Adolescent dating violence may lead to adverse health behaviors. We examined associations between sexual teen dating violence victimization (TDVV) and sexual risk behaviors among U.S. high school students using 2013 and 2015 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey data (combined n = 29,346). Sex-stratified logistic regression models were used to estimate these associations among students who had dated or gone out with someone during the past 12 months (n = 20,093). Among these students, 10.5% experienced sexual TDVV. Sexual TDVV was positively associated with sexual intercourse before age 13, four or more lifetime sexual partners, current sexual activity, alcohol or drug use before last sexual intercourse, and no pregnancy prevention during last sexual intercourse. Given significant findings among both sexes, it is valuable for dating violence prevention efforts to target both female and male students.

Associations of substance dependencies and experiences with intimate partner violence (IPV) were examined in a community sample of 146 female participants in a longitudinal study of couples. The women with a history of dependence on hard drugs (but not alcohol, cannabis, or sedatives) were more likely to also have perpetrated IPV. However, only women dependent on cocaine were more likely to have been a victimized by their male partners. Psychological IPV was found to be more stable across time than physical IPV, but associations of substance abuse with IPV did not vary by IPV type. Findings were compared with results from a prior study of men’s substance abuse and IPV that also found associations between dependence on hard drugs (but not alcohol dependence alone) and perpetration of IPV.

This study determines the needs of men experiencing domestic abuse from an intimate partner. In-depth interviews with 6 men who sought support are analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). Four master themes (interpreted as needs) are identified from analysis, “recognition” (of male victims and the impact), “safety,” “accepting domestic abuse,” and “rebuilding.” A need for recognition is identified as the dominant theme influencing the capacity for the 3 remaining needs to be met. Domestic abuse is generally understood to be a gendered, heteronormative experience. Abused men are not acknowledged as “typical” victims. The lack of recognition prevented participants from accepting and recognizing their victimization resulting in delayed help-seeking and prolonged abuse. A joint commitment is required from policy and practice to raise the profile of abused men, challenge wider society's prevailing norms, and embed equal status for all victims.

This study employed a dyadic data analysis approach to examine the association between partners’ dispositional empathy and intimate partner violence (IPV). Data were collected from 1,156 couples, who were participants in Wave 3 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). For both IPV perpetration and IPV victimization, significant actor effects for men and significant partner effects for men to women emerged: Men who were less empathic were more likely to perpetrate IPV and to be victimized. Similarly, women whose men partners were less empathic were more likely to perpetrate IPV and to be victimized. Findings partially generalized to analyses assessing the associations between empathy and the different types of IPV (psychological, physical, sexual IPV, and occurrence of injury from IPV) separately. The present findings show that men’s levels of empathy may carry more weight in determining their own as well as their partners’ aggressive behaviors than do women’s levels of empathy.

Preliminary research has demonstrated the utility of bystander interventions in reducing sexual assault (Coker et al., 2011; Moynihan & Banyard, 2008), and initial research has begun extending this type of intervention to dating violence broadly (i.e., physical and psychological aggression). However, there are many unexplored factors that may increase or decrease the likelihood that individuals will engage in bystander behavior. One such factor is previous experiences with dating violence and sexual assault. Thus, this study examined prior dating violence and sexual assault experiences and endorsement of bystander behaviors in a large sample of college students (N = 2,430). We hypothesized that individuals with a history of dating and sexual assault victimization would be more likely to report engaging in bystander behaviors relative to nonvictims. The relationship between prior dating violence perpetration on bystander behavior was also explored. Results demonstrated that individuals with physical and sexual, but not psychological, victimization histories reported more frequent bystander behavior. Furthermore, perpetrators of physical violence were more likely than nonperpetrators to report bystander behavior, particularly among females. Findings provide preliminary evidence that prior experiences with dating violence and sexual assault may impact bystander behavior. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Using data from 209 college students from 2 universities in Mainland China, the prevalence and correlates of psychological aggression perpetration for men and women were examined. Results indicated that 82.8% of men and 90.4% of women had committed at least one act of psychological aggression against his or her current romantic partner over the course of their relationship. Being a victim of physical assault from his partner and higher levels of stress were associated with men’s perpetration of psychological aggression. For women, physical assault victimization, greater alcohol use, and higher levels of shame were all related to psychological aggression perpetration. The results suggest the need for additional research to understand the development of psychological aggression within this population and to further adapt and refine intervention programs to reduce such violence.

The knowledge of same-sex intimate partner violence (IPV) is limited. This study aims to investigate the perception of seriousness of same-sex IPV. A vignette study was undertaken among 248 police students (69% males and 31% females) in Sweden. The vignettes portrayed an intimate partner relationship between two people and were available in four versions with the sex of the offender and victim being alternated. Perceptions of IPV were measured using the Opinions of Domestic Violence Scale (Ahmed et al., 2013). The results showed that regardless of gender, IPV was considered serious; however, same-sex IPV was perceived as less serious than victimization of a heterosexual female but more serious than victimization of a heterosexual male. Police interventions were found to be less needed for same-sex victims than for heterosexual female victims.

Gender differences in physical victimization, sexual victimization, injury, fear, and depressive symptoms were assessed in a representative community sample of 453 young couples. The prevalence of any physical victimization experienced by women and men did not differ (29% vs. 30%), but men reported more severe physical victimization than women. No difference in prevalence of overall injury was observed, but more women reported severe injury than men. Almost twice as many women as men reported being sexually victimized (28% vs. 15%). Physically victimized females reported more fear of their partners than physically victimized men and than nonvictimized women. Physically victimized men and women, sexually victimized men and women, and physically injured men and women all had more depressive symptoms than those men and women who were not victimized or injured. Severely victimized women were 3 times more likely than severely victimized men to have depression scores in the clinical range (27% vs. 9%). In sum, whether one finds gender symmetry regarding aggression and its correlates depends on more than simple prevalence of aggression by men and women.

Research on neurotransmitters and behavior is a vital and expanding area of study. As in other areas of empirical study of domestic violence, this remains an underdeveloped field of inquiry. Although a rigorous literature exists indicating a much broader range of neuropsychological risk factors for violence in general, policies regarding the study and treatment of domestic violence perpetration often disregard or forbid considerations of those factors. This current effort at theory development is a continuation of several prior works where the conceptual and empirical rationale for a broader explanatory theoretical framework for domestic violence perpetration is put forth. In this review, links between neurochemical anomalies, dysfunctional coping, and domestic violence perpetration are reviewed in light of their contribution to a biopsychosocial theory of domestic violence perpetration.

Research suggests that sexual minorities (SMs) experience a higher risk of IPA than their heterosexual counterparts. The extent of this problem is likely underestimated and not fully understood due to limitations in our assessment of ways IPA uniquely manifests among SMs. Three forms of IPA that have been discussed in the literature are physical aggression, psychological aggression, and controlling behaviors. In the current study, we assessed the measure invariance of the assessment of these forms of IPA between SM and non-SMs. Participants were recruited using Amazon Mechanical Turk Crowdsourcing Platform. We recruited 338 participants between the ages of 18–59 years old. Of those, 47.3% (n = 160) described their sexual orientation as straight/heterosexual, 28.1% (n = 95) bisexual, 10.1% (n = 34) gay, 4.7% (n = 16) lesbian, 3.0% (n = 10) as asexual, 3.8% (n = 13) as pansexual, 3.0% (n = 10) as queer. Similar to previous research, fits for the overall model for both SMs and non-SMs were poor. However, measurement weights, structural covariances, and measurement residuals models were all significantly different from the unconstrained model, exhibiting a meaningful difference in assessment of IPA between the two groups. Results suggest that experiences of IPA may not be adequately captured by this measure, particularly for SM individuals. Future research should examine the unique and shared experiences of SM and non-SM IPA survivors.

There is an increasing recognition of men as victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) within the academic literature and the public narrative. Statistics suggest that one in three victims in the United Kingdom (UK; specifically, England and Wales) are male, with some academic literature suggesting the ratio of female to male victims could be even closer (e.g., Archer, 2000). Domestic Abuse services and agencies (including the police and health services) can be an integral part of victim disclosure. However, the evidence suggests that there are a number of barriers that inhibit help-seeking (Bates, 2020); and when help is sought it is not always a positive experience (Taylor et al., 2021). These internal and external barriers can lead to missed opportunities to intervene and support men to escape abuse or prevent higher risk cases from escalation. The aim of the current study was to explore the engagement of male victims and the service responses through analysis of Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs). A thematic analysis of 22 DHRs was completed and the findings suggested there is often a dismissal of women's abusive acts towards men by services, and men (as victims) are also more likely to be arrested than their partners. Half of the DHRs stated that services had insufficient guidance regarding the identification and treatment of male IPV victims, and there were a significant number of men whose injuries were dismissed by the police and other safeguarding services. It is clear from the findings that domestic abuse services are not currently working inclusively, and this serves as an additional barrier to male help-seeking victims. Limitations of this study and future implications for research and policy are discussed.

