Citation

McCauley HL, Richie F, Hughes S, Johnson JE, Zlotnick C, Rosen RK, Wechsberg WM, Kuo CC. Violence Against Women 2019; ePub(ePub): 1077801219842948.

Affiliation

Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1077801219842948

PMID

30999810

Abstract

The present study, which included four focus groups of women ( n = 21) in four New England prisons, aimed to understand how power impacted women's relationships, exposure to violence, and health. Women described power in three ways: (a) power as control over their sexuality and their sexual partners, (b) power emerging from emotional strength, and (c) power referring to a process of empowerment. Women's perceptions and experiences of power were informed by their trauma histories and influenced their sexual behavior and health. Our findings provide a framework for considering incarcerated women's experiences of power in trauma-informed interventions for this marginalized population.

Language: en

Keywords

intimate partner violence; prisoners; sexual health; sexual violence; sexuality