Objective:

To identify the structure of social representations of military police officers regarding domestic violence against women.

Method:

Qualitative study based on the structural approach of the Theory of Social Representations, with 110 police officers from the Military Police, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, between July/August 2022, with the application of the Free Association of Words Test and semi-structured interviews. The analysis of the evocations used the four-house chart and the maximum similarity tree, configured in openEvoc and IRaMuTeQ, contextualized with excerpts from the interviews.

Results:

The analysis process revealed a set of words that objectify domestic violence as a result of “sexism” and “dependency” which in turn generates: “disrespect”, “power”, “alcohol”, “drugs”, “aggression”, “cowardice”, “fear”, “impunity”.

Discussions:

For the investigated group, the structure of the social representation of domestic violence is anchored in terms that refer to a historical social and cultural construction centered on sexism.

Conclusions:

The study may direct educational actions and public policies to improve military police officers regarding gender issues and the (re)signification of care, favoring the improvement of services and the reduction of harm to women’s health.

        · resumo em Português | Espanhol     · texto em Português     · Português ( pdf )