Women in treatment for substance use report higher levels of intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization and perpetration than the general population. Despite an abundance of research with this vulnerable population, no study has examined the research reactions of women in substance use treatment who participate in a study of IPV. Thus, we investigated the research reactions of women (N = 64) in substance use treatment who completed a self-report measure on their psychological, physical, and sexual IPV. We also examined whether shame proneness—an affective predisposition to scrutinize and criticize oneself— moderated the association between reports of IPV and negative emotional research reactions. This information is important for institutional review boards (IRBs) and researchers in determining the most ethical and appropriate protections for participants in IPV research. Findings demonstrated that victims and perpetrators of IPV did not differ from nonvictims/nonperpetrators on negative emotional research reactions. Victims of psychological aggression reported more positive research experiences than nonvictims. Shame proneness did not moderate the relationship between IPV reports (victimization or perpetration) and negative emotional reactions, although shame proneness did exert a main effect on negative emotional research reactions. Findings add to a growing body of research on participant reactions to IPV research. Our results further support the safety of self-report IPV research.

Stalking is a form of dating violence that has typically been studied after relationship termination, despite evidence suggesting that stalking often occurs within current dating relationships. Consequently, there is a dearth of research on correlates of stalking perpetration among intact dating relationships. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to examine correlates of stalking perpetration among college men and women in intact dating relationships (N = 627) in order to identify possible risk factors for stalking perpetration. Using the dating violence literature and theoretical models for intimate partner violence perpetration as a guide, two potential correlates of stalking were examined: emotion regulation and anger management. Results demonstrated that anger management was positively correlated with stalking perpetration in men and women, and emotion regulation was also consistently correlated to stalking perpetration in women. Given that this is the first known study to examine correlates of stalking perpetration behaviors in dating college students, our findings provide a base from which additional investigations can be developed.

The Instigating-Impelling-Inhibiting model of intimate partner violence (IPV) etiology, or “I³ Model,” is presented as a meta-theoretical alternative to traditional perspectives regarding treatment models for perpetrators of IPV. The I³ Model is a meta-theoretical approach to understanding IPV risk that, when applied to IPV intervention programs, incorporates practically any therapeutic component that aims to decrease individual's exposure to instigating contexts, target any individual or situational factor that impels IPV, and increase an individual's ability to inhibit an aggressive response. In this review, we first briefly summarize the IPV literature and existing intervention models. Second, we review the I³ Model and illustrate its promise as a guiding framework for understanding IPV risk and its broad relevance to etiology and intervention. Third, we discuss the conceptual application of this framework to intervention with IPV perpetrators. Fourth, we identify factors that may promote as well as complicate I³ Model-related intervention developments.

We examined whether incident- and observer-level factors found previously to influence blame assignment and foster justification for severe unidirectional partner aggression would replicate in the context of reciprocated psychological and minor physical dating violence. We employed a factorial vignette methodology, simultaneously varying the form of the violence (i.e., psychological or minor physical), gender of the initiator and retaliator, alcohol use, history of aggression, and commitment status. Observer-level variables included participant gender, history of dating violence perpetration and victimization, and social desirability. Using a sample of 321 undergraduates, we found that initiating violence with physical versus psychological tactics was judged comparably in terms of blame, but responding with symmetrical physical violence was viewed more negatively than the reciprocation of psychological aggression. Men's aggression was more negatively evaluated only in situations involving physical force, except in cases where the woman's capacity to inflict physical harm was comparable. Other characteristics of the incident (e.g., alcohol use) and observer (e.g., gender) were also relevant, but their effects were tethered to the particulars of the violent exchange or the type of attribution being solicited. Asymmetrical violence (e.g., physical response to psychological initiation) appeared to elicit the most attributional activity with respect to the predictors. Exploratory analyses also revealed that participants with intimate partner violence (IPV) histories responded differently to vignettes wherein the violence initiator had aggressed previously. The overall pattern of results highlights that attributions about dating violence are complexly determined and contextualized, and that the form and relative symmetry of the violence may shape how incident- and observer-level variables impact evaluations of blame and justification.

Rates of sexual violence (SV) and dating violence (DV) are high on college campuses; federal law mandates colleges provide SV/DV prevention programming to incoming students. Programs showing the strongest empirical support are bystander programs; however, their small group format makes it impractical to use them with large student bodies. In a pilot feasibility study, we compared in-person and e-intervention SV/DV bystander intervention programs and randomly assigned 562 students to one of the programs. Students completed measures of knowledge and attitudes at 3 points over 6 months. Both groups changed significantly in the expected direction on all measures, with no differences between groups in change over time. Results suggest that e-interventions may be a viable alternative to in-person SV/DV programs for meeting federal mandates.

In the current study, the moderating effects of observed negative and positive affects on the association between intimate partner violence (IPV, physical aggression) and relationship satisfaction were examined over a 5-year period. Multiwave data were obtained from a sample of young adult men at risk for delinquency and their women partners (n = 121 couples; ages 21–26 years). The trajectory of each partner’s relationship satisfaction and the effects of dyadic IPV and affect were tested using HLM analyses and a two-level (within-couple and between-couple) dyadic growth model. Average levels of dyadic positive affect were associated with relationship satisfaction for both men and women. For men, increases in couples’ positive affect over time were linked to increases in relationship satisfaction, and increases in couples’ externalizing negative affect were linked to decreases in satisfaction. For women, higher levels of couples’ IPV predicted lower levels of satisfaction. Couples’ internalizing negative affect amplified the effects of IPV on satisfaction over time. Increases in IPV were associated with declines in satisfaction for couples with high levels of internalizing negative affect. Conversely, average levels of externalizing negative affect did not amplify the association between IPV and relationship satisfaction. In fact, the adverse influence of IPV on relationship satisfaction was greater for couples who displayed low levels of externalizing negative affect. Because of the inverse association between externalizing negative affect and relationship satisfaction, these findings were interpreted to suggest that the salience of IPV was greater in couples whose relationship satisfaction was not already impaired by high levels of negative affect.

In the culmination of 17 manuscripts by more than 40 scholars, the peer-reviewed journal Partner Abuse published the Partner Abuse State of Knowledge (PASK), the largest scholarly scientific inquiry to date regarding the current state of knowledge for intimate partner violence (IPV), over several issues between 2012 and 2013. The purpose of this current two-volume special issue of Partner Abuse is to build upon these efforts, as promising empirical evidence has continued to unfold. The focus in this series centers on evidence-based treatment for victim–survivors and perpetrators of IPV. This introduction manuscript reviews the historical context of IPV and the evolvement of traditional IPV policies, programs, and treatment models. It then presents a brief overview of our current state of empirical knowledge regarding these traditional models. Finally, it highlights the emerging and promising models that will be presented throughout this two-part series.

Practitioners working with male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) observe high rates of treatment dropout in their clientele, which can undermine their ability to reduce the occurrence of IPV. Studies have also mostly documented predictors of dropout from group-format IPV treatment programs, but not from individual-format treatment modalities. This study aimed to identify the predictors and key moments of dropout in 206 French-Canadian men seeking individual treatment for IPV. Results of Cox regression survival analyses indicate that age, education, employment, court-ordered treatment, adult attachment, and the number of perpetrated acts of psychological violence were significant predictors of dropout. Findings highlight the need to assess and target those predictors early in treatment to help men remain in therapy and prevent further use of IPV.

Grassroots movements during the 1970s established several types of emergency services for battered women seeking to find refuge from or leave an abusive relationship. As time went by, the range of services offered by these agencies grew to include counseling, legal services, outreach, and other services, and battered women can now access over 2,000 domestic violence (DV) agencies throughout the United States for assistance. At the same time, these services have come under increasing scrutiny for their inability or unwillingness to provide their existing services to some populations of intimate partner violence (IPV) victims. In this article, we focus on DV agencies’ ability to provide their services to various populations that have documented evidence of being underserved due to their age, gender, and/or sexual orientation. We present information on the percentage of agencies that report being able to provide victim-related services to each of these groups. We also consider various regional, state, and agency characteristics that may predict the availability of services to these underserved groups. Overall, agencies report that adolescents and men are the least likely groups to which they are able to provide their victim services. Results are discussed utilizing a human rights perspective that stresses that all IPV victims, regardless of age, sexual orientation, or gender, should have access to services provided by DV agencies.

Despite evidence that the incidence of female-to-male intimate partner violence (IPV) in the general population is as high as that of male-to-female intimate violence, until recently little attention has been devoted to understanding women perpetrators of partner violence or to the design of programs to address their violence. This study explored the characteristics of female perpetrators of IPV in an offender population and examined the context, consequences, and motives for their aggression. There were 897 women serving a federal sentence in the Correctional Service of Canada at the time of data extraction, of whom 15% (n = 135) had a history of IPV. Results indicated that these offenders were most often classified as moderate criminal risk and high criminogenic need. Most had been victims of severe abuse during their youth and in adult relationships. Women’s motives for violence were diverse. Although most women had a history of mutual violence with their partners, 64% were the primary perpetrators in at least 1 incident. Violence in self-defense or in defense of their children were the least frequently coded categories. Similar to a comparison group of male offenders, the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment tool indicated that the most common risk factors associated with women’s IPV included past physical assault against intimate partners, substance abuse, and employment problems. These findings reinforce the need for a correctional programming targeting the diverse circumstances and motivations of women who are violent against their partners.

This study sought to address underserved victims of sexual violence by examining reports of sexual violence, substance use, and help-seeking events among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) and heterosexual college students. There were 2,790 students (2,482 heterosexual students and 308 LGBQ students) across 4 years who completed an online, anonymous survey measuring self-reports of sexual violence, substance use, and help-seeking. Chi-square analyses and Fisher’s exact tests were conducted to determine differences in reports of sexual violence between LGBQ and heterosexual participants. Events reported by LGBQ students were significantly more likely to involve threatened sexual intercourse and sexual contact while intoxicated as compared to events reported by heterosexual students. Similar low rates of help-seeking following a sexual violence event were found among LGBQ and heterosexual victims, with most victims citing that the event was not serious enough to warrant help. LGBQ victims were significantly more likely to report that they did not seek help because they thought they would be blamed. Both LGBQ and heterosexual college students would benefit from education on issues of sexual violence, particularly the relationship between substance use and consent.

