Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Open Access Dissertation

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Suzanne Swan

Abstract

The court system has become a central part of the societal response to intimate partner violence (IPV) and is a frequently used as a source of help for victims (Cattaneo et al., 2013). Despite the importance of a justice system response to IPV, it is not always accessible or helpful to victims. Past research has demonstrated barriers to IPV victims seeking legal intervention including mistrust of the court system generally, extensive and confusing legal processes and procedures, and failure of the courts to assess more invisible forms of abuse (Calton et al., 2017; Cerulli et al., 2015; Cuomo & Dolci, 2022; Deutsch et al., 2017; Gover, 2013; Hefner et al, 2021b; Lorenz et al., 2019; Lynch & Logan, 2018; Rajaram et al., 2020; Reina & Lohnman, 2015; Weisz & Schell, 2020). To address these barriers, understanding the victim’s emotional experience is essential to being able to deeply understand their perspectives, and thus develop policy and practice standards, as well as inform professionals working in policing and the justice system. One specific gap in the literature is a need for better understanding how the court response emotionally impacts victims.

The present study is a qualitative study designed to explore IPV victims’ emotional experiences with the civil protection order process to better understand their lived experiences with seeking civil legal intervention. We interviewed 10 female victims of IPV who sought an order of protection (OP) or restraining order (RO). Study criteria included 1) self-identifying as female, 2) experiencing IPV from a male partner within a romantic relationship, 3) at least 18 years of age, 4) civil legal protection must have been at minimum sought, 5) in either North or South Carolina 6) filed a civil petition at least three months ago. The research aims of this study include (1) exploring the overall emotional impact of seeking legal aid, (2) assessing whether the IPV victims’ goals were aligned with the outcomes of the case (3) evaluating the emotional impact of procedural barriers on IPV victims and (4) investigating if there are ways in which the court process furthers coercive control dynamics. Findings include 1) the persistent prevalence of fear and lack of safety throughout the court process, 2) IPV victims are not receiving what they are seeking from the civil protection process: namely, safety, 3) procedural barriers found throughout the court process exacerbate feelings of fear and 4) perpetrators are using coercive control tactics within the court process to further abuse victims. It is critical that researchers and helping professionals alike recognize moving towards a more victim-centered model of justice may result in more significant feelings of safety.

Rights

© 2025, Jessica Brooke Pomerantz

Download

Share

COinS