Thesis
“Designed That Way”: Structural Economic Exploitation Within Intimate Partner Violence
Washington State University
Master of Science (MS), Washington State University
2023
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7273/000005329
Abstract
Within the range of intimate partner violence (IPV) research on economic abuse (EA), there is a gap concerning exploitation via systems and structures. Using a constructivist grounded theory approach for this exploratory qualitative study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with professionals working in eight key systems that IPV survivors interact with regularly: Child Support, Child Protective Services, Credit, Family Law, Healthcare, Housing, Immigration, and Welfare. The interviews were coded and analyzed, with results showing inextricable links between systems exploitation and IPV economic abuse, with strong evidence of the need to examine such abuse as an autonomous subclassification of EA. Tentatively coined Structural Economic Exploitation (SEE), such systems-related abuse is an effective method to establish power and maintain control over a partner through the use of coercion, threats, and violence. Economic abuse is a primary reason why victims are unable to leave or return to an abusive relationship, and the long-term consequences of experiencing EA are severe. Socialization, binary gender roles, and normalization of many EA experiences contribute to identification issues. The analysis revealed that ultimately, IPV support systems can be exploited by abusers because the systems themselves are exploitative. Potential policy recommendations and areas for further SEE research were also identified, including suggestions for IPV prevention and intervention through systemic change rather than individual behavioral change.
Metrics
2 File views/ downloads
18 Record Views
Details
- Title
- “Designed That Way”
- Creators
- Kimberly C. Klein
- Contributors
- Kathleen Rodgers (Advisor)Stephany RunningHawk Johnson (Committee Member)Tanja Burkhard (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Human Development, Department of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Science (MS), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 157
- Identifiers
- 99901031241101842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Thesis