This case study examines the individual treatment of a 35-year-old Latino man of Mexican descent, living in Southern California at the time of his therapy. The primary treatment goal for this client was the eradication of violent and abusive behavior to his wife of 13 years, from whom he was divorced in the course of our work together, and to improve his self-knowledge and relationship skills for future intimate relationships. A secondary goal was to help him guide his children through the pain of the divorce and to establish a closer relationship with them. Using the treatment model Sin Golpes (Welland & Wexler, 2007), based on self-psychology and cognitive behavioral theories, our work focused on psychoeducation regarding partner abuse and human rights; self-management strategies; awareness of the connection between negative cognitions, anger, and abuse; exploration and transformation of gender roles, parenting skills, relationship skills, and the integration of spiritual teachings; and prevention of future violence. The client made significant progress and has not relapsed into partner violence in the past 5 years.

Within the context of a heterosexual relationship, participants (n = 197) read a police interview involving a claim of domestic violence that varied the gender of the victim. Within gender conditions, the victim’s previous history of response to the violence, and on the evening in question, was portrayed as either passive or active (i.e., fought back). Results support the notion of a prototypical domestic violence victim that has emerged within a gendered framework. Overall, the female victim was perceived in a more sympathetic light than the male victim was. Interaction effects showed that men, but not women, rated the male victim as more responsible for the assault than the female victim. Participant gender effects indicated that women rated the victim and their claim of victimization more favorably than men did. Implications within the courtroom are discussed.

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a pervasive issue that can have a variety of negative effects on those who have been victimized. Prior research shows that state-level laws have an impact on the extent of TDV; however, scant research has analyzed the variations in the language used in the legislation. The present study analyzes the existing state legislation for addressing TDV in schools and compares the content of the legislation. This study provides a detailed analysis of each of the states’ legislation. It examines differences in how states conceptualize TDV and provides details demonstrating the variations of state legislation. We utilized qualitative descriptive content analysis and purposive sampling with maximum variation. A total of 27 states have legislation to address TDV in schools. Findings demonstrate that states have great variation in legislation addressing TDV in schools. Some states appear to take a minimalistic approach in specifying legislation on how schools should address TDV, other states provide their schools with general guidelines to address TDV, and a few states provide very specific guidelines for schools to follow. This study is an important step to understanding what components of state TDV legislation in schools are most universal and might impact the prevalence of TDV. Future research is needed to identify the components of state TDV legislation that are related to impacting TDV prevalence.

This study was a longitudinal, naturalistic comparison of treatment completion and reoffense rates for two groups of offenders convicted of domestic violence (DV): Seventy-five men attending Spanish-language classes and 75 men attending English-language classes. Participant-specific background and psychosocial information, as well as alcohol and drug use, were assessed for influencing program success and DV reoffense. Overall, men who completed DV classes were less likely to reoffend than those who did not. Men in the Spanish-language group had better outcomes than men in the English-language group. In addition, substance use, timing of probation violations, employment, court re-referrals to DV classes, and previous DV convictions all had an impact on rate of class completion and/or reoffense. Psychosocial variables did not appear to influence outcomes.

It is estimated that upward of 15.5 million children live in homes where they are exposed to physical and psychological intimate partner violence (IPV). Research indicates that IPV can have deleterious effects on children, including a variety of psychosocial problems, although there is much variability in outcomes of children exposed to IPV. Individual characteristics of the parents involved in IPV may be an important predictor of negative psychosocial outcomes for children. The current study expanded upon prior research and examined the simultaneous associations of paternal characteristics, including paternal IPV perpetration, and child psychosocial functioning (i.e., externalizing, internalizing, and attentional problems) among 153 men arrested for domestic violence and court ordered to attend batterer intervention programs. Analyses examined the relations between paternal alcohol and drug use, antisocial personality traits, hostility, posttraumatic stress symptoms, distress tolerance, IPV perpetration, and men's ratings of their child's psychosocial functioning. Results indicated that poor overall child psychosocial functioning was positively related to paternal antisocial personality symptoms and hostility. Subscale analyses revealed that child attentional problems were positively related to paternal hostility. Child externalizing problems were positively associated with paternal antisocial personality symptoms. The implications of these findings for future research and intervention are discussed.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive issue, generating startling facts regarding its detrimental societal effects. There is also considerable overlap between witnessing IPV and experiencing childhood maltreatment. The current article reviews the state of the knowledge about the short- and long-term impact of witnessing IPV as well as a review of the literature exploring the unique impact of experiencing both IPV and maltreatment compared to witnessing only. Seventy-three articles were included in the present review. Negative outcomes in youth have been reported in both the internalizing and externalizing domains of functioning, in health and cognitive domains, as well as in youth’s relationships with family, peers, and romantic partners. The current literature suggests that these negative impacts persist into adulthood. Mixed results, whether there are significant additive effects of witnessing IPV and child maltreatment compared to witnessing IPV only, were found in youth and again into adulthood. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are suggested.

There is a growing impetus within the field of aggression research to further elucidate the risk factors, predictors, and correlates of dating violence (DV), particularly among dating couples. Of particular importance is understanding the proximal motivations, or reasons, for DV and whether these motivations differ for men and women. Research examining the motivations for DV has focused almost entirely on physical violence, and findings regarding gender differences in DV motivations have been mixed (Langhinrichsen-Rohling, McCullars, & Misra, 2012). To our knowledge, limited research has examined the motivations for psychological aggression among dating college students, and no research has directly compared men and women’s motivations for psychological aggression. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the motivations for psychological aggression among dating college students (N = 216), and whether these motivations differed by gender. Results demonstrated that expression of negative emotions, jealousy, and communication difficulties were the most frequently endorsed motive categories for both men and women. Men and women did not differ on any motive category. Despite the preliminary nature of this study, several research and clinical implications are addressed.

Mental health practitioners have a responsibility to provide effective interventions to all their clients, accounting for each client's cultural context and values relevant to their well-being. In this study, eight therapists who have worked with Iranian-immigrant intimate partner violence (IPV) clients were interviewed to answer two questions: (a) What have therapists who work in the United States learned about challenges of working with Iranian IPV clients living in the United States? and (b) What suggestions do these thera-pists have for improving services to Iranian IPV clients living in the United States? In response to this question, six main themes were found: (a) Clients' lack of knowledge, (b) cultural acceptance that men are not accountable for their behaviors/gender norms in patriarchal culture, (c) women's sense of disempowerment (victim's role), (d) clients do not disclose IPV due to a sense of obligation, (e) clients' fear of consequences of disclosing, and (f) clients' difficulty trusting therapists and the mental health field. In response to the second question, that is, what suggestions do these therapists have for improving the services to Iranian IPV clients living in the United States? three main themes emerged: (a) clients need for knowledge and psychoeducation, (b) the services for Iranian-immigrant clients are not culturally appropriate, (c) therapists need to have a broad perspective of clients. Results add to the understanding of IPV grounded in the Iranian immigrant culture and ultimately contribute to a culturally based conceptualization of IPV among Iranian immigrants to sensitize therapists regarding culturally appropriate interventions that reflect the concerns of the Iranian living in the United States.

Dating violence (DV) is a prominent problem among college students that can result in harmful physical and mental health outcomes. Though much research has focused on physical DV, fewer studies have examined psychological DV. As such, the current paper compared early/familial risk markers (e.g., child physical abuse, witnessing parental violence, and maternal relationship quality) and individual risk markers (e.g., alcohol use, marijuana and prescription drug use) for physical and psychological DV among college students. Data were gathered at two large public universities using pencil and paper surveys (N = 1,482). Bivariate results revealed more risk markers for men (e.g., more child physical abuse, more frequent drinking, more close friends who drink and more marijuana and prescription drug use) compared to women. Multivariate results showed that familial risk markers were generally most important for explaining physical DV victimization and perpetration whereas individual risk markers were more salient for explaining psychological DV victimization and perpetration. Findings highlight the contribution of both early/familial and individual risk markers for understanding psychological and physical DV victimization and perpetration among college students.

This study examines court records of 244 defendants assigned to court-connected treatment to determine whether “defendant-initiated diversion” offenders recidivated less than defendants who were mandated by the court to undergo treatment. The study population consisted of 140 defendants who voluntarily opted to participate in a domestic violence (DV) court diversion program and 104 convicted offenders who were ordered by the court to complete treatment as part of their sentence of probation. Defendants who had prior felony or DV convictions were not accepted into the diversion program. A logit model analysis revealed a statistically significant negative relationship between diversion completion and DV recidivism during the 24 months after treatment completion or case closure. These results illustrate the importance of including defendant-initiated diversion for low risk offenders as part of a court system strategy to address DV.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a prevalent issue among veteran populations. Strength at Home (SAH) is a 12-week cognitive behavioral and trauma-informed group intervention shown to reduce IPV among veterans via a randomized controlled trial and several implementation and pilot studies. The program is currently being implemented nationally in the Department of Veterans Affairs, with initial data showing that clients evidence significant reductions in physical and psychological IPV, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and alcohol misuse. The present study explored the subjective experience of veterans who participated in SAH during this rollout. Following their final group session, participants completed a treatment satisfaction survey. A qualitative thematic analysis of 291 surveys was conducted to evaluate (a) if SAH led participants to pursue other intervention; (b) what participants perceived as most beneficial about the program; (c) what participants perceived as least beneficial about the program; and (d) the ways in which SAH impacted their lives. These evaluations shed light on which aspects of the program may be most and least impactful, which may be utilized to modify and enhance the SAH program to best address the needs of individuals using and experiencing IPV.

