Thesis Defence: The Path of Least Resistance: A Qualitative Exploration of Economic/Financial Abuse Among Middle and Upper-Class Women in Uganda

Emily Kaakyo Rubooga, supervised by Dr. Laura Meek, will defend their thesis titled “The Path of Least Resistance: A Qualitative Exploration of Economic/Financial Abuse Among Middle and Upper-Class Women in Uganda” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies – Community Engagement, Social Change, and Equity theme.

An abstract for Emily Kaakyo Rubooga’s thesis is included below.

Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in-person defences.

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ABSTRACT

This thesis investigates how the dominant framing of domestic abuse as primarily physical violence obscures the recognition of, and response to, economic abuse among middle- and upper-class women in Uganda. It further explores how reframing domestic abuse to foreground economic abuse might enhance prevention strategies, activate community accountability, and disrupt cycles of gendered harm. Drawing on feminist theory, behavioral science, and sociological framing analysis, the study combines narrative inquiry, critical discourse analysis, and case study methodology using process tracing to examine women’s lived experiences. It also explores the motivations, psychological drivers, and social incentives underlying men’s engagement in economic abuse. A key methodological innovation lies in analyzing economic abuse not merely as an outcome, but as a dynamic process unfolding over time. Findings reveal that economic abuse is rendered invisible through dominant narratives that normalize male abandonment, obscure financial control, and reduce abuse to visible physical acts. Women’s recognition of abuse is shaped by behavioral pathways—including perceived legitimacy of abuse, cost–benefit logic, and social norms—that influence how they respond. The thesis introduces the concepts of compensatory control and quiet accountability to explain how some men use economic disengagement to reassert control under conditions of psychological or social strain and how responsibility is silently negotiated within families. The study argues that the roots of male disengagement lie in deep-seated psychological and intergenerational dynamics—including early life adversity, identity-based pressures, and emotionally internalized stressors—combined with social structures that make disengagement a low-risk, high-reward strategy—socially tolerated, rarely penalized, and often invisibly reinforced. The “Street Angel, House Devil” phenomenon, where men maintain public respectability while privately neglecting familial obligations, emerged as a critical mechanism sustaining economic abuse. This thesis offers a novel conceptual framework for understanding economic abandonment as both a psychological and structural phenomenon, expanding current domestic abuse discourse. It underscores the need for a trauma-informed approach that acknowledges the intergenerational psychological impacts of abuse and calls for stronger child protection mechanisms to prevent its perpetuation across generations. By doing so, this research contributes to broader efforts to prevent gender-based violence and ensure better outcomes for children.