Abstract
The degree to which gender symmetry exists in intimate partner violence depends largely on the type of violent relationship in question. While men are more likely than women to commit acts of relationship violence in the context of coercive control, situational violence may involve a perpetrator of any gender. This chapter will discuss how the absence of representation of different types of intimate partner violence in American culture and media has effaced the issue of gender symmetry. Drawing on recent high-profile cases, including the 2022 defamation lawsuit by actor Johnny Depp against ex-wife Amber Heard, this chapter concludes that differentiating between types of intimate partner violence in culture and media could offer a more nuanced and productive conversation about the role of gender in intimate partner violence.
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Notes
- 1.
Walby and Towers (2018) note that a law criminalizing engaging in “controlling/coercive behaviour in an intimate/family relationship” passed in the United Kingdom in 2015 and was updated in 2016. Ireland, France, Portugal, and certain other European nations have enacted similar laws.
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Whitesitt, E.M. (2023). (Mis)Perceptions of Gender Symmetry in Culture and Media. In: Russell, B., Torres, C. (eds) Perceptions of Female Offenders, Vol. 1. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-42007-8_5
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