Ashley D. Kitchen
Department of Politics and International Relations
University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom
Email: A.Kitchen@my.westminster.ac.uk
The main subject of inquiry for this paper is the substantive representation of women (SRW) regarding violence against women legislation in the United Kingdom (UK). Traditionally, in the UK and beyond, research regarding the political representation of women has centered on normative questions asking whether women in politics make a difference in terms of bringing attention to ‘women’s issues.’ This type of research assumes that only women can represent women. According to various scholars, this assumption does not present meaningful insight regarding the political representation of women. Because this type of examination is inadequate, it is important to look elsewhere.
This paper seeks to further the research regarding SRW and close the persistent gaps that previous scholars have identified. For example, many women’s organizations and members of parliament (MP) in the UK have pushed for more policies regarding violence against women, however, a significant gap remains in terms of legislation as well as the study of this area in general. In order to move beyond normative research and close the above gaps, a formalized framework on the assessment of SRW will be consulted, specifically examining the ‘what’ of SRW to observe which policies, acts, or bills are being debated or passed in terms of violence against women in the UK.
To summarize, the main aims of this paper include: implementing a formalized framework surrounding SRW, using this framework to research the impact of SRW on violence against women in the UK, produce meaningful research, and expand future knowledge on the political representation of women and its effects on violence against women.
