Semiotic Violence against Women: Theorizing Harms against Female Politicians

Violence against women in politics is increasingly recognized around the world as a significant barrier to women’s political participation, following a troubling rise in reports of assault, intimidation, and abuse directed at female politicians. Yet conceptual ambiguities remain as to the exact contours of this phenomenon. In this article, we seek to strengthen its theoretical, empirical, and methodological foundations. We propose that the presence of bias against women in political roles—originating in structural violence, employing cultural violence, and resulting in symbolic violence—distinguishes this phenomenon from other forms of political violence. We identify five types of violence against women in politics—physical, psychological, sexual, economic, and semiotic—and three methodological challenges related to underreporting, comparing men’s and women’s experiences, and intersectionality. Inspired by the literature on hate crimes, we develop an empirical approach for identifying cases of violence against women in politics, offering six criteria to ascertain whether an attack was potentially motivated by gender bias. We apply this framework to analyze three cases: the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, and the murder of Jo Cox. We conclude with the negative implications of violence against women in politics and point to emerging solutions around the globe.

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Violence against women and HIV

Reproductive Health Matters ◽

10.1016/s0968-8080(01)90114-4 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 9 (18) ◽

pp. 182

Keyword(s):

Violence Against Women ◽

Women And Hiv

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Militarization and Violence against Women in Conflict Zones in the Middle East

10.1017/cbo9780511626852 ◽

2009 ◽

Cited By ~ 68

Author(s):

Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian

Keyword(s):

Middle East ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Conflict Zones

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Attitudes Toward Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in the European Union: A Systematic Review

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000392 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 104-121 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Enrique Gracia ◽

Marisol Lila ◽

Faraj A. Santirso

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Public Health Problem ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Cochrane Library ◽

Effective Prevention ◽

Partner Violence Against Women ◽

The Eu

Abstract. Attitudes toward intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) are increasingly recognized as central to understanding of this major social and public health problem, and guide the development of more effective prevention efforts. However, to date this area of research is underdeveloped in western societies, and in particular in the EU. The present study aims to provide a systematic review of quantitative studies addressing attitudes toward IPVAW conducted in the EU. The review was conducted through Web of Science, PsychINFO, Medline, EMBASE, PUBMED, and the Cochrane Library, in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) recommendations. This review aimed to identify empirical studies conducted in the EU, published in English in peer-reviewed journals from 2000 to 2018, and analyzing attitudes toward IPVAW. A total of 62 of 176 eligible articles were selected according to inclusion criteria. Four sets of attitudes toward IPVAW were identified as the main focus of the studies: legitimation, acceptability, attitudes toward intervention, and perceived severity. Four main research themes regarding attitudes toward IPVAW emerged: correlates of attitudes, attitudes as predictors, validation of scales, and attitude change interventions. Although interest in this research area has been growing in recent years, the systematic review revealed important gaps in current knowledge on attitudes toward IPVAW in the EU that limits its potential to inform public policy. The review outlines directions for future study and suggests that to better inform policy making, these future research efforts would benefit from an EU-level perspective.

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