Feminist Criminology recent issues

Editorial

Eigenberg, H., Henderson, B. — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:12:43 PDT

Clubbing Masculinities and Crime: A Qualitative Study of Philadelphia Nightclub Scenes

Anderson, T., Daly, K., Rapp, L. — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:12:43 PDT

The purpose of our article is to explore the relationship between masculinities and crime within the hip-hop (HH) and electronic dance music (EDM) nightclub scenes in Philadelphia. Given extant theory and research showing gender is a situated performance,the social context of the nightclub setting offers an important opportunity to contribute to the ever-growing masculinities and crime literature because it is an understudied setting populated by atypical offenders. Direct observation of 33 club events and interviews with 24 male clubbers yielded three important patterns: (a) Men with consistently high masculinities (hypermasculine types) reported the most frequent involvement in nightclub crime, (b) men with consistently low masculinity scores reported the least involvement, and (c) men with variable masculinity scores put on a more hypermasculine identity while clubbing, leading them to engage in nightclub crime. Contextual factors, such as excessive alcohol use, heightened sexuality, competitiveness, and commercialism, explain this more nuanced relationship between masculinity and crime.

A Closer Look at the Individual and Joint Effects of Gender and Race on Juvenile Justice Decision Making

Leiber, M. J., Brubaker, S. J., Fox, K. C. — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:12:43 PDT

Using the intersectional perspective and results from prior research, the individual and combination relationships of gender and race with juvenile justice decision making are examined in one jurisdiction in a Midwestern state. Results reveal that both gender and race, individually and jointly, influence case outcomes net relevant legal and extralegal considerations. These relationships involve receiving both more severe and more lenient outcomes and point to the variable effects of gender and race in juvenile justice proceedings.

An Exploration of Gender Differences in Measurement of Fear of Crime

Callanan, V. J., Teasdale, B. — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:12:43 PDT

Most studies that investigate differences in fear of crime between men and women assume measurement invariance. This study explores gender differences in two different scales that measure fear of crime—a four-item factor from a survey of 1,918 southern Californians and an eight-item factor from a statewide survey of 4,245 Californians. Measurement invariance of these factors is assessed with two structural equations modeling techniques—a two-groups confirmatory factor analysis and a test for differential item function. Significant gender differences are found in the measurement of fear of crime. These are explained by the presence of items that measure fear of crimes with the potential for physical harm, particularly sexual assault. The findings suggest that gender differences in fear of crime may be overestimated by a factor of two if differential item function is ignored.

The Levels and Roles of Social and Institutional Support Reported by Survivors of Intimate Partner Abuse

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:12:43 PDT

This article explores the roles of social (informal) and institutional (formal) support in the lives of 158 women whose intimate partner abuse (IPA) cases reached the courts in three jurisdictions in the United States.Women were asked who knew about the IPA and their levels of supportiveness. Data analysis includes comparisons across the women in terms of social support and institutional support, and how these were related to the women’s demographic characteristics, whether they were still in a relationship with their abusers, the severity of the violence, and the women’s mental health.

Editorial

Eigenberg, H. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 03:59:09 PDT

"Out of the Blue": Men Who Murder an Intimate Partner

Dobash, R. E., Dobash, R. P., Cavanagh, K. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 03:59:09 PDT

It came "out of the blue" is often said when a man with no known history of criminality kills his intimate partner. This reflects a belief that a "conventional man" without a criminogenic past or a problematic personal history would not commit murder. Casefiles from the Murder in Britain Study are used to compare men with no previous conviction (NoConvict, n = 25) with men with at least one previous conviction prior to the murder (PrevConvict, n = 79). The groups differed in childhood and adulthood with problematic lives and offending among the PrevConvict group and more "conventional" profiles among the NoConvict group but were similar in terms of circumstances at the murder and cognitions about the victim, especially possessiveness, jealousy, separation, empathy and remorse. The similarities challenge the notion that the murder comes "out of the blue" and underscore the relevance of gender and a feminist analysis of IPmurder

