ABSTRACT
This chapter describes how United States laws about different forms of intimate partner violence (IPV) shifted over time, along with perceptions of legitimate victimhood. It presents the major tenets of neoliberalism as applied to individual lives, morality, and responsibility. The chapter explains the three major dimensions of neoliberal victim theory suggested by Rebecca Stringer: victim blame, reverse victimization, and resentment, as reflected in the IPV literature. It shows how neoliberal victim theory may affect views of women of color, lesbians, and men who experience sexual or intimate partner sexual assault, physical violence, or stalking. The chapter focuses on the multiple, complex, sometimes paradoxical ways in which actual and perceived agency are related to an individual's status as a victim. It also provides stigma associated with a victim identity and negative consequences of both identifying and not identifying as a victim.
