Top Faculty Paper - 2019

Awarded to David Duty, University of Central Oklahoma
A Cultural “Pragmatic Paradox”: The Notion of the Double Bind at an English as Second Language Center.

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A Cultural “Pragmatic Paradox”: The Notion of the Double Bind at an English as Second Language Center

David M. Duty
University of Central Oklahoma
FACULTY

 A Cultural “Pragmatic Paradox”: The Notion of the Double Bind at an English as a Second Language Center

Abstract 

The setting of a university English as Second Language (ESL) facility exhibits the elements of the “double bind” in which individuals are involved a paradoxical interpersonal relationship wherein messages are manifestly contradictory in nature, creating the inability of the receiver to aptly respond to the message being sent. The notion of the double bind is explored through an examination of American cultural patterns presented in an ESL classroom and the corresponding communication patterns disseminated by faculty and administrators.

A Cultural “Pragmatic Paradox”: The Notion of the Double Bind at an English as a Second Language Center

During the last academic year, over 1.1 million foreign students studied in the United States (Institute of International Education, 2018). Moreover, nearly 1,000 English as a Second Language (ESL) programs in the United States assist the English language learner (ELL) in qualifying for higher education at four-year universities (ESL Directory, 2018). Students who are enrolled at university ESL programs have differing educational experiences, linguistic abilities, and motivations to learn English (Bergey, Movit, Baird, and Faria, 2018). The linguistic skills of ELLs at university ESL programs have been deemed as having either an “asset” or “deficit” perspective based on proficiency (Nuñez, Rios-Aguilar, Kanno, and Flores, 2016). Accordingly, some foreign students may vary in their English language development skills because in their countries of origin they may have inadequately received formal instruction in English or none at all. Whether in English or a native language, the caliber of formal instruction affects prevailing academic preparedness and has repercussions for the development of English language skills (Jiang & Kuehn, 2001; Mamiseishvili, 2012).

There are many cultural adjustments that foreign students encounter; the foremost problems cited by the literature include lack of English proficiency, insufficient financial assets, social adjustment, and loneliness (Bastien, Seifen-Adkins, & Johnson, 2018; Lee, Abd-Ella, & Burke, 1981; as cited in Manese, Sedlacek, & Leong,1988; Mesidor & Sly, 2016). The pressure to conform to American values, norms, and patterns of behavior— what Kim (1988) calls host conformity pressure—is a constitutive aspect to the foreign student experience. “Many [students] want to participate in and learn as much as possible about the host culture, but they do not want to lose their sense of cultural identity” (Paige, 1990, p. 167).

A university ESL program permits foreign students to learn as much as possible about the host culture with other foreign students without losing their sense of cultural identity.

The notion of cultural identity is complex, fluid, and dynamic which has been examined from multiple perspectives (e.g., Berry, 1990; Collier, 2015; Phinney, 1993). It is the feeling of belonging to a certain ethnic group or culture, yet such feelings can be weak or strong. Moreover, cultural identity can be influenced by many factors, including personal, familial, and social situations (Duty, 2015). In many respects, the intensive English language program setting allows for and even encourages students to express their cultural identity within the confines of an “artificial” host culture. Nevertheless, the pressure to conform—mastering the English language—is still paramount to the ELL’s experience. Thus, an ESL establishment can become a “sanctuary”—an insulated place—in which to integrate the opposite dimensions of host conformity pressure and cultural identity.

This scenario described above relates to what Gregory Bateson has defined as the “double bind.” Bateson distinguishes three effects of the double bind situation: 1) an individual is involved in an intense relationship; 2) the individual is caught in a situation in which the other person in the relationship is expressing two orders of message and one message denies the other, and 3) the individual is unable to comment on the messages being sent to correct his or her discrimination of what order of message to respond (Bateson, Jackson, Haley, & Weakland, 1956, p. 254).

The features of the double bind listed previously are evidenced at an ESL setting. The students and their instructors are involved in a very intense relationship. Moreover, the students are attending the facility in order to improve their English language skills, but the advancement of their language proficiency also results in their having to disclaim some of their cultural habits. Accordingly, this paper will explore how the contrasting dimensions of American cultural patterns and the cultural identity of the foreign students are manifested in an English as Second Language facility and in an advanced ESL grammar class. Therefore, this paper will explore the following question: How is the double bind exhibited within the confines of a university English as a Second Language facility?

The Setting

The location for this research was a large Mid-western university. At the time of this study in Spring 2001, the campus had around fifteen hundred foreign students representing over one hundred countries. Out of these students, over one hundred attended the Center for English as a Second Language (CESL). CESL is an intensive English program providing beginning through advanced levels of English language instruction. Those students who attend CESL desire to improve their English abilities in order to attend the university as full-time academic students. While attending CESL, students do not receive university credit for their English language study.

