‘There’s a Time When They Test You’: Understanding Practice Dynamics Between Professionals and Criminal Justice-involved Young Women

• In Event: Interpersonal Interactions Within the Juvenile Justice System

Abstract

This paper presents ongoing research (funded by the DWC’s Feminist Criminology Graduate Scholarship Award) which explores the subjective experiences of young women of criminal justice related services; providing insights into the value (positive or negative) that they place on aspects of these, and how they engage and negotiate with these services. By adding the voices of these young women to research conducted with over 40 practitioners as part of the author’s doctoral research, the paper opens a dialogue, illuminating perceptions on both sides of the working relationship. In particular, the minutiae and functions of the relationships themselves are documented, revealing the relational goods produced through these, and the role that they may play in the journeys of young women away from criminal justice contact. Taking a critical feminist stance, it explores the gendered social construction of young women by practitioners largely as victims, and explores how these representations fit with young women’s own sense of identity, both current and aspirational, and the implication of any potential imbalance for the success of the working relationship. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Author

• Annie Rose Crowley, University of Glasgow