This study investigates the prevalence of adolescent intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration, IPV victimization, and controlling behaviors among 486 heterosexual high school students. Participants completed surveys that measured three types of IPV victimization (sexual, physical, and psychological) and two types of controlling behaviors (intimidation and threats). Results reveal high prevalence of dating violence in youth: 46% emotional violence, 34% physical violence, and 16% sexual violence. Participants had a mean age of 15.7 years, 51% of the sample was male, and all participants were in a current relationship. Structural equation modeling explored the relationship between “violent attitudes” and “controlling behaviors” predicting IPV perpetration. The study found no gender differences between IPV perpetration and IPV victimization. However, gender differences were found regarding females’ IPV victimization being reduced when controlling behaviors are not present. Interestingly, IPV victimization is reduced by not having controlling behaviors and only having violent attitudes. The study posits that gender socialization may attribute to females reducing their IPV victimization when controlling behaviors are not present.

The aim of this study was to test 2 of Johnson’s (1995) assumptions regarding intimate partner violence (IPV), namely, that there are sex differences in the type of physical aggression men and women use and that controlling aggression is more problematic and requires more outside intervention than noncontrolling aggression. These assumptions were tested using survey data from the 13th cycle of the General Social Survey in Canada, which was a telephone survey that asked crime victimization questions in several areas. There were no sex differences in the use of controlling behavior or physical aggression. Controlling aggression did not have an effect on problem presentation when compared with relationships low in controlling behaviors. There was mixed support for Johnson’s work and the utility of his typology is questioned.

In the United Kingdom, “domestic violence” services are predominantly segregated and therapeutic interventions offered mainly to either female “survivors/victims” or male “perpetrators.” Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 20 U.K. practitioners with the aim of deconstructing their understandings and approach to therapeutic practice using a thematic analysis. Their practices were found to be mainly informed by the gender paradigm, reflecting assumptions that men’s abusive behavior was instrumental and chosen, whereas women behaved aggressively primarily in retaliation or defense. When negotiating sensitive, potentially dilemmatic issues, such as women revealing abusive behavior or men speaking about victimization, participants differed in the extent to which they experienced, or showed awareness of, cognitive dissonance. Those participants who took a gender perspective tended to scapegoat male “perpetrators” and excuse the behavior of female “victims,” whereas those who took a gender-inclusive approach were more likely to speak about the motivation of both partners and other contributory factors maintaining the problem. The findings support the view that domestic violence services in the United Kingdom have been slow to respond to calls by researchers to bring more psychological theory and relational awareness to understandings of intimate partner violence (IPV) and its practices.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major problem. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of research on the associations between IPV perpetration, victimization, and mental health among women. This study examined these associations among a sample of women arrested for domestic violence and court-referred to batterer intervention programs (BIPs; N = 88). Using self-report screening instruments for Axis I and Axis II mental health problems, results showed very high rates of mental health problems among women. In addition, both IPV perpetration and victimization were associated with increased mental health symptoms. Women who met diagnostic cutoff scores reported greater IPV perpetration/victimization than women who did not meet those cutoff scores. Implications of these findings for future research and IPV interventions are discussed.

This article is the second of a two-part series that investigates the reported availability of domestic violence (DV) services for individuals in traditionally underserved populations. This specific article focuses on immigrants, individuals with limited English language skills, and individuals with disabilities. The sample consisted of 213 DV agency directors from across the nation who responded about the availability of services in their agencies in several different domains: housing, legal, counseling/mental health, education, transportation, and outreach services. The results indicate a fairly high level of services across the board, especially with regard to serving immigrants, individuals with limited English language skills, and individuals with disabilities. Services for individuals with hearing impairments and undocumented immigrants were less available. Recommendations for practice and future research are discussed.