Among a number of recommendations and standards related to interventions for perpetrators of intimate partner violence is a clear implication that male and female offenders should receive gender specific services. Such segregation often assumes a potential danger to or exacerbation of victimization for the women or else identifies such distinct etiologies for violent behaviors that the treatment needs must be equally disparate. Described herein is a program that provides services for men and women in the same setting. Supporting this intervention is the belief that a significant number of those referred experience similar motivation for their thoughts, feelings, and actions and that therapeutic response will be correspondingly similar. Further, because people live, work, and play in mixed settings, it is more realistic and, it is hoped, more therapeutic to consider—and practice—changes in mixed settings as well. Pertinent factors in conducting these groups are presented, as are one presenter’s perspective on advantages and disadvantages of such a structure. Finally, considerations for research are offered.

Interventions for men who perpetrate intimate partner violence (IPV) have historically been relatively ineffective at reducing or stopping subsequent IPV. However, there are several strong theoretical reasons that suggest Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), an intervention that emphasizes the use of mindfulness and aims to foster psychological flexibility, may be particularly well-suited to interrupting the factors that maintain IPV. The goal of the present article is to review the evidence for the application of ACT to target IPV. In addition, empirical studies that have, to date, shown promising initial support for a targeted intervention (Achieving Change Through Values-Based Behavior; ACTV) are reviewed. The implications for using ACT-based skills with perpetrators of IPV are discussed, along with potential future directions and further applications of ACT to hard-to-treat populations.

Previous research suggests that intimate partner violence (IPV) is a complex phenomenon that may be better understood through typological explanations. Notably, different IPV subtypes are likely to be differently related to the causes and consequences of violence. However, most typologies focus exclusively on male-perpetrated IPV and are based on highly selective samples. The aim of the current study was to define an empirically derived IPV typology that is gender-inclusive and allows for the identification of both gender symmetric and asymmetric IPV subtypes. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used as an objective method to identify the subtypes in a sample of victims of physical or sexual IPV (N = 856) from the Finnish National Crime Victim Survey (FNCVS). Five variables were used as the basis of the classification: gender of the victim, control-seeking by the perpetrator, the generality of the perpetrator's violent behavior, substance use by the perpetrator, and the bidirectionality of the violence in the relationship. The results reveal three IPV classes: IPV-only perpetrator (IOP), substance-related violence (SRV), and generally violent and controlling perpetrator (GVC). In the IOP class, the gender distribution of the victims was equal, whereas the two other classes were experienced predominately by women. Moreover, the classes were differentially associated with injuries and police reporting. While the current study replicates some previous findings, the finding of SRV as a separate IPV subtype is novel. Overall, the current study provides support for the general idea of several types of IPV, which should be acknowledged both in future research and intervention policies.

Psychological abuse between intimate partners is common and is an important area of inquiry. The present study sought to develop and validate the Cyber Psychological Abuse (CPA) scale to assess psychological abuse during arguments between romantic partners using cell phones, e-mail, computers, and through social networking sites. A sample of 271 undergraduate students who were currently in romantic relationships completed a series of measures in an online survey. Results indicated a 2-factor structure of the CPA scale (minor and severe cyber abuse). Cyber psychological abuse was very common with 93% of college students perpetrating and being victimized by minor cyber abuse (e.g., swearing, insulting, or “shouting” with capital letters) during arguments in their current romantic relationships. Severe cyber psychological abuse (e.g., threats or public humiliation) was less common with 12%–13% of college students reporting such abuse. No gender differences were found for minor cyber abuse, but males were more likely to report being victimized by severe cyber abuse than females. The CPA’s victimization and perpetration scales showed an expected pattern of associations with previously validated abuse and aggression measures as well as with perceived stress levels. Minor cyber abuse on the CPA scale predicted levels of perceived stress over and above physical abuse. The results of the current study provide a preliminary demonstration of the validity of the CPA scale, which appears to be an internally consistent and valid measure for capturing psychological partner abuse as it occurs in an electronic context.

The current study examined college students’ perceptions of male victims compared to female victims in a female abuser–male victim scenario and a male abuser–female victim scenario. Victim blaming, minimization of the seriousness of the abuse, and body size perceptions and how gender-role traditionality (GRT) affects these perceptions were investigated. Male victims were blamed as the victim more and their abuse was minimized more compared to female victims. These differences were moderated by GRT. Only the female victim and abuser varied in body size perceptions, and these perceptions were also moderated by GRT. Males blamed the victim and minimized the seriousness of the abuse more than did females. Implications for intervention programs and new directions in IPV research are discussed.

Previous research has identified men’s level of anger as one of the predictors of intimate partner violence (IPV). However, few studies have tried to empirically explore the underlying factors influencing anger in men who perpetrate IPV. Objective: The purpose of this study is to identify the contribution of attachment style to the level of anger experienced by men perpetrators of IPV. Method: Eighty men enrolled in IPV therapy completed self-report questionnaires of attachment and anger. Result: Multiple regressions revealed that avoidant and anxious attachment styles had a significant influence in explaining anger in violent men. Conclusion: These findings indicate the importance of considering attachment style in the understanding and treatment of anger in IPV perpetrators.

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) silently pervades Bhutanese women's lives and is closely linked to the country's unique collectivist societal structure. There is a dearth of empirical research identifying and addressing barriers to help-seeking for women who experience IPV in Bhutan. This study sought to gain an in-depth understanding of the factors that influence and prevent Bhutanese women in IPV relationships from seeking help. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 Bhutanese women experiencing IPV and accessing counseling at Respect, Educate, Nurture, and Empower Women (RENEW). RENEW is a nonprofit organization that provides support services to women affected by IPV. Qualitative data analysis revealed five themes that represent barriers to seeking help for IPV experienced by Bhutanese women. These themes are (1) Perceived stigma: I don't want to bring a bad name … what will they think of me?', (2) Children's well-being: I need to think of my child's school, food, clothes, (3) Limited understanding of IPV: He did not cause any physical harm …. there was no beating, (4) Limited knowledge of support sources: ‘I was not sure whether they would entertain my issue or not, and (5) Lack of support: They didn't do anything to stop him. This study reveals novel insights about the importance of IPV knowledge among Bhutanese women and supportive responses from different sources such as informal and formal networks to facilitate women's help-seeking behaviors. It provides evidence for relevant stakeholders and service sectors to develop programs and policies appropriate and responsive to the needs of Bhutanese women experiencing IPV.

Although psychological aggression has been identified as a risk factor for physical aggression, the prevalence of psychological aggression is much higher than that of physical aggression. To further understand the relationship between psychological and physical aggression, the level of psychological aggression at which physical aggression becomes more likely was evaluated. A representative sample of 268 men and 299 women responded anonymously to a self-report measure of aggression (revised Conflict Tactics Scale [CTS-2]) at baseline, and then 1 year later. Using both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses, this study evaluated the level of psychological aggression that is necessary before it is likely that one will be physically aggressive. When one was at the 80th percentile of psychological aggression, there was a 70% probability that a man would be physically aggressive and 85% probability that a woman would be physically aggressive. Longitudinally, when one was at the 80th percentile of psychological aggression at Time 1, there was a 40% probability that a man would be physically aggressive and 45% probability that a woman would be physically aggressive at Time 2. CTS-2 psychological decile scores are provided along with the probability of physical aggression to assist clinicians in interpreting client scores. Implications for research and couples therapy are discussed.

Of the probable psychological or neuropsychological vulnerabilities or risks in domestic violence perpetration, deficits in executive function may be one of the least explored. This integrative review contains overviews of domestic violence theory, the literature on psychological and neuropsychological risk for violence, the literature on executive function, and the literature on coping. The neuropsychology and neuroanatomy of violence typically involves deficits in the frontal lobes and their role in cognition and impulse control and/or excessive activation of the limbic structures with their role of mediating primary emotions and drive-related behavior. Domestic violence perpetration can be understood as maladaptive and destructive coping, symptomatic of disorders of impulsivity, neuropsychological impairment, and emotional dysfunction activated within the context of intimacy or primary relationships, often (if not usually) exacerbated by substance abuse or dependency. Conceptualizing domestic violence perpetration as maladaptive coping, impaired by executive deficits, psychopathology, often worsened by substance abuse, opens up a wide range of alternative intervention strategies. Instead of assuming (often incorrectly) that a perpetrator’s intentions are only patriarchal domination, careful assessment of neuropsychological vulnerability and coping abilities can lead to both a more accurate picture of risk as well as guided change strategies. Assessment of executive function can provide a framework for understanding and improving both the cognitive capabilities of perpetrators to form and use adaptive strategies as well as their abilities to manage or inhibit affective arousal to violence.

