This is a deductive study testing Hudson’s (2006; 2003) theory of social justice and, specifically, her delineation of three restorative justice principles (discursiveness, reflectiveness and relationalism) in order to explore how the principles might respond to the justice needs of women who have experienced abuse and violence by male intimate partners. Through in-depth and critically informed one-on-one interviews with twelve women who have experienced intimate partner violence in former relationships, it asks how abused women conceptualize justice and how justice might be done through restorative justice principles. The women offer social conceptualizations of justice and of doing justice that reconfigure the principles of restorative justice to prioritize protective solutions, and they locate them in domains outside of criminal justice where the complexities and dynamics of intimate partner violence are well understood and they demonstrate openness to support abused women. Their feedback about restorative justice principles suggests configurations in social service domains such as help lines, crisis centres, and shelters and, more broadly through policies enabling social responsibility in domains such as workplaces, media, and social media where there is the potential to create collaborations and protective solutions. Despite frustrations with the criminal justice system for its inability to provide long term protective solutions, given its ability to help some women in the short term, the women were not willing to jettison it.

MA (Youth in Development) / Institute for Gender and Youth Studies / Conflicts in intimate relationships causes enormous problems for the well-being of individuals. Young people are particularly vulnerable as they may make bad choices or decisions that may breed conflict in their relationships. This may have far-reaching implications on their well-being. Such conflicts may lead to stress, isolation, violence and suicide among other things. The rate of conflict in intimate relationships has greatly increased among youths. The aim of this study was to explore the contributory factors to conflict in intimate relationships among students at the University of Venda. This study used a qualitative research approach and was exploratory in nature. The study was conducted at the University of Venda, Thohoyandou in Limpopo province, South Africa. The population of the study comprised of University of Venda’s students. Non-probability purposive technique was used for the selection of the study sample. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The interview guide was pre-tested in a pilot study involving the research participants to identify errors in the research questions and to ensure that the data collected would be relevant and as precise as possible. Findings from this study revealed how conflicts are bred in intimate relationships and the ways in which students react and deal with the conflict in intimate relationships. The research recommended that there should be laws enforced to protect the people in intimate relationships.

archives@tulane.edu / 1 / Alejandra Leyton

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Members of the Arab American community experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) face unique barriers to help-seeking and have different comfort levels with using formal and informal resources. This thesis surveyed Arab-Americans to identify perceived barriers and comfort levels with IPV help-seeking. A culturally informed and centered approach was taken to examine connections between individual level factors, perceived barriers and comfort levels in using resources. To do so, I gathered data via an online survey with 82 Arab American participants. Findings suggest that participants perceived the greatest barriers to seeking help for IPV are related to how others view and understand Arab Americans (i.e., "There is a stigma in how outsiders view Arab Americans" and "I feel my cultural values would not be taken into consideration") and that they would be more comfortable seeking help from informal resources, such as a friend or member of their family, compared to formal resources, such as calling the police or going to a homeless shelter. Participants who felt more connected to their local Arab American community perceived more barriers to IPV help-seeking and said they would feel less comfortable using informal and formal resources if they ever experienced IPV. Empirical evidence from this study suggests that Arab Americans believe that they would face many barriers and would feel uncomfortable in using more formal resources if they ever experienced IPV. To address these issues, it is important that those providing IPV resources better understand how they are being perceived by the Arab American community, and take steps to reduce those barriers and increase comfort levels in the Arab American community in using their services.

The present study investigated the effect of social reinforcement on dating violence perpetration and victimization among college-aged individuals who are regular social media users. The purpose of the study is to add to the current body of research on dating violence as it applies specifically to the college-aged population and to assess the influence of social reinforcement from social media. An anonymous online survey distributed via email and social networks included questions about social media use, dating violence victimization and perpetration experiences, and perceptions of peer beliefs about dating violence. The results reveal that individuals who are regular social media users experience a social reinforcement effect on perpetration rates. This study has implications in understanding our deepening connections to the online world and how those connections impact real-world experiences.

Domestic violence research is an important part of both scholarly and practitioner investigations into the circumstances and legal outcomes of domestic violence incidents. To improve upon our current understanding of domestic violence court cases, this study utilizes data from the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida to examine the relationship between socio-demographic factors and domestic violence case dispositions. Using Generalized Estimating Equation modeling, Black's theory of the quantity of law, which proposes that the quantity of law observed between parties varies based on individual characteristics, is used to investigate the relationship between individual case characteristics and domestic violence case disposition outcomes. Findings from this study suggest that different stages of the disposition outcome are related to petitioner and respondent characteristics, and legal and injury factors. The findings from this study are useful to those that are interested in developing a better understanding of the relationship between domestic violence case characteristics and the resulting court dispositions.

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