CESL is located at the southern part of the university grounds on the third and fourth floors of a campus building built in 1952. The third floor is composed of classrooms, offices, and an open-area lunch room/meeting room; this floor has a very narrow hallway where students mingle in between classes. The fourth floor has a large centralized computer lab with Internet access where students can send and receive email, study English language programs, and practice computer tutorials for their Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) test. Also, located on the fourth floor is the Conversation Café. The Conversation Café is a program composed of small conversation groups consisting of American volunteers and small groups of students. At the café, students can sit around café tables to practice their English conversation skills with American volunteers and to learn about the American culture.

CESL offers two seven-week sessions in the fall and spring semesters and two six- week sessions during the summer. The Center provides beginning through advanced levels of instruction. Students are given an individual evaluation for placement into the appropriate level of study. The cost of tuition includes instruction, books, computer lab, language lab, orientation, library privileges, university activity privileges, use of all facilities, and assistance from the International Student Services. CESL students can live on campus in residence halls, university apartments, with host families, or in off-campus housing.

The Classroom

The advanced grammar classroom observed for Session I was on the third floor of the building. There were five long desks plus the teacher’s desk and thirteen chairs including the teacher’s chair. On the front wall was only a chalkboard. Moreover, in the front of the classroom beside the teacher’s desk was an overhead projector. Several times the instructor used the overhead projector and projected it on one side of the back wall.

On the back wall was a color map of the United States, a world Mercator map, and a poster that read, “Worldwide Afro-Pop—Today’s African Music and its Cousins Abroad.” On one side of the room were windows (which could open up) with shades, an air conditioner, and a television set facing the windows. On the other side of the room was a bulletin board, a clock, and a picture of roses. The bulletin board contained a small monthly calendar in which students signed up for additional help from the instructor.

The class for Session I was comprised of ten students from Korea, Russia, Japan, China, Thailand, Argentina, and Paraguay. The class for Session II included thirteen students. The two students from Argentina and Paraguay were not in Session II, possibly having completed their coursework. For Session II, the additional students came from Thailand, Japan, and Korea. Thus, Session II included all Asian students, except for a student from Russia. Due to the large size of the class, Session II was moved upstairs to the fourth floor. The classroom on the fourth floor is in the back part of an open area that includes a large screen TV, chairs, the Conversation Café tables and chairs, foosball, and air hockey. In the front part of the fourth floor is the computer lab.  In both class sessions, students periodically would check vocabulary on their electronic dictionaries.

One student told me that his $200 dictionary included six languages—Spanish, German, English, French, Japanese, and Russian.

The ESL classroom setting lends itself to examining a variety of cultural patterns, notably American. In this unique environment varied cultural patterns markedly exist; nevertheless, American cultural patterns instinctively predominate. The series of examples below illustrate the association between the components of the double bind and the manifestations of American cultural patterns in the ESL classroom.

American Cultural Patterns and the Double Bind in the ESL Classroom 

In one session the class talked about American Weddings—cutting cake, bouquets, wedding traditions, etc.—for a writing assignment. The students had a sheet detailing the wedding tradition to help them with the assignment. The teacher told the students to interview a partner and discuss wedding customs in their respective countries. Moreover, the teacher told them to take notes and admonished them to “be a good listener.” One Japanese student in talking with a partner discussed “kimono” and “hakama,” and explained the Japanese bride and groom change “uniform.” A Korean student described that in Korea they have a wedding ceremony like Americans, but the bride and groom bow to the parents. A student from Thailand pointed out in his country the wedding is held in a shrine, not a church. He went on to recount Japan and Thailand use Western customs in their wedding ceremonies, such as the exchange of rings. A student from Russia revealed to his classmate in his country there is singing and dancing at the wedding. His Korean partner responded by saying in her country there is no dancing and singing, just eating.

In this class discussion, the students were learning about an aspect of American culture—American wedding customs, but at the same time they were exchanging information with each other about the wedding customs of their respective countries.

Thus, this assignment combined an opportunity for the students to express their cultural identity while at the same time learning an American custom. This task therefore relates to the second component of the double bind in which two messages are expressed and one message negates the other. The students are to write a paper in English about various wedding customs around the world, but in so doing they most likely will need to utilize such non-English words as “kimono” and “hakama” to describe each country’s custom.

Also, American religious norms were indirectly brought into the classroom. For example, when discussing the use of gerunds, one of the sentences used by the teacher was “I’ll never forget    the Pope.”  The teacher then asked the students who is the

Pope? One student replied the Pope was the leader of the Christians. The teacher questioned the student about his response and replied the Pope is the highest position in the Catholic Church.

Another occasion in which American religious norms were mentioned was after the Easter weekend. The teacher asked the students if they enjoyed their Easter weekend. The students responded with a mixture of responses, “yes, “no,” and “boring.” One student commented her host mother had hidden eggs in the backyard. The student said she found four eggs. In one egg was a nail and in another egg was a thorn. The teacher responded that those items symbolized what happened to Jesus. The teacher then asked, “What happened to Jesus?” The students were not sure, so the teacher said, “We will talk later; this is not a religion class.”

The teacher was encouraging the students to talk about their Easter weekend in order to have them practice their English, but upon realizing the students did not comprehend what happened to Jesus leading up to Easter, the teacher quickly dismisses the message she was sending. Her reaction also relates to the aspect of the double bind in which two message commands are being expressed and one message denies the other.

