This paper is based on a qualitative study conducted in Iran with 62 men, women and judicial officials in relation to domestic violence against women in Iran mainly in Gilan province situated in the north of Iran. My interviewees were mainly from different towns with different socio-economic backgrounds. In this paper, firstly, I will explain the structure of marital relationship in the context of Iranian legal system with Islamic jurisprudence as the mainstream discourse. I will deal with how conflicts of interests in marriage are conceptualized and resolved by men women and judicial officials and how these views are contextualised in judicial and legal as well as cultural contexts that both support and perpetuate violence.

About the speaker:

Dr. Zahra Tizro is a Senior Lecturer in psychology and a member of Domestic Violence Research Group and Community and Critical Social Psychology (CCSP) based at York St John. Her specialist areas are gender based violence, sexual identity, health psychology and cross cultural studies. As a researcher Zahra has developed interest in investigating interpersonal violence and domestic abuse across a variety of different age groups and cultural settings using qualitative research. Zahra has extensive research experience concerning ethnic minorities in the UK. Her empirical research is concerned with investigating domestic abuse in Iran and the UK. Her current research involves investigating the relationship between sexuality, embodiment and violence in the framework of a cross-cultural study. Email: Z.Tizro@yorksj.ac.uk