Season 2 Episode 7: “Radical Resistance to the Status Quo”: A Look Behind the Scottish Coercive Control Law with Dr. Marsha Scott

About This Episode

Safety. Satisfaction. Self-determination. 

For decades, domestic violence survivors have shared that these are the aspects of their life targeted by domestic violence perpetrators. Until recently, it was primarily the attacks on physical safety that were reflected in the domestic violence laws across the world. Slowly, with the passage of coercive control laws in a few countries, survivors are seeing their wider reality reflected in legislation. Coercive control is now being considered in the definition of domestic violence from Australia to the United States. Coercive control, which has been at the center of the Safe & Together Model’s approach for 15 years, stresses patterns of behavior that lead to entrapment and restrict the fundamental rights of the adult and child survivors. The laws that are being considered are far from uniform in their scope and sensitivity to issues like preventing backlash against survivors, particularly survivors from poor and marginalized communities. 

Because Scotland’s Domestic Abuse Act is considered one of the most progressive in the world, David and Ruth interviewed Dr. Marsha Scott, CEO for Scottish Women’s Aid. The interview addresses: 

• The framing and development of the law

• How the law differs from other efforts

• The importance of the inclusion of children and pets in the definition of patterns

• How a “reasonable person” standard helps keep the focus on the perpetrator’s pattern 

• The importance of implementation planning  

• The importance of getting input from survivors as part of the process of developing coercive control laws

• How to avoid coercive control laws rebounding against survivors from all backgrounds

Additional Resources

• Podcast: Season 2 Episode 2: Coercive Control Laws: A Discussion with Investigative Reporter and Author Jess Hill

• Podcast: Season 1 Episode 15: Coercive Control, Entrapment & Isolation: An Interview with Luke & Ryan Hart

• Podcast: Season 1 Episode 1: Coercive Control and Consent

• Safe & Together Institute’s domestic abuse–informed trainings

• Safe & Together Institute’s upcoming events

• David Mandel’s book Stop Blaming Mothers and Ignoring Fathers: How to Transform the Way We Keep Children Safe from Domestic Violence