Work

Normal Trauma and Abnormal Diagnosis: A Discursive Analysis of Sexual Violence Law and Policy in England and Wales

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This paper interrogates the discursive construction of the relationship between sexual violence and 'mental health' in case law and legal policies from England and Wales. It shows that the law invariably enacts a binary discursive construction of those who have experienced sexual violence where mental health evidence is introduced. Individuals are constructed as either experiencing 'normal trauma' or an 'abnormal diagnosis'. These findings are contextualised within recent feminist legal reforms to the treatment of mental health evidence in sexual violence cases, and emphasise the pressing need to centre the experiences of those who identify with psychiatric diagnoses in feminist anti-sexual violence politics.

Source: Feminist Legal Studies

DOI: 10.1007/s10691-025-09588-x

Author: Emma Yapp

Institution: Birkbeck, University of London

Language: English

Topic: Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies

Subfield: Gender Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Gender equality, Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Reduced inequalities, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,190