The Architecture of Coercive Control

Content warning: This conversation explores the patterns of coercive control within family and domestic relationships and cult like communities. If you need support, please check the links to support services in the show notes.

The Architecture of Coercive Control

I am excited to bring to you this conversation with Jess Hill, who has radically shifted the conversation on abuse and coercive control in Australia.

Jess Hill’s groundbreaking book See What You Made Me Do transformed the way I thought about grooming, coercion and domestic abuse.

This episode:

* We draw upon Biderman’s Chart of Coercion to understand how someone gets broken down into compliance, submission, and entrapment. This framework, developed in the 1950s to explain how prisoners of war were psychologically dismantled, helps expose how coercive control operates in homes, faith spaces, and institutions.

* We talk about “Why didn’t she just leave?” And survivors’ strengths and resistance.

* We discuss why terms like “Stockholm Syndrome” have been debunked!

* Jess talks about future directions and how she responds to critics.

Guest Bio

Jess Hill is an Industry Professor researching gender-based violence at the University of Technology, Sydney.

Named Marie Claire’s 2023 Changemaker of the Year, she is a journalist, author, and educator who has achieved global renown for her ground-breaking work on gendered violence. Her journalism has won many awards, including three Walkley awards. Her first book, ‘See What You Made Me Do’, became a bestseller and was awarded the 2020 Stella Prize and the ABA Booksellers’ Choice non-fiction book of the year. 'See What You Made Me Do' has become a seminal text on family violence and coercive control in Australia and overseas, has been translated into five languages and has also been adapted into a three-part television series for SBS.

Since then, she has written a Quarterly Essay on how #MeToo is changing Australia, made a podcast series on coercive control titled The Trap, and another three-part series on Consent, titled Asking For It. Her most recent Quarterly Essay, 'Losing It', critically analyses Australia's efforts to reduce gender-based violence, and last year, she was appointed to the Australian government's Rapid Review into Prevention. In her work as an advocate and educator, Jess has made hundreds of media appearances and has fronted almost 400 events across the country, educating communities, magistrates, police, social workers, health and family law professionals on coercive control.

See What You Made Me Do on SBS

https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/see-what-you-made-me-do

See What You Made Me Do Book

The Trap Podcast

SBS Series: Asking for It

Support Hotlines:

Link to all support hotlines in NSW, Australia: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/mentalhealth/services/Pages/support-contact-list.aspx

Link to USA hotlines:

https://www.apa.org/topics/crisis-hotlines

Contact me:

https://www.jaimesimpsoncounselling.au

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