Secondary Victimization of Abused Mothers by Family Court Mediators

Echo A Rivera1, Cris M Sullivan1, April M Zeoli1

  • 1Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.

Feminist Criminology
|January 13, 2015
PubMed

Family court often assists divorcing parties in establishing custody arrangements. Mediation is commonly used for custody negotiation; however, its applicability for cases involving intimate partner abuse (IPA) is debated. This study was designed to gain an in-depth understanding of abused mothers' court mediation experiences and how those experiences impact future court help-seeking when the fathers of their children have been abusive to them. Most women experienced secondary victimization during mediation, which had a negative impact on their willingness to use the court in the future. Policy recommendations include screening for IPA, providing separate mediation sessions, and improving court mediators' training.

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