In another instance, the foreign students themselves brought up the notion of an additional American religious custom—Christmas. This occurred when the class was discussing relative adverb clauses. In getting the class to understand how to use the

relative adverb clause, the teacher said, “December, a time when…” and then some of the students mentioned Christmas. This response by the students was very intriguing in that they could have responded by saying, “December, a time when there is snow on the ground” or “December, a time when it snows.” Nevertheless, several students mentioned Christmas. Some of the foreign students could be of the Christian faith, so their response would not necessarily be out of place. Nonetheless, it was interesting students associated the month of December with Christmas.

In this advanced grammar class, a variety of group exercises were utilized. In one instance a memory game that included various aspects of the American culture was used for forming sentences using the present perfect tense, passive voice. The memory game included two rules: a) if the card was an agent the active voice was to be used and b) if the card was a receiver the passive voice was to be used. The students were divided into three groups. One student turned over a card that read “Huckleberry Finn” and then had to match it with another card that read “Mark Twain.” Once a student found a possible match the student had to form a sentence. For example, “Huckleberry Finn was written by Mark Twain.” Some of the other names on the cards included Agatha Christie, Moby Dick, Shakespeare, Murder on the Orient Express, Abraham Lincoln, and Picasso. In this exercise, the students seemed to enjoy the game, laughing and exclaiming, “Oh, oh, oh!” when they felt they knew the answer. All of the group exercises presumably were formed to ensure a mix of nationalities. Namely, for one exercise a group was composed of students from Argentina, Japan, and Thailand, a second group included students from Korea, Japan, and China, and a third included students from Japan, Korea, and Russia.

Another way American cultural patterns are communicated within the ESL program is through their Volunteer Program. This program offers the foreign students an opportunity for one-on-one dialogue with American conversation partners. In addition, there are conversation circles comprised of foreign students and two or three American volunteers who interact using informal conversation, spirited games, and discussions about a wide variety of cultural values, similarities, and differences. One foreign student remarking about the conversation circle stated, “my English-speaking skills are growing and I am learning about American culture.” Another student commented that “it’s good talking with American people, learning about the culture and talking about the differences.” These students’ comments are suggestive of the double bind situation in the emphasis of differences as opposed to similarities. This notion of differences relates to the fact that ESL students are inundated with messages iterating the distinctiveness of American cultural identity and cultural patterns or what Kim (1988) refers to as host conformity pressure. One case in point is the example of the memory game discussed above. As the students learn English, this conformity pressure forms a twofold message of promoting American cultural identity and cultural patterns while inadvertently suppressing the emergence of the students’ own cultural identity and cultural patterns.

Message Patterns and the Double Bind

One means of communication between the ESL students and the faculty is through a newsletter called “CESL Dialogue.” This newsletter, published two times per year by the Center, imparts various information to the students and touts diverse aspects of the accomplishments of the institution and the achievements of various students. Some of the articles in the newsletter promoting the institutional accomplishments included titles such as, “CESL Gets High Marks from Regents” and “CESL Volunteer Program Benefits Both Students and Volunteers.” Some of the stories in the newsletter highlighting a few of the CESL students included, “CESL Student Achieves His Goals,” “A Lifelong Dream Comes True for CESL Student,” and “Paraguayan Students Enjoy CESL.”

Although not intentional, this newsletter helps to facilitate a double bind for the ESL students. For example, in the section of the newsletter written by the director various mixed messages are unwittingly produced. In one newsletter the director writes: The aroma of wonderful food—that is something you can always expect at CESL, especially at lunchtime. Often, students will prepare delectable  meals in their homes and bring them for lunch. You can smell bulgogi from Korea, shrimp tomyum from Thailand, or arepas from Venezuela. It reminds you of an international cafeteria where you cannot decide which special aroma entices you more.

In these sentences the director is extolling the virtues of the students’ cultural identities through their various ethnic foods which create an “international cafeteria.” Nevertheless, in another newsletter, the director extols the virtues of the facility’s ability to help students improve their English language skills into order to make “learning English fun and entertaining!” The director writes:

We have increased the number of computers available to students for improving their language skills and have established an area for audiolingual practice.

Another area has been designed for video instruction which is a great way to increase listening comprehension and vocabulary.

In these two newsletter articles written by the director, the contrasting elements of what Kim (1988) labels as host conformity pressure and host receptivity are conspicuous. In the first article the director commends the “special aromas” of the “international café.” The inference drawn is that the director is advocating the demonstration of the students’ cultural identities, thus creating the notion of host receptivity. Conversely, the other article lauding the center’s increased capabilities of improving the students’ English language skills has an underlying assumption of host conformity pressure by professing the Center has “increased the number of computers available to students for improving their language skills.” Consequently, with increased computer availability the students ought to be increasing their English skills and, as a result, deculturate (or unlearn) some old cultural elements (Kim, 2001). These two dialectical components—host receptivity and host conformity pressure—perceived in the words expressed in the newsletters help to effectuate an atmosphere of the double bind.

