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Abstract
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Our focus is on under-recognised experiences of sexual violence among adolescent girls in residential care institutions in Finland.
Sexual violations of the girls' bodily integrity were connected to transactional sex and trauma-based behaviour. The girls' experiences of sexual violence partly appeared to be internalised sexism, a form of collective social violence manifested on a personal level. However, if this phenomenon is discussed only as self-harming or self-abusive behaviour, it may be seen solely as an individual problem of the girls themselves, hiding the society's and perpetrators' responsibilities. Based on the feminist theoretical framework and critical evidencebased insights, we propose the term 'internalised sexual violence' to describe this phenomenon of under-recognised sexual violence. Recognising the inadequacy of the 'victim-perpetrator' view of violent experiences in one's own life and naming the phenomenon of one's own involvement are steps towards a proper and nuanced conceptualisation of internalised sexual violence. We recommend that this risk-taking and trouble-seeking form of sexual behaviour be recognised and identified in the World Health Organisation's typology of violence. Moreover, there is a need to organise more training for both professionals and girls about gendered, sexualised violence and internalised sexual violence.
Language: en |