“It’s an Ethical, Moral and Professional Dilemma I Think”

Abstract

This article investigates the experience and construction of women’s use of violence in relationships by domestic violence workers in Sydney, Australia. Most workers contextualized women’s violence within a critique of the structural powerlessness faced by women in violent relationships. However, the issue of violent women’s agency remains an unresolved dilemma for workers. This article recommends the use of a psychosocial approach to understand the social, biographical, and psychodynamic dimensions of women’s violence.