The main goal and direct mission of an ESL facility is to help foreign students become successful in acquiring their English language skills. As a consequence of this goal, the ESL facility at the same time restricts the use of the students’ native language— one aspect of their cultural identity. Therefore, the elemental mission of the ESL facility thus acts to engender the double bind situation. For example, in the ESL advanced grammar class there were a couple of incidents in which this language double bind occurred. One day the class was learning the use of articles, and was having some difficulty with this subject matter. A Latin American student told the teacher that in Spanish the articles can be different and mean the same things. The teacher responded by saying, “That’s in Spanish, we are learning English.” In another incident the teacher called on a Korean student. Asking in Korean, the student sought help from another Korean classmate. The teacher told him to speak in English. When the student had trouble expressing his answer in English, the teacher told him to tell his Korean classmate, and then after class to tell her—the teacher—in English. Moreover, when the class was learning relative adverb clauses, a Korean student mentioned he had read a person could use “which” in a relative adverb clause. The teacher asked him to show her that information in the grammar book. Later the student told the teacher it was in a Korean book on English grammar. The teacher responded that foreign grammar books are not as good as grammar books produced in the United States.

These different instances are additional examples of how students in a university ESL class struggle with the opposite dimensions of conformity pressure (use of English) and the restricted use of their native language—a double bind theme. These two dimensions relate to what Kim (1995) calls the acculturation and deculturation aspects of adaptation. The process of learning about the host culture—in this case the English language—is called acculturation. While this acculturation or new learning occurs, an unlearning of old cultural habits—deculturation — results. The ESL students therefore are learning the English language and, subsequently, American customs while at the same time having to “unlearn” some of their cultural ways.

Sometimes this contrasting dimension of acculturation/deculturation is welcomed by an ESL student. For example, in an in interview with one of the Japanese students, he told me he liked the classroom style of the English as a Second Language facility. He said:

I don’t like the class style in Japan, especially in the university. In Japan [sic] university, the professor keep [sic] talking, and many students don’t ask questions. If or when students ask professor, they don’t sometimes answer the question. They don’t like to be bothered by students. At CESL we can ask questions. Every time I want to ask the teacher, so I like style of class. He told me that in each class he feels free to ask questions. Moreover, he said, “There are a few mistakes in Japanese grammar books, so I can learn real English grammar here.” This particular Japanese student chose CESL because there are few Japanese students in attendance. He told me he would prefer Latin American, European or African students in his class “because most of Asia has similar culture or similar grammar, but other cultures don’t have similar culture. So, it stimulate [sic] me or encourage me to study English or another culture.”

ESL Teachers and the Double Bind 

The double bind notion is not only one affecting the foreign students learning English as a second language, but the teachers of English as second language.   In general, an ESL teacher’s main focus is to improve his or her students’ English skills, but at the same time the teacher wants the students to express their cultural identity. For example, in the class I observed the teacher asked the students to think of their favorite dish from their country and to get the recipe for that dish. The reason behind this request was that it would generate a writing assignment. This writing assignment subsequently led to demonstration speech week when students are asked to explain how to prepare their favorite native dish. This cultural occasion then becomes an opportunity for students to practice their English language skills while heightening their cultural distinctiveness.

Even though the main focus for the CESL teachers is to assist the foreign students in becoming proficient in English, they also have a desire to enhance their students’ cultural identities. For example, one teacher commented: “I have enjoyed living in other cultures, and when I am in the classroom at CESL, I travel the world. This is something the international students give me that enriches my life.” Another teacher remarked:

The most rewarding part of my job are my relationships with the students. Before coming to CESL, I had no idea about the struggles many of the international students have in their lives and countries. Teaching at CESL has made me more sensitive to the world. Working with the students and finding out about their lives has enriched my life. My world is not so small any more, but much larger.

Some of the CESL teachers give assignments that are as close as possible to what students will face outside the ESL facility. Besides using the ESL textbooks, some teachers include real hands-on materials meant for native English speakers. One teacher opined: “I work with the students to make language and writing real and useful in their lives. I do this by using a visual, hearing, hands-on approach. My standard for the students is for them to learn and improve.” Accordingly, CESL teachers find themselves in a type of double bind, similar to their foreign students. An ESL teacher’s goal is to see his or her students succeed by getting good test scores or gaining admittance to the university.  Nevertheless, these same teachers, in order for their students to succeed, at the same time must require that their students “unlearn” or deculturate some of their cultural habits. While the setting of an ESL facility can become a type of double bind scenario for the intensive English language students, the ESL program seemingly presents itself as double bind circumstance for the English language teachers as well. Although the foreign students who study English as a Second Language and the instructors who teach English as a Second Language find themselves learning and working in an intense relationship in a unique environment which induces the cultural double bind, these students and teachers alike seem to thrive within this particular unique surrounding. One student commented: “The CESL program is very enjoyable and has opened the door to many possibilities for me.” Another student stated, “I like everything at CESL—the schedules, the teachers, and the relationships between the students.” From the perspective of some of the teachers, they also demonstrate a strong kinship within this cultural double bind environment. One teacher reflecting on his overseas experience said, “I want to help any student that may be having a tough time or doesn’t understand. When I was in another country I had to rely on my eyes instead of the language that I didn’t understand.”  Another teacher commented: “At CESL, the teachers are really ambassadors and I like that idea.”