This study examined the relations among involvement in intimate partner psychological abuse, alcohol-related problems, and suicide proneness as measured by the Life Attitudes Schedule—Short Form (LAS-SF) in college women (N = 709). Results revealed that, as expected, being involved in a psychologically abusive relationship was significantly and positively correlated with alcohol-related problems and alcohol-related problems were significantly and positively correlated with suicide proneness. Additionally, the intimate partner psychological abuse involvement-suicide proneness link was significantly mediated by alcohol-related problems. Implications are offered for the improved identification and treatment of young women at risk for suicidal and health-diminishing behaviors.

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.

Economic violence (EV) or financial violence (FV) is one form of intimate partner violence (IPV), which has received less attention from scholars, policymakers, and social work practitioners. This study explores and describes the lived experiences of 24 rural Ghanaian women with economic violence within intimate partner relationships as wives, mothers, co-wives, and girlfriends. A qualitative methodology utilized a purposeful sample of 24 self-identified female victims as participants aged 20–50 years from three different rural communities in the southeastern region of Ghana. Data collected through individual semi-structured in-depth face-to-face interviews and data analysis utilized a qualitative thematic content analysis approach using Miles, Huberman, and Saldana (2014)'s thematic process. Data analysis identifies four main themes namely: (1) Exploitation of family resources; (2) Refusal of spouse/partner to support economic activities; (3) Not benefiting from commonly acquired marital properties; and 4) Inadequate reward for contributions. The article discusses policy implications, mental health interventions and suggestions for the provision of professional services and programs to increase the socioeconomic development of rural communities in Ghana.

Rates of female-perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV) have been historically underestimated. Although much of the empirical literature has focused on male perpetration, there has been a more recent interest in understanding the etiology of female-perpetrated IPV. Although emotion regulation has received attention in predicting risk for violence perpetration for both men and women, less is known regarding cognitive factors that influence perpetration risk. Furthermore, interactive effects that account for both self-regulatory and cognitive factors have remained largely unexplored. This study looks at the interactive effect of emotion regulation and world assumptions in predicting IPV perpetration in a community sample of females. Consistent with previous research, emotion regulation difficulties were significantly related to greater physical and psychological perpetration. Moderation analyses revealed that holding strong beliefs that one can and should be in control of oneself amplified the relationship between emotion dysregulation and IPV perpetration that was both psychological and physical in nature. Contrary to predictions, enhanced risk for physical IPV perpetration was also observed among those with high levels of emotion regulation difficulties and greater assumptions that the world is a benevolent place. Clinical and theoretical implications are discussed.

This article describes our attachment narrative approach to systemic couples therapy in which we help couples repair their relationship in the aftermath once the physical violence has stopped. Using a case study example from therapeutic practice, this article outlines the complex legacies of interpersonal violence for couple relationships, such as unresolved trauma responses and losses, lingering fears, shame and humiliation, responsibility for safety and harm, forgiveness, apology and reconciliation, the meaning of love, and commitment and hope for the future. Helping couples stop the violence is often the first part of the therapy (Vetere, 2011). If a couple choose to stay together, they need support to confront these complex legacies and the impact on their development and that of their children, as part of a process of healing.

The Peaceful Families Project (PFP) is a domestic violence prevention organization that was established in response to a critical need in the U.S. Muslim community, which has only begun to openly discuss and tackle issues related to domestic violence in the last 10 to 15 years. The organization utilizes education and training as the primary means of addressing domestic violence in Muslim communities. Although Muslims in the United States are a diverse population, they are united by certain common beliefs and values that can be utilized in domestic violence prevention. Educational materials and programs focus on highlighting teachings and values from within the Islamic paradigm to address attitudes and behaviors among Muslims that may contribute to the occurrence of abuse within the family. Technical assistance and trainings are also offered to mainstream service providers to increase their ability to deliver culturally sensitive and appropriate services to Muslim communities. By targeting individuals, families, Muslim leaders, and mainstream service providers, PFP seeks to create systemic change in an effort to make a real contribution toward ending domestic violence.

This study examined implicit and explicit attitudes toward the use of violence and their capacity to predict past and future partner-directed aggression in a college dating sample. Implicit and explicit intimate partner violence (IPV) attitudes were measured and compared based on how well they identified self-reported past IPV and predicted expressed aggressive intent following a simulated dating scenario. Male and female participants (N = 106) completed self-report measures of IPV perpetration history and dating violence attitudes as well as an implicit association measure of violence attitudes. Participants were then randomly assigned to a simulated jealousy or neutral relationship scenario and subsequently indicated their desire to perpetrate physical aggression in response to it. The results indicated that implicit, but not explicit, violence attitudes predicted past-year physical IPV perpetration. Although implicit violence attitudes predicted laboratory aggression regardless of relationship provocation cues, the explicit violence attitudes only predicted aggression when relationship provocation was salient. These findings provide further evidence regarding the utility of an implicit attitudes measure in IPV risk assessment, suggest the need for additional research regarding their integration with self-report measures for predicting violence-related behavior, and have implications for investigations aimed at disrupting problematic violence attitudes.

Recent evidence suggests that victims of dating violence consume alcohol at greater rates than their nonvictimized peers, placing them at risk for the negative consequences produced by alcohol use. Thus, research that examines factors that protect victims from consuming alcohol is needed. Toward this end, the present study sought to examine whether perceived support served as a stress-buffering (moderating) variable on the relationship between dating violence victimization and alcohol problems among a sample of currently dating college students (N = 440). Partial support was found for the stress-buffering effect of perceived support, but this varied depending on the type of victimization examined. Implications of these findings for victim interventions and dating violence prevention programming are discussed.

Partner violence is prevalent in contemporary society, and certain groups of individuals such as college students are particularly at high risk for becoming involved in aggressive relationships. Cyber aggression is an emerging area of societal concern; however, little is known about the prevalence of these online behaviors between romantic partners. Because of the dearth of literature on cyber aggression among current and former intimate partners, this study examines the correlates of partner cyber aggression using the routine activities theoretical perspective among a sample of undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university. The results revealed that 71% of respondents perpetrated and 75% were victimized by at least one aggressive cyber behavior during the past 12 months. Correlates of partner abusive cyber aggression included athletic participation, increased time online, more text messages received, experiencing sexual abuse, lower self-esteem, being drunk more often, and more online guardianship; receiving more texts, experiencing more physical abuse, and more online guardianship were associated with cyber aggression victimization. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings were also discussed.

The debate concerning the Duluth model of domestic violence policy has centered on its assumptions concerning gender and its limitations as conceptual basis for practice. Here we both broaden and deepen that analysis by exploring the institutional context and political use of language that maintain the hegemony of that model. Particular attention is devoted to how the Duluth policy and practice framework produces a cynical and fatalistic view of both perpetrators and victims. Causal attribution to the vague construct “patriarchy” both ignores empirically supported risk factors as well as strips clients of their uniqueness and autonomy. This is juxtaposed with the common factors theory of therapeutic interventions, which calls attention to how acknowledging client strengths and instilling hope can produce superior outcomes.

The current research explored whether interpersonal problems (IP) and family of origin relations mediate the association between attachment dimensions and intimate partner violence (IPV). The participants included 55 females in treatment for IPV as part of their probation. We examined the mediation relationships using a bootstrapping multiple mediation method. Results indicated that IP but not family type, significantly mediated the relationship between avoidant attachment, but not anxious attachment and IPV. Greater attachment avoidance was associated with higher levels of IP, which in turn, were associated with higher physical violence toward an intimate male partner. Several alternative models were tested resulting in nonsignificant mediation analyses, thus, lending support to the validity of the attachment avoidant mediation model. Suggestions were offered for treatment relevant to the results.

Debate continues on the appropriate theoretical framework for understanding behavior change in abusive intimate partner relationships. The purpose of this review was to identify theories applied to relationship abuse experiences of survivors, to uncover conceptual factors that support safety behaviors, and to discuss how results can be used to inform the development of a conceptual framework for evaluation of interventions for survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). A rapid review of peer-reviewed published articles on IPV, safety behavior, and theory through two online databases (i.e., PubMed, Scopus) identified 1,604 citations; 143 articles underwent full-text data extraction, and 32 meet criteria for inclusion. Outcomes focused on safety behaviors but also included decision-making, coping strategies, stages of change, ending abuse, and leaving the relationship. The Transtheoretical Model was used most frequently. Despite variation in specification of outcomes of interest, elements that contributed to safety behaviors were similar across articles and included intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental factors. More work to identify the scope and relationship of conceptual factors that facilitate safety behaviors is needed. The limited published literature provides valuable insights into the range of factors, but homogeneity of samples across articles limited our ability to draw concrete conclusions regarding factors facilitating safety among diverse populations and settings.

Despite considerable research on the predictive accuracy of risk scales, there is limited research exploring other factors that influence perceptions of risk. We recruited participants (N = 1,955) from Amazon's Mechanical Turk to read a vignette about a fictional intimate partner violence offender, varying risk level on a fictional scale (low or high), perpetrator gender (cis male, cis female, or transgender female), victim gender (cis male or cis female), and mental health diagnosis (none, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or anxiety disorder). The strongest effect was for the risk scale, with offenders perceived as highest risk when the scale reported “high risk” as opposed to “low risk.” The other main effects were also statistically significant. Cases were perceived as riskier when the perpetrator was cis male or the victim was cis female. Regarding mental health diagnosis, the highest risk ratings were provided in the schizophrenia condition. There was also a significant interaction among risk level, perpetrator gender, and diagnosis. The extent to which participants relied on gendered stereotypes about the relationship between mental illness and violence when providing risk judgments should be examined in future research. Overall, these findings enhance our understanding of characteristics that are secondary to risk level but are likely to influence case management decisions in cases of intimate partner violence.