Gender, Sexuality, Power and Drug Acquisition Strategies Among Adolescent Girls Who Use Meth

Lopez, V., Jurik, N., Gilliard-Matthews, S. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 03:59:09 PDT

This study drew on social construction of gender and reflexive methodological approaches to examine how adolescent girls procured meth within the context of relationships with boys and men. A total of 18 incarcerated adolescent girls, aged 14 to 17 years, were interviewed about their meth-using experiences. The findings indicate that girls used five relationship strategies and one nonrelationship strategy to procure meth on the streets. Close examination revealed that girls' meth procurement strategies, with few exceptions, occurred in ways resonant with culturally dominant views of femininity (referred to hereafter as emphasized femininities). However, most girls presented themselves in interviews as breaking out of culturally prescribed constraints and crafting their own version of femininity. However, their agency was contextualized or limited by the social power relations that surrounded them.

Between Life and Death: Women in an Indian State Prison

Cherukuri, S., Britton, D. M., Subramaniam, M. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 03:59:09 PDT

This study presents an analysis of the population and crimes of women in a state prison for women in Hyderabad, India. Women in India are disproportionately incarcerated for violent crimes, in particular, offenses related to dowry. Using qualitative data gathered from interviews with 49 women, the authors examine the context of their lives and their paths to prison. Ultimately, the authors make a case for an intersectional analysis, one that seeks to understand the lives of women in a matrix of inequalities shaped by caste, class, and gender.

Real Men Use Nonlethals: Appeals to Masculinity in Marketing Police Weaponry

Wozniak, J., Uggen, C. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 03:59:09 PDT

In recent years, a range of new nonlethal weapons have been introduced for use by police officers, military personnel, and other consumers. This article examines how manufacturers are employing ideals of masculinity as both physical dominance and technical expertise in marketing these weapons to police officials. Based on a case study of a major weapons manufacturer's educational and sales conference, the authors explore how marketing appeals are adapted to suit a hypermasculine police subculture. Connell's theory of masculinities is employed to understand how such a tightly defined subculture absorbs challenges to its core values of hegemonic hypermasculinity and reimagines itself to keep those core values intact.

Editorial

Eigenberg, H., Henderson, B. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:59:43 PDT

POLICEwomen or PoliceWOMEN?: Doing Gender and Police Work

Rabe-Hemp, C. E. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:59:43 PDT

This work originates from a set of accounts given by female police officers to determine how they construct their identity and their image of themselves in relation to their gender, as they talk about their roles as police, and the broader roles of men and women in society. Despite policewomen's fight for equality in policing, women not only differentiated themselves from their male counterparts, but also described "doing gender" (West & Zimmerman, 1987) and "doing police work" collaboratively. Women actively resisted and adopted stereotypical norms of femininity and policing, broadening their opportunities for work in the male dominated occupation while reinforcing their traditional conception of gender difference.

"Being Shut Out in the Dark": Young Survivors' Experiences of Reporting a Sexual Offence

Skinner, T., Taylor, H. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:59:43 PDT

In Britain in the past 25 years there have been substantial changes in police responses to survivors of rape and sexual assault. Little is known about the impact of these changes on young survivors. In this article, the authors draw on interviews with nine youth aged 14 to 16 who reported a sexual offense to one police service in England. They discuss the degree of choice that young people get from the point of making the decision to report to the police through to the finalization of the case. Findings indicate that victims had limited choice at each stage of the criminal justice process. This is an outcome of a criminal justice system that continues to prioritize professional power over victims' needs and rights. The authors conclude by asserting the need for victims to be given the opportunity to participate actively in criminal justice processes.