Conclusion

Bateson’s theory of the double bind is not only an intriguing theory, but one which has applicability to many different situations and scenarios, including the setting of an intensive English as a Second Language program. One of Bateson’s three effects of the double bind situation is that an individual is involved in an intense relationship. The foreign students studying English as a Second Language and their relationship with their English instructors is an especially intense relationship. CESL is open throughout the year offering twenty-five hours of instruction per week in addition to outside cultural excursions. Bateson’s second effect of the double bind situation is that the sender of the message expresses a two-prong message in which one message denies the other. This two-prong message effect of the double bind is very apparent in the ESL facility. The goal of the ESL program is to encourage foreign students to learn the English language, but at the same time this goal or message creates the predicament for those same students to have to “unlearn” their cultural habits. Thus, this quandary leads to Bateson’s third effect of the double bind situation that the receiver of the message is unable to comment on the messages being sent to correct his or her discrimination of what order of message to respond to.

Twenty years after the double bind theory was published, John Weakland, one of the authors, suggested that “real significance of the theory was its viewpoint that behavior and communication are closely tied” (Guillaume, 2001).  Moreover, Watzlawick, Bavelas, and Jackson in their book Pragmatics of Human Communication extended Bateson’s double bind theory into a general theory of “pragmatic paradoxes” (Poster, 1978).  The unique communicational setting of an English as a Second Language program clearly demonstrates that behavior and communication are closely tied, thus creating a cultural “pragmatic paradox.”

References

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Top Student Paper - 2019

Awarded to Hannah Gray, Rogers State University
Obsessed with Murder: True Crime and Gender

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Obsessed with Murder: True Crime and Gender

Hannah Gray

Abstract

For much of history, true crime has been a popular genre that holds the attention of large parts of the population, even though it depicts gruesome accounts of real crime.  Most recently, the genre has amassed a large following online.  With the rise of more and more means of consuming true crime, its popularity has soared.  Now, there is a group of people that are referred to as the “true crime community”, a group dedicated to eagerly discuss the crimes of the real world.  What many may find surprising is the main demographic of true crime consumption: women.  Female-identifying people are often regarded as the more sensitive of the genders, so what draws them to this violent genre?  This study explores the women who are consuming true crime, joining the community, and why they do it.

Grisly murders, crime scene reports, and blood-splatter tests are surprisingly common topics in the true crime community.  The rise of nonfiction-crime has been popular for decades; humans are drawn to the darker side of psychology.  In recent years, media surrounding these crimes has only seemed to expand and grow in its popularity.  It has never been more readily available.  Whether picking up a novel on the catching of a killer, tuning in to a murder-based podcast, or binging Netflix’s latest docu-series, true crime is everywhere.  While a large portion of the population consumes true crime, that large population may come as a surprise: women.

Literature Review

While there are studies that show who is most interested in true crime, many of them reflect an interest in nonfiction novels and the people that medium appeals to.  These have supplemented some understanding of interest in true crime, but this study aims to find reasons why women, not people in general, are interested in true crime and expands the population to include people who partake in true crime content through a variety of media. 

A key reading that offered insight into women’s interest in true crime is Megan Sweeney’s 2003 qualitative study “Living to Read True Crime: Theorizations from Prison.”  In her study, Sweeney met with a group of incarcerated women and discussed why true crime novels were so frequently borrowed and read (2003).  Conclusions were gathered from her interviews with the women, and several ideas on why these books are so popular were gathered:  first, true crime helps incarcerated women understand themselves and their actions better;  Second, incarcerated women can better empathize with other people and their actions through contextualization;   True crime is helping women who have experienced and committed violence to come to terms with the actions perpetrated against them and those that they have committed through the lens of narrative (Sweeney, 2003).  While these specific cases may seem niche, violence against women is not.  In this, the idea was sparked that women may be more interested in true crime than men, as it may help women contextualize violence within our society.

Cathy Belben’s 2006 article “Creating a True Crime Collection” emphasizes several points on why this genre is useful as a narrative tool.  For many, it can take complex ideas of psychology and hard to understand disorders and gives them a structured narrative that is more accessible for audiences (Belben, 2006).  She also notes that they provide a timeline for scientific advancements and the evolution of crime investigation (Belben, 2006).  As her writing focuses on the benefits of true crime novels for all, these ideas of knowledge and narrative-interest can be applied to women but lack the specificity of why this genre is so popular amongst them.

The idea that women are drawn to true crime as a survival guide was found in Vicary and Fraley’s research “Captured by True Crime: Why are Women Drawn to Tales of Rape, Murder, and Serial Killers,” where men and women’s reading preferences were compared (2010).  In this study, it was found women were most likely to choose books with female victims—another example of empathy-building--and ones where escape was discussed (Vicary & Fraley, 2010).  This genre also provided a sort-of manual on warning signs and red flags that attracted a largely female audience (Vicary & Fraley, 2010).  This was another idea that contributed to women’s interest in true crime as a genre of media.

