Citation

Wilde S, Sheeran N, Douglas H. Psychiatry Psychol. Law. 2024; 31(4): 764-791.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Law, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/13218719.2023.2214927

PMID

39118786

PMCID

PMC11305050

Abstract

The aim of this scoping review was to synthesise the literature to identify what the psychological impacts of family court processes were on mothers who had experienced DFV. Twenty-five articles met inclusion criteria with four themes capturing the findings: Perpetrators using the system as a mode of coercive control; Secondary victimisation as a result of interacting with the system; Required to relive their abuse; and, Long-term psychological consequences of having engaged with the system. Key findings were that perpetrators manipulated the system to perpetrate further abuse and continue/reassert their control. Secondary re-victimisation was common, with poor knowledge of DFV and limited understanding of coercive control tactics and how these were employed by perpetrators by legal professionals identified as contributing factors. This review suggests that mothers who engage with the family court system experience a range of short- and long-term psychological impacts and court processes facilitate ongoing abuse by the perpetrator.

Language: en

Keywords

intimate partner violence; domestic violence; family court; coercive control; family violence; legal; mother; psychological impact; systems abuse