Analysis of Anti-Domestic Violence Policy Implementation in Georgia Using Contextual Interaction Theory (CIT)

Abstract

This study examines the development of anti-domestic-violence policy implementation in an emerging democracy, the country of Georgia. We applied a public policy framework – Contextual Interaction Theory (CIT) – which enabled us to thoroughly examine factors contributing to drawbacks in anti-domestic-violence policy implementation. The CIT framework was enriched by expanding it to the scale of the national anti-domestic-violence policy and placing greater emphasis on the victim. The qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews and media reveals that public policy implementers lack motivation, information and power to be able to really implement the anti-domestic-violence policy. The CIT analysis of domestic violence (DV) policies demonstrates that DV problems are further exacerbated by the contextual factors of societal attitudes in terms of gender inequality and social acceptance of DV, which creates unfavorable context for the realisation of the anti-DV policy. In such circumstances, according to the CIT, only symbolic realisation of a policy takes place. The use of CIT as a tool for the implementation of a policy will provide substantial input into its realisation. Based on this theory, it is crucial to increase information, motivation and power of implementers, as well as change the context for the anti-DV policy to be actually implemented.

The contribution of domestic and family violence death reviews in Australia: From recommendations to reform?

“…Issues around implementation are not unique to DVDRs and a lack of or inadequate recommendation implementation has been observed in relation to a range of permanent and ad hoc public inquiries in Australia and internationally (e.g., Elston & Zhang, 2023;Jordan et al, 2018;New South Wales Auditor-General, 2021;Stark & Yates, 2021). As the two DVDRs we studied are a form of permanent domestic and family violence inquiry that operates within government, our findings in respect of implementation point to a need to engage more deeply with broader theories of policy and recommendation implementation, both as they relate to public inquiry processes (see, e.g., Stark, 2019) and to domestic and family violence policy (see, e.g., Javakhishvili & Jibladze, 2018). Having established that there is indeed an implementation gap in this area, we consider that more empirical and theoretical work is required to understand and articulate the precise nature and causes of this gap.…”

“…In England and Wales, DHR participants have expressed uncertainty about whether their recommendations are being monitored (Broughton, 2021), while a report of the then Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary on policing domestic violence noted concerns that there was “no way of getting all of the organisations involved to implement the decisions arising out of the DHR” (2014, p. 111). DVDRs may also repeat recommendations, indicating that changes have not been “successfully embedded” (Jones et al, 2022, p. 13; see also Broughton, 2021). There are growing calls from within the academic community for a greater focus on “monitoring the recommendations themselves, their implementation as well as evaluating them for impact” (Jones et al, 2022, p. 16; see also Reif & Jaffe, 2019; Storer et al, 2013).…”

“…These are generally aimed at changing the policies, practices and processes of government agencies, non-government organisations (NGOs) or individuals involved in domestic violence service provision. Despite the obvious importance of this recommendation-making function, there has been limited scholarship analysing the extent to which DVDR recommendations are implemented (Chanmugam, 2014; Cook et al, 2023; Dawson, 2017, 2021; Jones et al, 2022).…”

Administrative Decentralization and the Role of Information: The Case of Intimate Partner Violence During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Public administration scholars have analyzed IPV through diverse theoretical lenses including representative bureaucracy (Andrews & Johnston Miller, 2013), policy implementation (Javakhishvili & Jibladze, 2018; Johnson et al, 2020; Wiley, 2022), policy diffusion and drift in decentralized contexts (Fay & Polischuk, 2022), complex adaptive systems (Gear et al, 2020), and critical media studies (Mahapatro & Prasad, 2022). This collective body of work recognizes that although IPV is a gendered issue, it is ultimately rooted in and mediated through cultural, social, and economic factors, necessitating multifactorial policy responses at behavioral, community, organizational, and structural levels.…”

Examining the Undocumented College Student Policy Implementation Environment Through a Contextual Interaction Theory Lens

“…CIT, initially developed for environmental policy implementation analysis (Bressers, 2007, 2009; Bressers & de Boer, 2013; de Boer et al, 2013), is ideal for understanding phenomena in education (see Lybarger, 2017; Zehavi, 2011). CIT is an example of a third-generation policy implementation theory (Goggin et al, 1990), as it synthesizes aspects of both top-down and bottom-up perspectives on policy implementation and emphasizes the role of context in shaping policy implementation processes (Javakhishvili & Jibladze, 2018).…”