‘Keeping busy’ as agency in early desistance

Sarah Goodwin

doi:10.1177/1748895820939223

Abstract

Agency in desistance research has often been understood as deliberate action undertaken in pursuit of a desisting identity. Through a micro-longitudinal approach, this research focuses on the early desistance experiences of a number of mainly White British female participants. Agency was exhibited not with a new identity in mind, but instead through ‘keeping busy’. The surprising lack of identity concerns may be due to the early stages of the participants’ desistance experiences, with new identities emerging later in the process. Alternatively, it may indicate a fundamental difference to the classic desistance narrative, linked to the differences between this sample and the frequently researched, Western, male, high-frequency offender. Finally, important aspects of the cultures surrounding desistance research may have shaped the narratives of desisters and the biases of researchers towards finding a concern for identity when this is not necessarily experienced in the everyday lives of desisters.

Highlights

It is frequently understood within desistance research that agency is properly demonstrated when people act to orientate themselves towards a desired future self
Given some influential academic voices find that agency in desistance is usually linked to a change in identity (Healy, 2016; King, 2014; Paternoster and Bushway, 2009; Rumgay, 2004), it is important that we examine the absence of such a link here
Considering the research on agency which has begun to highlight the importance of identity in much agentic action (Healy, 2016; King, 2014), this is a surprising and significant finding

Summary

Introduction

It is frequently understood within desistance research that agency is properly demonstrated when people act to orientate themselves towards a desired future self. I use my research of women’s early desistance experiences to challenge the idea that agentic action is intrinsically tied up with a desister’s identity. A desister ‘keeping busy’ can rightly be seen as intentional action in a number of ways, albeit often divorced from conceptions of who the desister is or is becoming. It may well be subsequently built upon to form a coherent identity, but this possibility may not be considered in the day-to-day experiences of the desister. I consider the important socio-cultural context which helps to explain why we, as desistance researchers, struggle to separate agency from identity

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion