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Feminism and bourdieusian social theory in a sexual health empowerment project with incarcerated and recently released women

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Abstract

Theory is often downplayed or omitted in the research and scholarly literature around public health interventions in carceral settings. Our sexual health empowerment (SHE) project was an education intervention and ethnographic study that aimed to reduce cervical cancer risk among women with histories of incarceration. In this article, we describe our application of concepts from feminist theory and bourdieusian social theory to the design, planning, and delivery of SHE. We outline how theory-driven practice both underscored and helped us meet challenges in implementation in three urban jails over a 2-year period, 2014–2016. Our approach provides a model for others who wish to bring critical theory and research practice together in health interventions with populations that are marginalized in multiple ways.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by National Cancer Institute (NCI) R01 CA181047, (PI: M. Ramaswamy).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing and Health Studies, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 2464 Charlotte St, Kansas City, MO, 64108, USA

    Amanda M. Emerson & Patricia J. Kelly

  2. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas Medical Center, 3901 Rainbow Blvd, Robinson 4004, Kansas City, KS, 66160, USA

    Joi Wickliffe & Megha Ramaswamy

Authors
  1. Amanda M. Emerson
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  2. Joi Wickliffe
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  4. Megha Ramaswamy
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Correspondence to Amanda M. Emerson.

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Emerson, A.M., Wickliffe, J., Kelly, P.J. et al. Feminism and bourdieusian social theory in a sexual health empowerment project with incarcerated and recently released women. Soc Theory Health 17, 57–74 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41285-018-0068-3

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