The purpose of this study was to identify the therapeutic landscapes of immigrant Latina survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). The rate of IPV among Latinas is alarming and research has documented the effects of IPV on the survivor’s mental health. Immigrant Latina women possess vulnerability factors that compound their ability to receive treatment. Notably, therapeutic landscapes serve to foster recovery yet research has not identified these places for immigrant Latinas. Our qualitative study aimed to fill this gap. Our findings include four themes: Places of worship, places of social support, places of empowerment, places of freedom. Implications for practice within a cultural context are discussed.

Although partner abuse is well established as destructive societal problem, partner abuse among adolescents and young adults has only recently gained attention. Entitlement is a concept regularly evoked in the dating abuse literature. Much of the literature on dating partner abuse focuses on adolescent/young adult victimization, whereas perpetration is less well understood. This study examined sense of entitlement and its relationship to various types of abuse, including economic, emotional, physical, and sexual. Sense of entitlement was positively correlated with all types of abuse and was a better predictor of abusive behaviors than other variables in the regression model. Implications address how, including how assessing and addressing entitlement can enhance both partner abuse prevention and intervention efforts.

This study sought to review the extant literature on effectiveness and safety associated with orders of protection from abuse. Forty-three scholarly articles were reviewed and placed in a table representing four themes, including (a) victim safety and effectiveness (as measured by protective order [PO] violations and revictimization); (b) perceptions of victim satisfaction, safety, and psychological well-being; (c) predictors and characteristics of victims, perpetrators; and (d) the enforcement of POs. Results suggest that approximately 40%–50% of POs are violated. Although some large-scale studies have found significant reductions in revictimization, a larger number of smaller community samples have found physical and psychological abuse increases upon issuance of a PO. Research on perceived safety and effectiveness suggests female victims feel safer when POs are issued and find them effective. Issues associated with enforcement demonstrate difficulty enforcing and POs. Issues of public policy and directions for future research are discussed.

In this article, we report on a pilot study of Strength at Home-Couples (SAH-C), a 10-session cognitive-behavioral couples-based group intervention designed to prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) in military couples. The primary purposes of this pilot study were to determine feasibility of recruiting, retaining, and assessing SAH-C participants in addition to those participating in a comparison Supportive Therapy (ST) group-based couples intervention. Recruitment was challenging for this pilot study and we report on several barriers to recruitment as well as “lessons learned” for enhancing recruitment and overall intervention efforts. Preliminary pilot data were promising with respect to reductions and prevention of IPV in those receiving the SAH-C intervention. Initial results for the secondary intervention targets were less favorable for the SAH-C intervention, with effect sizes suggesting a trend in which relationship satisfaction increased more in the ST intervention.

The gender paradigm is the view that most domestic violence (DV) is maleperpetrated against females (and children) in order to maintain patriarchy. Based on functionalist sociology, it has been the prominent DV perspective in North America and Western Europe, framing criminal justice policy to DV, court understanding of DV, court disposition of DV perpetrators to psychoeducational groups, and custody decisions. Research evidence contradicts every major tenet of this belief system: female DV is more frequent than male DV, even against nonviolent partners, there is no overall relationship of control to DV, and abuse perpetrators who use intimate partner violence (IPV) for coercive instrumental reasons are both male and female. Research supporting the gender paradigm is typically based on self-selected samples (victims from women’s shelters and men from court-mandated groups) and then inappropriately generalized to community populations. The gender paradigm is a closed system, unresponsive to major disconfirming data sets, and takes an antiscience stance consistent with a cult. In this article, I compare the responses of this gender cult to other cults and contrast it with a scientific response to contradictory data.

The domestic violence research indicates two different approaches to victims. On one hand, it is argued that violence is a masculine or patriarchal mechanism of control and superiority based on research that shows higher rates of male violence toward women than vice versa. On the other hand, there is ample research that supports the claim of those patterns of violence and rates of victimization are equal between the genders. These contradictory findings call for a systematic review and a meta-analysis of the empirical data in order to establish the extent and directionality of victimization and abuse in violent relationships. To provide a more nuanced overview of this phenomenon, the present review examines the frequency of physical violence in different types of heterosexual relationships—dating, cohabitation, and marriage—according to national surveys and victim self-reports. The analysis is limited to sources in Hebrew and English. The searching procedure and criteria applied in selecting the studies generated 55 published studies from 36 countries. The main conclusion of the review is that the extent and directionality of violence vary with the type of relationship: while dating was reported to have higher rates of male victimization, in cohabitation and marital relationships, females reported higher levels of victimization rather. This article addresses the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

Traditionally recognized as “violence against women,” the research literature on intimate partner violence/abuse (IPV/A; also known as domestic violence) continually neglects to incorporate subculture populations that do not fit societal understanding of typical victim/offender roles. More than 4 decades of research has expanded our knowledge of IPV/A in Western and developing countries across race, ethnicity, religion, and socioeconomic status. However, identifying the prevalence of IPV/A across all manner of relationships has been difficult. In particular, IPV/A within the transgender population has remained practically invisible. Although frequently recognized as an appendage of lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations, trans people are often overlooked in research because of their invisibility within society. Research that does exist is rarely generalizable because of sample size and selection. Therefore, research is required to assess how trans people are affected by IPV/A, what they understand IPV/A to be, what needs are trans-specific, and what help-seeking barriers exist.

An analysis of the literature pertaining to trans people regarding IPV/A and other violence, health, and public relations as well as experiences with law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and judiciary in an attempt to identify any issues that could be relevant to trans people experiencing IPV/A is presented. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Whereas intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrated by men against women has been studied at length, relatively little attention has been given to violence perpetrated by women against their male intimate partners. This study represents one of relatively few attempts to better understand the experiences of male IPV victims. Specifically, this study explored the characteristics of men who obtain and withdraw a protection order against a female intimate partner, in comparison to those men who obtain and do not withdraw the order. We also looked at the reasons men cite for obtaining and withdrawing a protection order and the types of relief granted by the court. Findings from this study revealed that men who requested protection from abuse (PFA) against female intimate partners experienced a pattern of victimization prior to their requests for protection, including physical, psychological, or emotional abuse. Although, each of these men sought and was granted a “no abuse, stalk, or threaten” order, few of them were able to obtain temporary custody of children they had in common with the defendant, nor were they successful in getting defendants evicted from the home or getting the court to order defendants to relinquish their firearms. A comparison of men who withdrew their PFAs to those who did not withdraw them suggested that men who did not withdraw their PFAs perceived their abusive situations as being more serious. Implications for future research are discussed.

In this review, we provide a descriptive and detailed review of intervention programs for intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrators and survivor-victims. Given the extensive personal, interpersonal, and societal costs associated with IPV, it is essential that services being offered by the criminal justice, mental health, and medical communities have requisite empirical support to justify their implementation. The review involved a detailed summary of all studies published since 1990 using randomized or quasi-experimental designs that compared an active intervention program to a relevant comparison condition. These studies included 20 studies investigating the effectiveness of “traditional” forms of batterer intervention programs (BIPs) aimed at perpetrators of IPV, 10 studies that investigated the effectiveness of alternative formats of BIPs, 16 studies of brief intervention programs for IPV victim-survivors, and 15 studies of more extended intervention programs for IPV victim-survivors. Interventions for perpetrators showed equivocal results regarding their ability to lower the risk of IPV, and available studies had many methodological flaws. More recent investigations of novel programs with alternative content have shown promising results. Among interventions for victim-survivors of IPV, a range of therapeutic approaches have been shown to produce enhancements in emotional functioning, with the strongest support for cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) approaches in reducing negative symptomatic effects of IPV. Supportive advocacy in community settings has been shown to reduce the frequency of revictimization relative to no-treatment controls, although rates of revictimization remain alarmingly high in these studies. Brief interventions for victim-survivors have had more complex and less consistently positive effects. Several studies have found significant increases in safety behaviors, but enhanced use of community resources is often not found. It remains unclear whether brief safety interventions produce longer term reduction in IPV revictimization. Discussion summarizes the general state of knowledge on interventions for IPV perpetrators and victim-survivors and important areas for future research.

A critical examination is needed of the often mandated one-size-fits-all Duluth intervention for male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV). The underlying philosophy of Duluth-based interventions is evaluated as well as the treatment outcome literature for this intervention. There is very little evidence to justify the current legal system practice of mandating all perpetrators to psychological interventions addressing power and control issues. A literature review of scientific findings with IPV perpetrators and the issues that need to be taken into consideration in developing alternative evidence-based interventions are presented. The evidence seems to favor heterogeneity and not homogeneity with respect to both type of perpetrator and type of violence. Assessment and treatment suggestions are made to address this evidence-based heterogeneity and a call is made to those responsible to stop perpetuating the practice of mandating all perpetrators to attend a single intervention for which there is very limited evidence of effectiveness. About two-thirds of male perpetrators of IPV cease being physically aggressive against their partners if they are assigned to a probation officer, but there is minimal evidence that the addition of a Duluth-based intervention makes perpetration less likely.

