Chantal Lavergne

Taking Child Abuse and Mothering Into Account Intersectional Feminism as an Alternative for the Study of Domestic Violence

Feminist scholars have been engaged in an ongoing debate to determine which theoretical perspective offers the best framework for understanding domestic violence, and this debate has been crystallized around two pole positions: radical and postmodern feminism. This article presents a journey throughout the development of a theoretical perspective for the study of domestic violence, child abuse, and mothering. It argues that the intersectional feminist perspective has much to offer these debates and that it constitutes a promising theoretical framework for understanding domestic violence that takes into account issues of child abuse and mothering.

Difficult but Close Relationships: Children’s Perspectives on Relationships With Their Mothers in the Context of Domestic Violence:

This article reports findings from a participative and qualitative study conducted with children who had experienced domestic violence, focusing on their perspectives on their relationships with their mothers. Three focus groups and 46 individual interviews were conducted with children to gather their experiences. The research findings demonstrate that women’s and children’s victimizations are inextricably linked, and that domestic violence affects mother–child relationships. They also show that, despite the challenges and difficulties, children generally consider their mothers as very significant individuals in their lives, and have close relationships with them. The findings also reveal a dynamic of mutual protectiveness.