This article critiques the focus on responsibilisation of criminalised women within desistance research, policy and practice, through the neglect of the structural conditions surrounding women’s criminalisation and victimisation. The concept of the ‘good woman’ within these areas is grounded in patriarchal and neoliberal discourse. Drawing upon women’s narratives, we show this results in feelings of shame and stigmatisation, negatively affecting relational networks and leading to a denial of victimhood. Research from two complementing studies drawn together here suggest that positive relationships which challenge feelings of shame and stigmatisation are essential to women’s desistance both from crime and harm, and are therefore fundamental considerations for practice.

本文通过忽略围绕妇女犯罪化和受害的结构性条件，批评了在戒断研究，政策和实践中重点关注被犯罪化妇女的责任。这些地区的“好女人”的概念植根于父权制和新自由主义话语。借鉴女性的叙述，我们发现这会导致羞辱感和耻辱感，对关系网络产生负面影响，并导致受害者受害。来自这里的两项补充研究的研究表明，挑战羞耻感和污名化的积极关系对于妇女摆脱犯罪和伤害至关重要，因此是实践的基本考虑因素。