Deborah Jermyn’s “Making Sense of a Female Malady: Fear of Crime, Hysteria, and Women Watching Crimewatch UK” aids in understanding women’s experiences with violence and its relation to true crime television (2009).  This piece explores women’s encounters with violence, how they perceive crime, and how they deal with it (Jermyn, 2009).  In her writing, Jermyn proposes that women use the true crime genre as a tool that will allow them to release fear in a controlled environment with a straight-forward and often predictable narrative (2009). 

Finally, the Center for Disease Control released a study over Intimate Partner Violence that, too, gives insight into women’s interest in true crime.  In this study, they found women were more likely to face violence in their personal and intimate relationships than men (2018).  As proposed by other authors, women have a higher fear of victimization, and the CDC study provides data that aligns with the very real threat of violence against women.  Using the CDC’s research may aid in proving the link between fear of violence, empathy for victims, catharsis, and consumption of true crime.

Methods

This survey consisted of several parts: an informed consent slide, questions separated by topic, and a thank you with acknowledgment to the Center for Disease Control.  The informed consent slide informed participants on what the study’s purpose was, as well as age specifications (over eighteen and under sixty-five), and their right to withdraw the participation in the survey at any time.  The survey questions were then split into sections, beginning with demographics.  The survey was open to all willing participants (meeting age-requirements), although it was focused on women.  Out of the 512 responses, 483 were female-identifying.  This section also gathered information on race, education, relationship status, and age.  These demographics were used to analyze which populations of women seemed most interested and why.

The following sections were geared towards true crime consumption, beginning with, “Do you consume (watch, read, or listen to) true crime content?”  Participants were asked which medium they used to consume nonfiction crime content and for how long.  They were also asked “Why do you consume these types of media?” with a multiple-choice list of responses and a blank space for them to type their responses. The methods of consuming true crime were broken down into viewing (mini-docs, television shows, or full-length documentaries), listening (podcasts), reading (books, magazines), and interacting with online communities.  Respondents were then shown trailers for two true crime-based films, My Friend Dahmer and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, and asked to rate on a Likert scale how likely they would be to view the films.  The next question offered the titles of ten podcasts, randomly selected from the top 50 on the Podcast app (My Favorite Murder, Phil in the Blanks, Serial Killers, This American Life, Crime Junkie, Conan O'Brien Needs Friends, Stuff You Should Know, Hidden Brain, Pod Save America, Pardon My Take) and asked participants to select the podcasts they currently listened to or ones with which they would be interested.  The final question over consumption choices was  concerning books: “How likely are you to read I'll Be Gone in the Dark, a true crime novel about the investigation of the Golden State Killer?”  This question asked participants to rate their interest in the book on a Likert-scale.

The survey was distributed across Facebook, Reddit, and Tumblr and spread through convenience sampling, making the results not truly generalizable.  One Facebook connection shared the survey to her true crime Facebook groups, thus circulating through those who are interested in the subject, as a means of snowball-sampling.  This led to a sampling population of 512 respondents. 

This study aimed to find why women were so drawn to true crime, the mediums they use to interact with it, as well as how particular demographics may be more inclined to consume nonfiction stories of criminal activity.  While this survey may not generalizable among the public at large, it is helpful to acknowledge (as depicted in Graph 1 below) that the study reached its target population: women interested in true crime.

Results

While the focus of the study was more centered on the female-perspective of interest in true crime, the survey remained open to male participants.  The large majority of those who took part in the study ended up being females, though; a total of 483 female-identifying people responded.  For the following results and analysis, only the results gathered from women are presented.  The number of men and non-binary respondents was finalized at 27 and not covered in this research discussion, as the results are the most applicable female participants. Out of the 483 female participants, 431 identified as white/Caucasian.  While these results may be representative of that particular true crime community, it cannot be generalized that the larger true crime fandom is predominantly white; the results may only be applied to the Facebook group and those who responded from it.  The next highest population of respondents were those who identified as mixed-race (21), Hispanic/Latinx (8), Asian/Pacific Islander (8), Black/ African American (4), Native American (4), Jewish (2), and Middle Eastern (1).  With a population that is skewed so heavily white, the results may be most applicable to that particular part of the true-crime community, as opposed to the community as a whole. 

Most female participants reported spending only a couple hours per week engaged with the various forms of true crime consumption (Graph 3).  The most popular reported times were between 1-2 hours and 3-4 hours, regardless of whether the method of consumption was listening, viewing, or reading.  While the cumulative hours would equal a significant time spent with true crime per week, it is worth noting that some participants may under-report the amount of time they spend with nonfiction crime material, as they may be embarrassed or truly believe they spend little time with the genre.  While most report spending 1-4 hours spread across the mediums, the highest rates of time spent consuming true-crime are through television and documentary viewing and podcast-listening. 