In 2005, 68% of the 50 states in the United States expressly prohibited the funding of any program that offers couples or family counseling when there has been intimate partner violence (IPV; Maiuro & Eberle, 2008). However, many couples experiencing violence want to participate in couples treatment. The purpose of this study is to examine the changes experienced by clients during participation in a couples treatment program for IPV. In this study, we analyzed interviews with couples participating in a specific treatment program, Domestic Violence Focused Couples Treatment (Stith, McCollum, & Rosen, 2011), to learn from them what changes they made while participating in the treatment program. Clients reported changes in both individual and relational domains. In addition, a few clients reported no change or an increase in stress. This article examines these changes and provides implications for practice.

The purpose of the current article was to examine beliefs and attitudes around partner violence within Muslim society in Israel. The study addressed three gender-asymmetrical aspects of such beliefs: reasons for violence (the belief that men hurt their female partners to control them, and the belief that women hurt their male partners to protect themselves); violent behavior (the belief that men, more than women, are violent in intimate relationships); and the outcomes of violence (the belief that women, more than men, are injured as a result of intimate violence). The study also examines the attitude toward the appropriate social response to the problem (the belief that men who use partner violence should be condemned more than women should). First, the study compares men and women's belief levels and relates these to the accumulating empirical knowledge. Then, the study examines the difference between men and women in the relationship between the beliefs, as well as the effects of this on prevailing attitudes. The study was based on a community sample of 420 Muslim students. The research findings indicate that the belief that men, more than women, use physical violence in intimate relationships was the strongest belief of those tested and it was stronger among women than among men. The findings also indicate that among both men and women, the behavioral aspect does not affect the tendency for condemnation. On the other hand, among both, the consequences of violence affect condemnation. Theoretical and empirical implications of gender differences in physically violent behavior, Gender differences in consequences of physical partner violence, gender differences in condemnation of violent behavior and effects of beliefs on the attitude toward its condemnation were discussed.

Various psychological aspects of women perpetrators of intimate partner violence have been previously studied, yet to our knowledge, few studies to date have examined the prevalence of various self-harm behaviors among such women. In this study of 23 women court-referred to treatment for the perpetration of intimate partner violence, we encountered relatively high rates of high-lethal self-harm behavior (e.g., 48% had previously attempted suicide), low-risk self-harm behaviors (61% reported self-cutting), medically self-harming behaviors (30% endorsed making medical situations worse), and alcohol abuse (60%). In addition, based on a conservative cutoff score, nearly one-half of the participants in this sample scored in the clinical range for borderline personality symptomatology. Findings suggest that women perpetrators of intimate partner violence may harbor histories of intentional self-harm behavior, which suggests treatment implications.

Dyadic concordance types of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Mexico are examined separately for married/cohabiting women and separated/divorced women using the 2011 National Survey on Household Dynamics. In the context of couples’ anger or conflict, IPV is primarily male perpetrated; at least half of women involved in a violent relationship report male-only violence. The rates of mutual violence are 26.7% for married/cohabiting couples and 29.3% for separated/divorced couples; those of female-only violence are 23.5% among married/cohabiting couples and 8% for separated/divorced couples, most of it consisting of situational IPV. Control is associated with IPV but does not differentiate between male-only and mutually violent couples; however, it does differentiate between nonviolent and female-only couples. Women’s use of violence in relationships tends to be linked with ethnic/racial and age structures and with previous experiences of violence during their childhood and adolescence. The implications for awareness and prevention programs, public policy, and future research are discussed. Existing claims regarding the mutual nature of IPV need to be contextualized because the prevalence of dyadic concordance types of IPV might be contingent on countries’ different levels of gender inequality and different cultural scripts regarding relationships.

Using data from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development, a prospective longitudinal survey of more than 400 males in the United Kingdom followed from age 8 years to age 48 years, we investigated the role of Cluster B personality traits and the association with violent offending groups based on a typology theory of male intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrators: those who committed family-only violence and the generally violent offender. We also considered whether offending/violent groups could be predicted using risk factors measured in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Our findings suggest that those men who are violent both within and outside the home (the generally violent men) are distinguished from those who are involved in IPV within the home only. The differences appear to be more in degree than in kind. We discuss these findings in relation to the idea of specific interventions and policy.