Machado, Carla

Matos, Raquel

English

Repositório Institucional da Universidade Católica Portuguesa

ABSTRACTSBologna, September 26/29, 2007ABSTRACT:Layout 1  11/03/2008  17.02  Pagina 1ee e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e ee e e e e ee e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e ee e eee ee e e e e ee e ee e e e e ee e e ee e e e ee e e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e ee e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e ee e e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e ee e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e ee e e e eMatos, Raquel (Catholic University of Portugal)Machado, Carla (University of Minho)Young women in prison: Life trajectories,meanings of crime and identity constructionA theoretical and empirical approach to female criminality is presented. It focuses lifetrajectories, meanings of crime and the process of identity construction of young womenin prison. The study was based on the theoretical assumption that social construction ofgender is crucial on these women’s trajectories and is reflected on the social answers to theirdeviant behaviours. The methods used in the empirical research were also influenced bygender construction perspectives. In a qualitative approach to young female offenders’discourses, we valued the perspectives of the female protagonists of deviant behaviour.137e e e e e eMABSTRACT:Layout 1  11/03/2008  17.03  Pagina 137The “life-story interview” proposed by Dan McAdams (2000) was adapted and used toconduct in-depth interviews to 12 young women in Portuguese prisons. Results allowedus to reject some of the traditional arguments about women and crime. First of all, in thenarrative construction of these women’s trajectories emerged different meanings of crime,supporting the rejection of the traditional argument of the specificity of «typical femalecrimes». The analysed discourses also included the idea of agency in female options fordeviant behaviour. We acknowledged that social demands for women to conform to anideal of femininity seem to lead them to deviancy, specifically to what is usually considered«typical male forms of transgression». Based on the results we claim the need to look atfemale deviant behaviour through a gender perspective.e e ee e e ee e e ee e e e ee e e e ee e e ee e e e e ee e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e ee e e e ee e e e e ee e ee ee e ee e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e ee e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e ee e e e ee e e e e e e ee e ee ee e e e ee ee e ee e e e e ee e e e e e e e e e e ee e e e e e e ee e e e e e e e138AbstractsMABSTRACT:Layout 1  11/03/2008  17.03  Pagina 138

Young women in prison: life trajectories, meanings of crime and identity construction

https://repositorio.ucp.pt/bitstream/10400.14/27271/1/Young%20women%20in%20prison.pdf

Young women in prison: Life trajectories, meanings of crime and identity construction

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Repositório Institucional da Universidade Católica Portuguesa