The largest population of true crime viewing-women are single, with married women and those in a dating relationship following close behind (Graph 4).  Responses from engaged or divorced individuals in the community were few.  With how close the three leading responses were, the results suggest that there is not a large link between a women’s current relationship status and whether she views true crime or not. The female participants of the survey skewed younger, between the ages of 18-24 and 25-34, with the 25-34 age range reaching the highest portion of the population.  The number of participants slowly declined as age increased through age 64.  This tendency to lean toward a younger audience could be due to the survey’s method of distribution.  Older audiences may not be as active on particular social media groups and may not have been exposed to the survey.  Different means of distribution could better reach these groups.

According to Graph 9 (consult appendix), listening to podcasts is the most common method for consuming true crime.  This could be due to its passive nature of consumption; listeners can turn on a podcast and continue working, driving, or conducting other activities.  The second most common method was viewing either documentaries, docu-series, or television shows.  It may be suggested that this is also because of its passive nature; viewers have some level of conscious engagement, as they choose to pay attention or not, but do not have to interact.  Participation was the third most used way of engaging with true crime.  Participating in online true crime communities includes posting and interacting with fellow community members and reading what they write as well.  This is a more active form of engagement.  The lowest amount of time was spent reading true crime, especially with younger audiences.  Those who read true crime regularly tended to be older (as depicted in Graph 7).  The number of hours for Graph 9 was calculated by taking the lower number of each answer category of possible hours, which may have led to a conservative number of hours that each method of consumption was selected.       

Most female respondents had completed a four-year Bachelor’s degree and only 4 of the 217 Bachelor’s degree holders do not consume true crime.  4 of the 114 participants who have completed some degree of college, or are currently enrolled, do not consume true crime either.  Those who have earned associate degrees, doctorates, professional degrees, master’s degrees, or a high school diploma all identity as true crime watchers.  With the large number of female respondents who completed some college or earned a bachelor’s degree, it would be reasonable for some of them to not watch, listen to, or read true crime, whereas fewer participants replied from the other categories of educational level completed. 

Participants, later narrowed to female participants, were asked their reasons for interacting with true crime content and were given a series of responses, along with the option to give their response.  Curiosity was the most popular response, followed by empathy to the victim, a desire to see justice served in a case, emotional catharsis, and to feel a sense of control, in that order.  Individuals that chose to type their reasons included: forensic knowledge, interest in learning about the psychology of killers, survival tips/warning signs, narrative structure/genre interest, a fear of the unknown, and a background of working in the justice system.

Discussion

Why are women so drawn to true crime?  A large part of their interest is purely out of curiosity.  Humans are a curious species, constantly looking for answers, and this principle applies to even the most gruesome of human behaviors.  Women have tapped into this natural sense of curiosity and applied it to a dark part of the brain.  Of the 483 female participants, 430 responded that they consumed true crime out of curiosity (Graph 2).  The conclusion can then be suggested that a desire to learn about this psychological underbelly of human behavior is just a part of who people are.

The second reason women are so drawn to true crime is empathy to the victim.  While men are more likely to face violence from a random stranger, the media often report on the most sensational stories of wrong-doing.  These crimes, often of murders and kidnappings, typically happen to female victims.  This leads to women’s perceptions of crime to be heightened.  It is also very true that women are more likely to be aggressed against in their own homes by people they know, according to the Intimate Partner Violence study, conducted by the CDC (2018).  Between media portrayals of true crime and the very real crimes committed against women, it is easier for women to view, read, or hear stories about a female victim and relate to her. As seen in Megan Sweeney’s study of incarcerated women (2003), women in the criminal justice system often have long histories of past abuse and then go on to commit acts of violence, but reading true crime allows them to relate to fellow women, regardless of their race or age, and better understand the world and themselves.  True crime is, in a way, a gateway for building empathy.

True crime stories most often have endings where the perpetrator of the crime must face their consequences, which is a leading reason women cited as for their consumption of true crime (Graph 2).  While the world can be a terrifying place that makes women subjects of violence in everyday life, there can be a solace found in knowing that vile acts do not go unpunished.  True crime can act as both comforts in a world where brutality seems to be everywhere and as retribution against those who commit it. 

While women are often subjects of violence, it is societally unacceptable for women to be violent, whether physically or emotionally.  While men have avenues to exert violent emotions through physical means such as fighting, women are not afforded such luxury in current society.  They are often portrayed as nurturers, caregivers—not protectors or challengers.  Women are expected to be placid, even in the face of tribulation or fear.  This is where true crime can offer catharsis—a purging of intense emotions or feelings.  The concept of emotional catharsis can go both in the way of the aggressor and the aggressed-against.  For some consumers, seeing, hearing, or reading about a woman who disregards societal norms and acts violently may purge their anger or negative emotions.  They may find a criminal with a similar situation and see how it resolves for that person, even if poorly.  On the other hand, true crime purges fear.  This may seem counter-intuitive, and in some ways, it is.  Consuming more violent media may increase fear of violence in the world, but it helps women cope, a practice known as “adaptive coping”: using true crime as a tool to purge fear of everyday violence (Jermyn, 2009).  The format of the genre is familiar.  Women know they are safe when taking in this content, but it allows them to face the brutality of the world.  True crime helps women to process the experiences faced by the people of their gender, which leads to an increased understanding of their feelings (Jermyn, 2009).

