What do women learn in feminist self-defense that is empowering? This study examined the skills women used months and years after completing an IMPACT self-defense course. Ninety-seven survey participants described skills they had used and incorporated into their lives. The major themes that emerged through a classic grounded theory analysis were awareness, boundary setting, assertive body language, and managing adrenaline to prevent, interrupt, or stop uncomfortable, intrusive, or hostile behaviors. IMPACT-trained women did not engage in self-blaming or risky behavior and used their skills to prevent and interrupt aggressive behavior.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10778012231197576 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Empowerment Through Feminist Self-Defense: The IMPACT Lasts.
Violence Against Women
November 2023
Northeastern Illinois University, Chicago, IL, USA.
What do women learn in feminist self-defense that is empowering? This study examined the skills women used months and years after completing an IMPACT self-defense course. Ninety-seven survey participants described skills they had used and incorporated into their lives. The major themes that emerged through a classic grounded theory analysis were awareness, boundary setting, assertive body language, and managing adrenaline to prevent, interrupt, or stop uncomfortable, intrusive, or hostile behaviors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnderstanding the Trajectories of Women who use Violence Through an Intersectional Feminist Analysis.
Affilia
August 2023
School of Social Work, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada.
This article discusses the results of a collaborative research project aimed at understanding the life trajectories of women who have self-identified as having used violence in a context other than self-defense, which is an understudied topic. Based on semi-structured interviews and aided by an intersectional feminist framework applied to life course theory, we present a qualitative analysis of 26 women's experiences of violence, precarity, and services. The three groups of trajectories are distinguished by level of precarity as determined by the experience of violence in childhood, socioeconomic and family contexts, criminalization, intensity of violence, and whether the women received adequate support.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF"I Felt Powerful and Confident": Women's Use of What They Learned in Feminist Sexual Assault Resistance Education.
Psychol Women Q
June 2022
Department of Psychology, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON, Canada.
Research on women's response and resistance to sexual assault risk has informed the development of interventions to improve women's ability to effectively resist sexual assault. However, little is known about how women anticipate, navigate, and respond to risk following participation in sexual assault risk reduction/resistance education programs. In this study, we examined the information and skills used by university women who had recently completed the effective Enhanced Assess, Acknowledge, Act (EAAA) sexual assault resistance program.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF"Get Out of My Home and Don't Come Back!" Empowering Women Through Self-Defense.
Violence Against Women
March 2019
1 Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
Can self-defense courses empower those already victimized? This article explores the potential for self-defense courses to have specific efficacy in the prevention of intimate partner violence (IPV). It draws on interview ( n = 36) and pre- and postevaluation ( n = 44) data from two studies: (a) evaluation of a pilot study of a feminist empowerment self-defense course designed specifically for women's refuge/shelter clients (Violence Prevention Project [VPP]) and (b) evaluation of women's self-defense courses collected as part of a larger evaluation study (Skills for Safety). The overwhelmingly positive findings from both studies suggest greater consideration be offered to providing further collaborative refuge/self-defense courses for women victimized by IPV.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF"Back Off Buddy, This Is My Body, Not Yours": Empowering Girls Through Self-Defense.
Violence Against Women
October 2018
1 Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
Although growing recognition is being given to the benefits of teaching self-defense skills to college women, very little research attention has considered the impacts of providing such courses to school-aged girls. This article presents the findings from a large-scale evaluation of self-defense programs provided to three different age groups of schoolgirls from diverse backgrounds in New Zealand, drawing on survey responses from the girls themselves, supplemented by qualitative data provided by key informant interviews with their school and self-defense teachers. The findings provide clear evidence of the many positive benefits that can result for girls of all ages who participate in feminist self-defense courses taught by carefully trained instructors with a strong empowerment focus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!