Feminist Ideas and Domestic Violence Policy Change

The extent of influence of feminist ideas and efforts on domestic violence policy has been the subject of some contention. For example Hanmer, Radford and Stanko argue that by 1989 it appeared that ‘... the police and caring professions have responded ... to feminist criticisms of the 1970s, but have done so in a way which has completely negated feminist definitions, politics, research and provision of support services’. In their view the wide and radical aims of feminist advocates to shift official thinking about domestic violence and to insert feminist practices into policy have not been met. Institutional analyses of the development of domestic violence policy since the early 1970s would, with their emphasis on formal policy making roles tend to concur with this statement. However, if an approach that focuses on the impact of ideas on policy change is used, a different picture emerges; one of feminist driven change. The advocacy coalition framework is such an approach. Using the belief systems of public officials and policy advocates as its starting point, policy oriented learning as its motor of change and policy change as its measure of success the advocacy coalition framework is a pluralist approach to public policy analysis, with a built-in recognition that policy is carried out by a huge and complex array of networked actors.