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Iranian Women’s Perspectives on Violence against Women in Iran and the UK

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Nadia Aghtaie
Nadia Aghtaie*
Affiliation:
University of Bristol
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Abstract

This study explores the perspectives of female Iranian students living in both Iran and the UK concerning violence against women. A qualitative approach, in the form of in-depth interviews, was carried out with 21 participants. Drawing on Stark’s concept of “liberty crime” the research found that the participants, regardless of their country of residence, perceived violence against women (VAW) as denying the opportunity for equal personhood by stripping away the victim’s sense of self. However, the scope of what was considered to be liberty crime was affected by the individual participants’ religious beliefs and their degree of acceptance of the Iranian state’s gender ideology. The research highlighted the extent to which different forms of VAW are interlinked and combine in order to control and subjugate women irrespective of their country of residence.

Keywords

Violence against WomenIranCoercive ControlReligion
Type
Articles
Information
Iranian Studies , Volume 49 , Issue 4 , July 2016 , pp. 593 - 611
Copyright
Copyright © The International Society for Iranian Studies 2015

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Footnotes

This work was supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) grant number PTA-031200600366.

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