000 03092nam a22002777a 4500
999 _c5853
_d5853
005 20250625151450.0
008 180524s2017 -nz||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
040 _aAFVC
100 _91272
_aHager, Debbie
245 _aNot inherently vulnerable :
_ban examination of paradigms, attitudes and systems that enable the abuse of dis/abled women
_cDeborah Mary Hager
246 _aA thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Health Science, University of Auckland
260 _c2017
300 _aelectronic document (311 pages) ; Word DOC
500 _aPhD thesis, University of Auckland
520 _aDespite worldwide evidence that between 33% and 90% of disabled women are abused by a partner, family member or person in the wider community, in New Zealand there are virtually no initiatives to prevent or respond to this abuse. Using the theoretical structure of health promotion, critical emancipatory theory and more specifically, feminist disability theory, this thesis investigates the underlying paradigms that inhibit or enable conversations and collaboration within and between the domestic/sexual violence and disability sectors to address the abuse of disabled women. Eighty-seven people working in the violence and disability sectors and related government organisations and ministries in New Zealand were interviewed. The resulting data was transcribed verbatim and examined using thematic analysis, revealing multiple barriers that inhibit service responses, constructive responses from government, and societal impetus to address the lack of attention currently paid to this issue. The most pragmatic barriers are lack of resources and varying staff competency within the sectors, followed by the existence of two distinct world views: medical/individual deficit and socio-political. These paradigms are closely related to practice across the sectors – best, good and poor. In addition, underlying social and governmental attitudes and practice result in invisible, silenced, controlled and uncounted dis/abled women. Finally, vulnerable/vulnerability emerges as a paradigm that disempowers and disables all women, one consequence of which is the assumption that we (women) will be abused. This, when examined using feminist disability theory and understandings of hegemonic masculinity, ultimately provides an explanation for the lack of services, resources and processes to prevent violence against dis/abled women and keep abused dis/abled women safe from further harm. A paradigm shift, in language and perception, is proposed to shift the focus from women to the systems and attitudes that enable harm to occur. (Author's abstract). Record #5853
650 _aABUSED WOMEN
_925
650 _aATTITUDES
_970
650 _aDISABLED PEOPLE
_9196
650 _aDOMESTIC VIOLENCE
_9203
650 _aINTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE
_9431
650 4 _aSUPPORT SERVICES
_9591
650 _aWOMEN'S REFUGES
_9650
651 4 _aNEW ZEALAND
_92588
856 _uhttp://hdl.handle.net/2292/36826
942 _2ddc
_cARTICLE