Objective: Addressing violence and linking women to community services in parallel with drug change goals is critical for women with coexisting intimate partner violence (IPV) and substance use disorders (SUD). Our objective was to develop a Web-based intervention to address violence and drug use among women patients in the emergency department (ED). Methods: The intervention was developed in a 5-step process: (1) Initial intervention development based on selected theoretical frameworks; (2) In-depth interviews with the target population; (3) Intervention adaptation, with iterative feedback from further interviews; (4) Beta testing and review by an advisory committee of domestic violence advocates; (5) Acceptability and feasibility testing in a small open trial. Results: Themes supported the selection of motivational interviewing (MI) and empowerment models but also guided major adaptations to the intervention, including the introduction of videos and a more robust booster phone call. Participants in the open trial reported high scores for satisfaction, usability, and consistency with essential elements of MI. Conclusions: This qualitative work with our target population of women in the ED with SUD experiencing IPV underscored the importance of connection to peers and empathetic human contact. We developed an acceptable and feasible intervention distinct from prior ED-based brief interventions for substance-using populations.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue causing significant morbidity, mortality, and economic burden to its victims and society. Prior research suggests that bidirectional or reciprocal IPV perpetration (cases in which both partners perpetrate IPV toward the other) is common and more serious than unidirectional IPV. However, little is known about the characteristics of individuals and couples who engage in bidirectional versus unidirectional IPV.

Using Waves I and III of Add Health, a large, nationally representative sample of young adults, we compared characteristics of perpetrators of bidirectional and unidirectional physical IPV perpetration to each other and to nonperpetrators across a range of variables.

Among study participants, 18.3% reported IPV perpetration in their most recent important relationship, and 65.4% of that was bidirectional, meaning the participant also reported that their partner perpetrated against them. Bivariate analyses showed that both types of perpetrators—bidirectional and unidirectional—differed significantly from nonperpetrators on nearly all variables examined. In multivariate analyses, seven variables were related to bidirectional versus unidirectional IPV perpetration at the .05 level: sex, violent delinquency, substance use, poor grades, depression, having had sex in the relationship, and cohabitation status. There were few sex differences in variables related to reciprocity; only three variables showed differential correlation with reciprocity (early sexual initiation, depression, partner age difference); and only one (depression) remained significant in multivariate models, indicating that the correlates of IPV reciprocity were largely similar for men and women.

Psychological aggression is a devastating and prevalent problem in college dating relationships. In fact, most students in dating relationships experience psychological aggression each year. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of research on proximal risk factors for psychological aggression among females specifically. Knowing the conditions under which psychological aggression is most likely to occur will aid researchers and clinicians in developing and implementing more effective prevention programs. The current study descriptively examined proximal factors to psychological aggression perpetration among female undergraduate students (N = 97). Findings showed that most psychological aggression occurred during the period from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., while participants were alone with their partners, and on the weekend. Participants reported a diverse number of motivations for perpetrating psychological aggression, with a lack of emotion regulation being an especially prominent motivation. Implications of these findings for future research and prevention programming are discussed.

A debate persists regarding the effectiveness of batterer intervention programs (BIPs), the predominant form of intervention for individuals who have perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV). Social science research has identified some promising research trends—for example, the effectiveness of motivational interviewing and process factors that maintain an effective therapist–client alliance, what clients say facilitators can do to keep them engaged and motivated, and, for certain low-risk populations, the viability of couples counseling. Unfortunately, most frontline treatment providers lack access to much of this research, which appears primarily in peer-reviewed journals. A previous national survey of BIPs reported that, on the whole, BIP group facilitators have ample clinical experience, but are poorly informed about IPV risk factors and dynamics; and while they report substantial training, the nature of that training, and the extent to which the training accurately reflects current research, remains unknown. BIPs, and most treatment providers, including licensed mental health professionals, depend on organizations who too often lack reliable, up-to-date information about domestic violence. The Association of Domestic Violence Intervention Providers (ADVIP) was created by the first author to provide a platform where researchers and providers could cooperate by exchanging information and resources. This article reports on findings from a larger follow-up to the 2016 survey, that sought to elicit views on how to increase cooperation between domestic violence scholars and treatment providers and advance evidence-based practice, and to gauge the role of ADVIP in this effort.

Resilience is gaining attention in trauma research, but how it is conceptualized across studies often differs. Further, limited empirical research has been conducted on group-level resilience factors in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). The current study assessed resilience using two models (i.e., social-ecological and “bounce back”) by investigating how resilience resource variables across the social ecology cluster together and relate to an individual's ability to bounce back after experiencing IPV. Latent profile analysis was used to generate profiles of individual (spirituality), social (social support, community cohesion), cultural (ethnic identity), and physical (use of public assistance) resources consistent with the social-ecological model of resilience. Differences among the latent profiles on overall resilience scores were investigated. Participants were 160 women (M_age = 34.7, 69% Black-identified, 75% with yearly household income less than $20,000) who experienced IPV in the past 6 months. Four resource profiles emerged: (a) generally high (GH); (b) low individual and cultural (LIC); (c) high physical (HP); and (d) low social (LS). The GH profile reported significantly higher resilience than the LIC profile. Findings suggest nuanced variations in resources among women experiencing adversity. These varied resource profiles relate to unique differences in resilience among women exposed to IPV. Based on these findings, interventions to address IPV may be most impactful if they promote stronger ethnic identity and increased spirituality. Future research should build on this work by utilizing more systems-level conceptualizations of resilience and including factors that capture not only physical resources, but also individual, social, and cultural resources.

This article reviews a unique 50 session domestic abuse prevention program for male aggressors that centers on the known principles of neuroplastic change. Neuroplastic change (also referred to as LTP: long-term potentiation) represents how brain structures at the level of individual neurons, the synapses between neurons, and the networks of neurons that create actual behavior can be permanently altered, both unintentionally and through directed conscious effort. The author has designed and implemented a program which allows clients to create individualized brain change plans intended to lessen the probability for future acts of domestic violence. This emphasis also sidesteps client oppositionality by allowing clients to take control over their recovery.

Over the last five years, a new paradigm has emerged in social services. Numerous social service providers are now being asked to provide treatment within a framework of trauma-informed care. Trauma-informed services recognize the pervasive impact of current and previous violence on the everyday lives of many clients. Such services prioritize the establishment of a safe, trusting relationship where trauma can be disclosed. Trauma-informed services also account for the potential effects of clients’ experiences of violence and trauma on their relationship to treatment and to treatment providers. This article describes trauma-informed services and the potential that Motivational Interviewing (MI), an evidence-based, client-centered, and guiding communication style, holds for utilization within trauma-informed work. A case vignette is provided which demonstrates primary MI skills that can be used to create a climate of safety and trust, and effectively elicit and strengthen clients’ motivation for change. A discussion of the case and ethical aspects associated with MI in trauma-informed work is also provided. In addition, suggestions are made as to the potential MI holds for further use with traumatized clients.

Applying a community-based participatory research approach and with the aim of developing a culturally competent program to reduce intimate partner violence (IPV) in the Latino population, 3 focus groups were conducted with Latino health promoters and male and female community members. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data collected on help-seeking behaviors and needed programs for IPV. Results reflect the need for more prevention and intervention programs that are consistent with Latinos’ cultural values such as their strong family and spiritual orientations. Limitations of the study are also addressed.

Understanding factors associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) treatment attendance is of particular importance given high rates of attrition from IPV counseling programs. Individuals who drop out from IPV counseling remain at an increased risk for recidivism. Although numerous studies have examined correlates of IPV treatment completion in civilian samples, no study to date has examined IPV treatment attendance in veterans. Thus, we sought to examine demographic, military, and diagnostic correlates of IPV session attendance in Veterans seeking IPV treatment. The current study examined data from 135 veterans presenting to IPV treatment within the Veteran Affairs (VA) healthcare system. Analyses were conducted from data collected as part of a randomized controlled trial evaluating the efficacy of a 12-session trauma-informed IPV intervention with veterans, Strength at Home. Results indicated that age, courtinvolvement, treatment condition, and substance use disorder were unique predictors of IPV session attendance above and beyond other demographic, military, and diagnostic predictors. Substance use disorder emerged as the most robust predictor of session attendance. These findings suggest that similar to civilian studies, routine assessment of substance use is indicated in IPV programs delivered within the VA healthcare system and that coordinated care between substance abuse and IPV treatment is needed. Our findings also suggest the need for additional efforts to enhance treatment initiation and retention among younger veterans.

This article examines maternal parenting behaviors as mediators of associations between interparental violence and young children’s internalizing and externalizing symptomatology. Participants included 201 toddlers and their mothers. Assessments of interparental violence and children’s symptoms were derived from maternal surveys. Maternal parenting behaviors were assessed during an observational paradigm and coded for hostility, responsiveness, and disengagement. Results indicated that mothers’ responsiveness and disengagement mediated associations between interparental violence and children’s internalizing (e.g., withdrawn, inhibited, anxious, depressed behaviors) and externalizing (e.g., aggressive behaviors, attentional difficulties) symptoms. The results are interpreted in the context of conceptualizations that underscore how different dimensions of maternal parenting behaviors may play key explanatory roles in understanding associations between interparental violence and children’s adjustment difficulties.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has profound and widespread health and economic implications at an individual, familial, and societal level. Violence risk assessment measures offer an evidence-informed approach to ascertain the degree of threat an abuser poses, transparent and defensible indicators for intervention and treatment decisions, and can be used to inform professionals, perpetrators, and victims alike regarding the nature and intensity of services required to help prevent IPV. This article summarizes the state of knowledge regarding risk assessment for IPV through a systematic examination of all English publications from westernized nations from 1990 to 2011. Three search engines—PsychINFO, ScienceDirect, and Social Sciences Citation Index—identified 3,361 potentially relevant articles. After dropping duplicates and removing articles that did not explicitly examine risk assessment for IPV, 39 articles remained. Several themes emerged: (a) There is a relatively small body of empirical evidence evaluating risk assessment measures in the context of IPV; (b) continued advancements are needed in the methodological rigor of the research; (c) investigations should expand cross-validation research to diverse samples (e.g., gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender [GLBT]; male victims/female perpetrators); and (d) an exciting development in IPV risk assessment research is evidence that risk assessments can serve to reduce risk levels (Belfrage et al., 2011). In terms of clinical implications, the review demonstrated considerable promise of several measures but generally reveals modest postdictive/predictive validity. Limited evidence for the superiority of IPV specific risk assessment measures over general violence risk assessment measures was revealed; however, this may largely be a reflection of study limitations. Given the challenges in comparing across studies and the heterogeneity of partner abusers, it seems premature to recommend one preferred assessment measure/approach to clinicians.