Colonialism and Carceral Motherhood: Native Hawaiian Families Under Corrections and Child Welfare Control

Brown, M., Bloom, B. E. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:59:43 PDT

This article uses data from Hawai`i as a case study to illustrate overlapping, racialized, and gendered regimes of state power in the contemporary post-welfare, neo-liberal political environment. Native Hawaiian families, as a legacy of colonialism, are especially at risk as targets of this control due to strategies of regulation and control coincident with the rise of neo-liberal politics. In this policy environment, penal and welfare practices attempt to shift the responsibility for structural disadvantage onto individuals in marginalized populations, while extending the state's power to police families among a broader network of kin. This article contributes to the literature on gendered state regulation and neo-liberal governance by illustrating patterns of criminalization and expanding child welfare control in this marginalized population.

Gendered Justice: Domestic Homicide and the Death Penalty

Messing, J. T., Heeren, J. W. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:59:43 PDT

This research examines a newspaper sample of men and women who killed multiple people in a single domestic altercation during the years 1993 to 2002. As all these perpetrators of multiple domestic homicide are eligible to be capitally tried, differences in capital sentencing are examined using bivariate statistics and descriptive, case-oriented analyses. Women who kill their children using a knife or firearm are disproportionately sentenced to death, whereas men who kill in the context of a separation are granted leniency in regard to the death penalty. The interaction between the gender of the offender and the crime committed is discussed.

Editorial

Eigenberg, H., Henderson, B. — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:22:46 PST

Victim Narratives, Legal Representation, and Domestic Violence Civil Protection Orders

Durfee, A. — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:22:46 PST

The objective of this study is to examine the relationship between the use of legal representation and domestic violence civil protection order hearing outcomes. In most jurisdictions, the protection order process has been bureaucratized and carefully structured to facilitate access for victims without legal representation; however, results of an analysis of protection order cases indicates that even with "victim-friendly" procedures and forms, individuals without legal representation are significantly less likely to have their requests for protection orders granted. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of institutional inequalities in the American legal system.

Intersections of Immigration and Domestic Violence: Voices of Battered Immigrant Women

Erez, E., Adelman, M., Gregory, C. — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:22:46 PST

Feminist criminologists have helped to criminalize domestic violence in the United States and elsewhere. With this significant accomplishment, scholars also have critiqued the intended and unintended consequences of such reliance on the state for women's safety. One such critique reveals the intersectionality of social inequalities, social identities, and domestic violence. Here, the authors analyze the relationship between immigration and domestic violence based on interviews with 137 immigrant women in the United States from 35 countries. They find that immigration shapes how women understand domestic violence, their access to resources, and responses to domestic violence. This project documents observed dynamics of structural intersectionality for immigrant women as national origin and citizenship status are considered as another layer of identity politics and marginalization in relation to domestic violence.

Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration Among College Students: The Role of Gender Role and Gendered Violence Attitudes

Nabors, E. L., Jasinski, J. L. — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:22:46 PST

This study examines the relationships between college students' attitudes regarding gender roles and gendered violence and their perpetration of intimate partner violence. Although findings from previous studies demonstrate associations between gender role and gendered violence-related attitudes and intimate partner violence, research to date fails to fully explore these associations. In an attempt to fill this void, the current study looks at attitudes before and after perpetration is reported to determine whether attitudes precede or follow perpetration. Additionally, the study examines these relationships among a previously unexplored set of attitudes within the physical violence literature—those related to chivalry. Findings suggest that the relationships between attitudes and intimate partner violence are more complex than prior research indicates and differ for female and male college students.

Predicting Fear of Crime: Considering Differences Across Gender

Franklin, C. A., Franklin, T. W. — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:22:46 PST

The current research tests the vulnerability, disorder, and social integration models to determine their relative predictive capacity across separate female and male citizen samples on fear of crime. Although previous literature typically includes gender as a control variable, the present analysis goes beyond this to determine whether the models function differently according to gender. Findings indicate that there are in fact significant differences in predictors of female and male fear of crime. Increased age reduces fear for women but not men, and increased income leads to higher levels of fear for men but lower levels for women. Theoretical implications and future research directions are discussed.