Companion Reader on Violence Against Women

Claire M. Renzetti is Judi Conway Patton Endowed Chair for Studies of Violence Against Women in the Center for Research on Violence Against Women, and Professor of Sociology at the University of Kentucky. She was Professor of Sociology at the University of Dayton from 2006-2010. She is editor of the international, interdisciplinary journal, Violence Against Women; co-editor with Jeffrey Edleson of the Interpersonal Violence book series for Oxford University Press; and editor of the Gender, Crime and Law book series for Northeastern University Press. She has authored or edited 16 books as well as numerous book chapters and articles in professional journals. Much of her research has focused on the violent victimization experiences of economically marginalized women living in public housing developments. She is currently conducting an ethnography of faith-based organizations involved in anti-trafficking work, a national study of the relationship between religiosity and intimate partner violence, and a survey of NGOs providing services to trafficking victims. Dr. Renzetti has held elected and appointed positions on the governing bodies of several national professional organizations, including the Society for the Study of Social Problems, the Eastern Sociological Society, and Alpha Kappa Delta, the sociological honors society. She is the 2009 recipient of the Saltzman Award for Contributions to Practice, awarded by the Women and Crime Division of the American Society of Criminology, and the 2011 recipient of the Lee Founders Award, from the Society for the Study of Social Problems. Jeffrey L. Edleson, PhD, is Dean and Professor in the University of California, Berkeley's School of Social Welfare. He is Professor Emeritus in the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and founding director of the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse. He has published more than 120 articles and 12 books on domestic violence, group work, and program evaluation. Edleson served on the National Advisory Council on Violence Against Women and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare. Raquel Kennedy Bergen, Raquel Kennedy Bergen is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is the author or co-author of numerous scholarly publications and seven books on violence against women including, Wife Rape: Understanding the Response of Survivors and Service Providers; and Issues in Intimate Violence. With Claire Renzetti and Jeff Edleson she edited, Sourcebook on Violence Against Women and Violence Against Women: Classic Statements. She has served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission since 2004 when she was appointed by Governor Edward G. Rendell. She has volunteered as an advocate for battered women and sexual assault survivors for the past 21 years. Her current research explores women's experiences of sexual and physical violence during pregnancy.