Thesis (M.A.) - Carleton University, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 125-129). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Villanova University, 2010. / Sociology Dept. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 185-193).

D.Litt. et Phil. / The present study explores the experiences of abused women who kill their intimate male partners and are imprisoned as a result. It looks at the multiple traumas associated with the abuse, killing and imprisonment. Abuse of women violates their right of freedom and security, as well as the right to be free from torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The experiences are explored within a prison context in which these women are serving hefty sentences as a means of punishment. This is a means of prosecuting perpetrators by the criminal justice system, thus sending out a message that violence is unacceptable. The prison context is metaphorically and physically associated with phenomenon such as isolation, control, labelling, punishment, reform and rehabilitation, among many others. Social Constructionism as a postmodern epistemology becomes relevant in this study in that the concern is in explicating the process by which people come to describe, explain, or otherwise account for the world (including themselves) in which they live. Therefore, the abused women’s experiences are descriptions to be understood through the analysis of the intersubjective influence of language, family, and culture. The implication being that social construction reflects on that which is said about the world, which is the product of shared conventions of discourse that are guided by and limited by the systems of language that we use. Our understandings of reality are embedded in our patterns of action, and these understandings constrain future constructions. Language as an important tool in social constructionism is embedded in the ideas, concepts and memories arising from social discourse and is found in neither the speaker nor the hearer, but somewhere in between. Furthermore, the context of prison afforded me with the opportunity to experience a sense of communality with the women, which according to a social constructionist stance suggests that reality is co-created between people in their quest for meaning from the interpreted experiences. There is no absolute truth that represents its objectivity, implying that as the researcher, I am not entering the system searching for some single truth that is ultimate. This acknowledges that there are realities and reflexivity of events and situations that look for many alternatives deconstructed and constructed equally between the researcher and participants. In conducting this study, a qualitative method of research was used, which focuses on the description, exploration and elaboration of experiences and perspectives of the people being interviewed. The qualitative method is not concerned with numbers and statistical analysis in the way that the quantitative method is. The participants take active charge in describing and exploring experiences that bring about meaning to them and the study. The researcher is equally involved as the participants, and becomes the participant observer. Whilst the focus was directed towards experiences of abuse and the multiple implications of trauma on abused women, the larger social context of their experiences was acknowledged. Five women offenders who are in the Potchefstroom prison, participated in this research. The women were allowed to elaborate on their experiences as experts in their own lives. Through this interaction a relational process of sharing and support emerges, which is characteristic of therapeutic practices with social constructionism. In-depth semi-structured interviews provided a means to explore their incidents of abuse as perpetrated by their intimate male partners. For the purpose of collecting data, an open-ended questionnaire was used. A thematic content method was used to analyse data. Here themes are identified that represent the meaning of events constructed by the participants themselves. A thematic analysis reflected the following themes: Loss and gain, power and helplessness, hope and despair as well as connection and disconnection. Upon the identification and analysis of themes, the discussion of findings which are integrated using the social constructionist theory, was conducted. From the findings the implications of multiple traumas abused women suffer at the hands of their intimate male partners, and the result of killing and imprisonment, are explored.

D. Litt. et Phil. / The aim of this study was to develop a comprehensive framework for the rehabilitative needs of female offenders, through the use of Grounded Theory methodology. The framework took the form of a two-axis structure, with axis one encompassing the management of prisons and staff, and axis two dealing with the management and rehabilitation of prisoners. Axis two was conceptualised as a sequence of stages from the start of imprisonment until post-release. The framework is offered as a holistic structure for the development and integration of rehabilitative programmes. The framework is anticipated to assist in obtaining additional funding and support from the business community in order to make rehabilitative programmes available to a greater number of prisoners. The framework may also enable individuals and companies to determine where the specific resources at their disposal could be put to use with the greatest effect.

Thesis (M.A.), Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2000. / Restricted until June 2001. Bibliography: leaves 165-183.

published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

The central focus of this thesis is an exploration of how mothers in prison construct a sense of self as mothers according to motherhood ideologies and reconstruct this sense of self as a result of imprisonment. The study, informed by feminist poststructuralism, shows how relations of power/knowledge shape the experiences of women in prison leading to marginalization. The notion of the constitution of subjectivities through discourses offers `other' ways to see the lives of imprisoned mothers, destabilizing assumptions and constructed truths and challenging fixed frameworks of meaning and truth surrounding motherhood. The research methodology employed was a qualitative approach based on `interpretive interactionism'. The premise of this approach was to make visible and accessible to the reader, the problematic lived experiences of the participants through their stories. The research methods involved interviews with six imprisoned women who shared stories of their experiences being mothers. The analysis involved an interpretation of the meanings participants applied to mothering in prison, expressed by their feelings, thoughts and practice of mothering. The participants' position as mothers within a prison institution was met with daily challenges as they sought out ways to have relationships with their children and maintain a sense of self as mothers. The research showed that even in a restricted prison environment of limited choices participants were able to be agents of choice and possibilities. The study shows that the participants resisted dominant ideologies of motherhood and maintained a sense of being mothers through connections with their children, with each other, as well as through self-reflection and harbouring hopes and dreams for the future. Feminist poststructuralism provided the tools for revealing the possibilities of alternative ways of mothering in prison that did not hinge on being either `good' or `bad' mothers.