ABSTRACT
Theoretical considerations The aim of this cross-cultural, comparative research is to discuss the similarities between Finnish and Russian helping professionals in their respective understanding of responsible agency in the case of IPV victims. The concepts of responsibility and agency are central in research on IPV and violence interventions. Responsible agency refers here to the ability to make choices and to take responsibility for one’s actions. However, in spite of emphasizing the significance of choice as the basis of responsibility, we are not subscribing to individualized or voluntaristic notions of responsible agency. The concept of responsible agency is an inherently social notion: it is mainly about social standards of conduct that create expectations between members of a shared community (Barnes, 2000).
