Abuse
	7.4 False Desistance – Is It Desistance if It Is Dependent on Women Doing All the Heavy Lifting?
		7.4.1 Desistance in the Absence of a Motivated Abuser
	7.5 Chapter Summary
Chapter 8: Agency and Resistance – The Motivations and Thought Processes of Female Victims/Survivors
	8.1 Were Participants Aware of Their Role in Desistance Pathways?
	8.2 Belief in Men’s Redeemability – Helping Men to Find Their ‘True Selves’
		8.2.1 The Role of Attributions and Emotional Affect on Redeemability
		8.2.2 Prospective Redemption Scripts
	8.3 Did Participant’s Motivations and Thought Processes Impact Desistance?
	8.4 Chapter Summary
Chapter 9: Discussion and Conclusions: What Is the Role of Female Victims-Survivors in the Desistance of Male-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence?
	9.1 Victims-Survivors Were Agentic and Motivated to Support Their Partner’s Behavioural Change Processes
	9.2 Where Desistance Did Occur, Victims-Survivors Played an Important Role
	9.3 The Selection of Strategies and Their Impact on Desistance Was Mediated by a Range of Factors
	9.4 IPV Desistance Involves Multiple Trajectories at Any Point in Time
	9.5 IPV Desistance Processes Have a Dyadic Component
	9.6 Strategies Used by Victims-Survivors Were Highly Consistent with Desistance Theory
		9.6.1 Misconceived Theories of Change: Strategies Exacerbated Rather than Mitigated Risk of IPV
		9.6.2 The Perceived Legitimacy of Victims-Survivors as Agents of Change in the Eyes of Abusers was Limited
		9.6.3 The Unmotivated Abuser
	9.7 Conclusion
Attachment A: Interview Schedule
Attachment B: Participant Information Sheet
Attachment C: Consent form for Participants
Attachment D: Online Survey
References
Index