In 2010, the State of Colorado revised its state standards to create consistency across the state for its domestic violence (DV) cases by placing emphasis on the integration of evidence-based practices into its DV treatment programming. Since then, Colorado has established a three-tiered differential treatment model informed by the principles of effective intervention (PEI), an evidence-based framework found in correctional programming. This article reviews the PEI framework, outlines the emerging research that explores the principles among DV offenders and their treatment, and provides an overview of Colorado's differentiated DV treatment model. Policy and research considerations are also discussed.

The abuse of men by women has historically been attributed exclusively as a function of the primary problem of men's abuse and domination of women. Decades of research and clinical observations have informed us that is only sometimes true, and that many women who abuse men are actually motivated by many of the same factors as the men who abuse women. Social agencies, the legal system, and treatment providers need to recognize the different typologies of female intimate partner violence (including primary aggressors, violent retaliation, bidirectional violence, and self-defense). Treatment programs for female abusers need to include special emphasis on trauma history, attachment disorders, emotional self-regulation, and personal empowerment. A female abuser treatment program is presented with clinical guidelines specifically designed for this population.

The relationship between proactive and reactive aggression could have significant implications for the conceptualization of intimate partner violence. In this study, victim statements found in police reports involving 299 unique adult male perpetrators were coded for proactive or reactive aggression content and analyzed in relation to existing measures of treatment outcomes. Family-only violent perpetrators were hypothesized to be rated as having used reactive aggression, and generally violent perpetrators were expected to have used proactive aggression. It was further predicted that proactive aggression would be more strongly associated with higher recidivism rates and lower intervention completion rates. Perpetrators were coded as 73.8% reactive and 26.2% proactive contrary to the assumptions of some sociocultural models of intimate partner violence, for example, the Duluth model. Chi square analysis was used to assess the relationship between type of aggression and typology. Reactive perpetrators who completed their intervention had significantly lower recidivism rates than reactive perpetrators who did not. Intervention completion was unrelated to recidivism rates for proactive perpetrators. In fact, no statistically significant difference was found between type of aggression and recidivism when controlling for intervention completion. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between type of aggression used, intervention completion, and recidivism with no significant associations found. These findings further clarify the relevance of reactive aggression in intimate partner violence perpetrators due to its relative frequency and potential intervention effects.

The current study sought to explore if perpetrators of intimate partner violence use coercive control behaviors in their first romantic relationship and subsequent treatment relationship, how behaviors are recalled, if there is a pattern in the behaviors used, and the denial and minimization techniques to explain coercive control behaviors. In their first relationship narratives, 48.15% recalled a fight with 14.8% reporting coercive control behaviors. In narratives from the treatment relationships, 61.73% reported coercive control behaviors. Denial and minimization tactics were present as participants described fights where coercive control tactics were used. Results and their implications for treatment programs will be discussed.

Trust is essential to the development of healthy, secure, and satisfying relationships (Simpson, 2007a). Attachment styles provide a theoretical framework for understanding how individuals respond to partner behaviors that either confirm or violate trust (Hazan & Shaver, 1994). The current research aimed to identify how trust and attachment anxiety might interact to predict different types of jealousy and physical and psychological abuse. We expected that when experiencing lower levels of trust, anxiously attached individuals would report higher levels of both cognitive and behavioral jealousy as well as partner abuse perpetration. Participants in committed romantic relationships (N = 261) completed measures of trust, attachment anxiety and avoidance, jealousy, and physical and psychological partner abuse in a cross-sectional study. Moderation results largely supported the hypotheses: Attachment anxiety moderated the association between trust and jealousy, such that anxious individuals experienced much higher levels of cognitive and behavioral jealousy when reporting lower levels of trust. Moreover, attachment anxiety moderated the association between trust and nonphysical violence. These results suggest that upon experiencing distrust in one’s partner, anxiously attached individuals are more likely to become jealous, snoop through a partner’s belongings, and become psychologically abusive. The present research illustrates that particularly for anxiously attached individuals, distrust has cascading effects on relationship cognitions and behavior, and this should be a key area of discussion during therapy.

Research on intervention programs for domestic violence (DV) perpetrators in the United States and in Europe has started to shed light on these interventions and the challenges they face in determining “what works” in those regions. In Latin America, the research is almost nonexistent. This study presents a literature review of studies and program protocols in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the results of a continental survey on characteristics and suggested standards for DV perpetrator programs in this region. Findings indicate perpetrator interventions in this part of the world are in their earliest stages along with the remaining challenges these involve. Suggested standards in the areas of program effectiveness, evidence-based intake assessments, tailoring of programs to minority group’s needs, the conceptualization of DV, influential risk factors, and liaisons between academia and practice are discussed.

We examined gender-related attitudes as correlates of physical and psychological aggression perpetration and victimization among 325 undergraduate students in dating relationships. It was hypothesized that adversarial sexual beliefs and acceptance of interpersonal violence would be positively correlated with physical and psychological aggression perpetration and victimization in both men and women. Results indicated that adversarial sexual beliefs were consistently associated with relationship aggression, whereas the acceptance of interpersonal violence was not. Specifically, adversarial sexual beliefs were significantly correlated with perpetration of dating aggression in both genders and with experiencing aggression in men. Findings suggest that adversarial sexual beliefs place those in dating relationships at relatively higher risk for problems with aggression.

The outcome of treatment for intimate partner violence (IPV) is hampered by high rates of nonattendance, drop-out, and low motivation or readiness to change. As a brief pre-intervention strategy, motivational interviewing (MI) can be used for perpetrators and those who may not yet be committed to active personal change. Previous research on MI as preparation for IPV intervention programs has reported mixed results. Further research is required to address the limitations in past research and to make a distinction between MI for IPV intervention engagement and MI for IPV behavior change. The current study utilised a quasi-experimental between-groups design. Two groups (control and MI) were compared to each other on the following variables: readiness to attend IPV intervention, IPV intervention commencement and completion, the number of sessions attended, the importance of changing IPV behavior, and the ability and commitment to change these behavior. The within-group analysis found a statistically significant result from pre- to post-MI, which was associated with a large effect size (p = 0.025, r = 0.64). With regards to the other primary outcomes, the results showed that the MI participants attended significantly more IPV program sessions (mean = 12.18) compared to the control participants (mean = 7), and also completed the intervention (60%) at a higher rate than the control condition (40%). Taken together, the current study contributed to the knowledge in this area by addressing gaps in the literature, by evaluating MI as a pre-intervention strategy for increasing engagement, and including a fidelity measure. The results suggest that well defined MI for engagement has promise as a method to increase male perpetrators’ engagement in IPV intervention.

Findings regarding women's perpetration of physical partner violence (PV) and bidirectional PV are a major source of controversy in the family violence literature. Questions remain as to how frequently women use PV, in comparison to men, when they are the sole perpetrators of PV and when involved in bidirectionally violent relationships. We also do not know much about women's perpetration and the bidirectionality of nonphysical forms of PV. To answer these questions, we used dyadic concordance types to categorize couples into bidirectionally violent, male-only violent, and female-only violent, and then analyzed the frequency with which the men and women used violence. We conducted these analyses for physical PV, verbal sexual PV, severe psychological PV, and controlling behaviors, among a population-based sample of 1,601 men, ages 18–59, who reported ever having a romantic relationship with a woman. Results indicated that for physical PV, severe psychological PV, and controlling behaviors, bidirectional PV was the most common, followed by female-only perpetration. Within bidirectionally aggressive relationships, women committed significantly more physical PV and controlling behaviors; there were no sex differences in frequency of PV perpetration for these three forms of PV for male-only versus female-only PV. The exception to this pattern was verbal sexual aggression, with men committing significantly more of these acts and male-only perpetration just as common as bidirectional aggression. Bidirectionally aggressive relationships were also the most aggressive. These findings lend support to a family systems perspective when seeking to understand PV and for assessing both victimization and perpetration when investigating PV.

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.

Acknowledging that intimate partner violence (IPV) is not exclusively limited to female victims is an important step toward addressing the needs of male victims. Just as important is the need to identify potential challenges which agencies offering emergency advocacy services must overcome to successfully provide assistance to men. The study used a mixed methods research model to identify and evaluate challenges faced by agencies related to providing emergency advocacy services to male victims. This article discusses the qualitative component of that study in which potential challenges were identified through interviews with IPV experts nationwide. The findings of the qualitative component of the full study were then used to create a survey for the quantitative phase, which was later administered to agencies in California that provide emergency advocacy services.