Exploring power and control in bisexual women’s relationships

Abstract

This dissertation seeks to explore the ways that bisexual women narrate
experiences of power and control within their relationships. Using oral history
methodologies, this research undertook semi-structured interviews with five
women who identified as bisexual (or another non-binary sexual orientation) in
Scotland. Exploring experiences of both abusive and non-abusive
relationships, it will highlight how these women’s intersecting identities and
experiences impact on how they conceive power and control.
Drawing on Evan Stark’s concept of coercive control, the research finds that for
the women who disclosed abuse, their experiences are indistinguishable from
a feminist gendered analysis of heterosexual women’s. More generally, looking
at how the women narrate stories of equality and power within their
relationships with both men and women, the research will highlight what Sarah
Oerton describes as the ‘gender full’ nature of these intimate relationships.
Highlighting the limited scholarly focus in this area, it will call for a continued
focus on bisexual women’s lives and relationships in the development of future
research and service provision.