The fifth most common reason for the consumption of true crime is cited as a sense of control (Graph 2).  Just as female-identifying people use it to process their emotions, they can also use it as a tool to gain a feeling of control over their emotions and their fate.  Life can become stressful and overwhelming but compared to the intense turn of events that take place in these nonfiction narratives, one’s life seems tame.  Women can compare the events of true crime and feel that their life holds a certain level of societal normalcy.  The lack of restraint presented in the books, podcasts, and shows of true crime can help women to feel their circumstances are manageable; it gives them a sense of control over their lives. 

Women also reported using true crime as a means for gaining knowledge, which confirms Belben’s 2006 research on the subject. Belben found the genre offered valuable insight on psychology and forensics (2006).  Several women, 12, confirmed that this was part of the reason why they partake in true crime (Graph 2).  True crime media contain details of crimes, from terminology to psychological-profiling.  When using a visual medium, such as books or television shows and documentaries, crime scene photos may even be shown.  These details and pictures can give an insight into what goes into solving these crimes.  This could lead to an interest in becoming part of the criminal justice or law enforcement careers, another finding represented in Graph 2, and confirmed in the case of one policewoman from Jermyn’s 2009 study. 

Ten women specifically mentioned consuming true crime due to its analysis of the criminal’s psychology (Graph 2).  This is another form of knowledge that people can gain from reading, listening to, and viewing these violent tales.  It is not the physical science, such as forensic science, that these women are interested in, rather what hides behind the physical.  Certain shows, novels, and podcasts tend to dig deep into the root cause of a killer’s psychosis. Examples include podcasts like Serial Killers or Cults where one host will study the criminal’s history and give insight into how their upbringing may have impacted their futures.  Women who partake in these more psychology-driven forms of true crime may gain insight on warning signs in the future.

These warning signs are what draw many women to true crime; if they can spot red flags, they believe they will be prepared and can avoid the tragic fate of the story’s victim.  Three women filled out their responses with survival tips being one of their reasons to consume true crime.  This aligns with the findings of Fraley and Vicary in their 2010 study, Captured by True Crime: Why Are Women Drawn to tales of Rape, Murder, and Serial Killers?.  Women use the paths to violence in this content to try and predict ways they can keep themselves safe, whether from strangers or those that they know (Fraley & Vicary, 2010).  Women also seek out content that offers physical tips that will aid them in escaping the fate of a victim (Fraley & Vicary, 2010).  Reading one women’s tale of escape, or even lack-of-escape may offer women valuable lessons on personal safety. 

As previously mentioned, there are several faults in the findings of this study.  The number of responses, 512, is not reflective of the true-crime audience as a whole.  Rather it is representative of a particular population of the true-crime audience—white women, mainly between the ages of eighteen and thirty-four.  This survey used convenience- and snowball-sampling, so the responses are coming from people linked by their sphere-of-influence which may lead to homogenization of their thinking and opinions.  Further studies on women’s interest in true crime would be well-versed to gather responses from more diverse populations and through both digital and physical mediums--such as paper surveys, phone surveys, and online surveys—to get a better representation of the wide array of audience members that consume true crime.

Conclusion

The violence portrayed in true crime is not pretty, is not idealistic, but it is real.  The sometimes-sensational acts are works of nonfiction; they are the reality for both the perpetrator and the victim.  What is not sensational is the everyday fear felt by women in a society that can often objectify them then subject them to violence: emotional, psychological, and physical.  This fear of violence is what leads many women to true crime, often in hopes that they will be able to safeguard themselves and prevent themselves from being victimized.  Regardless of violence, women also turn to true crime for knowledge and to satisfy their natural curiosity.  Even though it may hard for outsiders to understand, true crime builds empathy and a strong bond between the women who consume it. 

References

Belben, C. (2006).  Creating a True Crime Collection. Knowledge Quest, Volume 35 (1), 18-22. Retrieved from https://rsulibproxy.rsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lih&AN=22900551&site=ehost-live.

Humphries, D. (2009) Women, Violence, and the Media: Readings in Feminist Criminology. Boston: Northeastern. Retrieved from https://rsulibproxy.rsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=443494&site=bsi-live&scope=site.

Smith, S.G., Zhang, X., Basile, K.C., Merrick, M.T., Wang, J., Kresnow, M., Chen, J. (2018). The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2015 Data Brief – Updated Release. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/datasources/nisvs/2015NISVSdatabrief.html.

Sweeney, M. (2003). Living to Read True Crime: Theorizations from Prison. Discourse 25(1), 55-80. Wayne State University Press. Retrieved from Project MUSE database.

Vicary, A.M. & Fraley, C.R. (2010). Captured by True Crime: Why Are Women Drawn to tales of Rape, Murder, and Serial Killers?  Social Psychological and Personality Science 1 (1), 81-86.  Champaign, IL. Retrieved from SAGE Publications. DOI: 10.1177/1948550609355486.

Appendix