Citation

Dunn JL. Symbolic Interact. 2001; 24(3): 285-313.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2001, Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction, Publisher University of California Press)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article explores identity work and emotion management in felony domestic violence stalking cases, using data collected in a domestic violence unit in a large metropolitan district attorney's office. Victim narratives in crime reports, intensive interviews of stalking victims, and participant observation in a stalking survivors' support group show how women become "victims" in the criminal justice system. Sometimes women's continued interaction with both stalkers and law enforcement actors affects their ability to create and sustain credible victim identities. Almost any action a victim takes or presentation she makes has the potential for inducing negative identity attributions. Thus identity dilemmas seemingly inhere in the stalking situation.