Men’s Avoidance Coping and Female Partner’s Drinking Behavior: A High-Risk Context for Partner Violence?

The current study explored whether men's avoidance coping in response to the drinking behavior of their female partner with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) would be associated with higher levels of men's perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). Women with an AUD (n = 109) and their male partners in a U.S. urban area were assessed on men's perpetration of minor and severe violence using the Conflict Tactics Scale, men's avoidance coping using the Spouse Behavior Questionnaire, and men's and women's drinking behavior using the Time Line Follow Back Interview. Using multiple regression analysis, results showed that men's use of avoidance coping significantly predicted male IPV perpetration over and above the women's perpetration of violence toward him, while women's alcohol use did not significantly predict male-to-female IPV perpetration. Implications for teaching emotion-regulation strategies to male partners of women with an AUD to cope with partner drinking are discussed.     

The role of substance use in male-to-female physical and sexual violence: a brief review and recommendations for future research

Literature addressing the relationship between substance use and physical and sexual violence against women is reviewed briefly. There is substantial evidence of a relationship between men's substance use and perpetration of physical violence, some evidence of a relationship between women's substance use and experiences of sexual aggression, but weak evidence that men's substance use contributes to sexual aggression or that women's substance use contributes to their physical victimization. Understanding the mechanisms underlying the relationship between substance use and violence relationship will be facilitated by narrowing the scope of research questions to identify for whom there is a relationship and under what circumstances.     

The roles of victim and perpetrator alcohol use in intimate partner violence outcomes

Alcohol use increases the risk of intimate partner violence (IPV), yet little research has examined its role in victimization outcomes (e.g., physical injury, police reporting). This study examined the roles of perpetrator and victim incident-specific alcohol use in IPV outcomes. The sample included 501 men and 1,756 women who had experienced an IPV physical assault. Logistic regression analyses showed that after controlling for relevant covariates, women whose partners had been drinking were significantly more likely to be injured than were women whose partners had not been drinking. A woman's own alcohol use was unrelated to victimization outcomes. Men were significantly more likely to report the incident if their partners had been drinking but were marginally less likely to report if they had been drinking. Findings suggest that perpetrators' incident-specific alcohol use is important in understanding which victims are most likely to be injured and report the incident to the police.     

The relationship between social support and adolescent dating violence: a comparison across genders

Although much research has focused on the function of social support in adult intimate partner violence, little is known about the role of social support in adolescent dating violence. This study is an exploratory analysis of the independent impact of social support from friends and family on the risk of adolescent dating violence perpetration and victimization among a large sample of youth (n = 970). Approximately, 21% of the sample reported experiencing victimization in a dating relationship whereas 23% indicated perpetrating dating violence. Male youth reported significantly more involvement in dating violence as both perpetrators and victims. Negative binomial regression modeling indicated that increased levels of support from friends was associated with significantly less dating violence perpetration and victimization; however, when gendered models were explored, the protective role of social support was only maintained for female youth. Family support was not significantly related to dating violence in any model. Implications for dating violence curriculum and future research are addressed.     

Relationships among alcohol outlet density, alcohol use, and intimate partner violence victimization among young women in the United States

Greater access to alcohol has been widely found to be associated with many negative outcomes including violence perpetration. This study examines the relationship between alcohol outlet density, alcohol use, and intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization among young women in the United States. A direct association between alcohol outlet density in one's neighborhood and the likelihood of IPV victimization was examined. Data were from Wave III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), which followed a nationally representative sample of adolescents into adulthood. Participants were young adult females age 18 to 26 at Wave III. Of the 4,571 female respondents who reported a current heterosexual relationship and had IPV data, 13.2% reported having been the victim of physical violence only and 6.5% experienced sexual only or physical and sexual violence in the relationship during the past year. In the regression models tested, there was no significant direct association between neighborhood alcohol outlet density and IPV victimization nor was there an association between outlet density and drinking behaviors, thus eliminating the possibility of an indirect association. Results of fully adjusted models indicate females who drank heavily, whether infrequently or frequently, were at significant risk for experiencing sexual only IPV or sexual and physical IPV. Asians and Native Americans were at significantly greater odds of experiencing sexual only or sexual and physical IPV compared with non-Hispanic Whites, while non-Hispanic Blacks were at significantly greater odds for physical only IPV. We conclude that a continuous measure of alcohol outlet density was not associated with IPV in models controlling for individual and other neighborhood characteristics. Young women who drink heavily, whether infrequently or frequently, have greater odds of experiencing sexual only or sexual and physical compared to abstainers. Similar to previous study findings, young women living with or married to their partner were at far greater risk of experiencing physical only and/or sexual only or sexual and physical IPV. The study adds to the growing body of literature that examines how community characteristics such as outlet density influence the likelihood of IPV.     

Problematic Alcohol and Drug Use and the Risk of Partner Violence Victimization among Male and Female College Students

The current study expands previous research by examining the relationship between problematic alcohol and drug use and partner violence among a large sample of male and female college students and by partitioning out severe victimization for separate analysis. Data came from the International Dating Violence Study and included 4162 students from 19 colleges in the U.S. (69.1% women, 30.9% men). Victimization was measured using the revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2). There was no significant main effect for alcohol use, but analysis of the interaction with gender found that problematic alcohol use was associated with victimization of men. Problematic drug use was associated with physical victimization, injury, severe physical victimization, severe psychological victimization, and severe injury for the overall sample in multivariate models. Interaction effects showed that elevated odds of severe injuries were associated high drug scores for women. Dating violence programs addressing dating violence on campuses are urged to include discussions on drug use and victimization of men.     

Measuring sex differences in violence victimization and perpetration within date and same-sex peer relationships

This study examines sex differences in the patterns of repeated perpetration and victimization of physical violence and psychological aggression within dating relationships and same-sex peer relationships. Data were obtained from the Youth Violence Survey: Linkages among Different Forms of Violence, conducted in 2004, and administered to all public school students enrolled in grades 7, 9, 11 and 12 (N = 4,131) in a high-risk school district. Analyses of adolescents who dated in the past year (n = 2,888) show that girls are significantly more likely than boys to report physical violence and psychological aggression perpetration within dating relationships. However, boys are significantly more likely than girls to report physically injuring a date. Boys are also significantly more likely than girls to report physical violence victimization and perpetration within same-sex peer relationships. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Premilitary adult sexual assault victimization and perpetration in a Navy recruit sample

Female (n = 5,226) and male (n = 5,969) U.S. Navy recruits completed a survey assessing their premilitary histories of adult sexual assault (SA), defined as attempted or completed rape since the age of 14. The survey was completed under anonymous or identified conditions. Overall, 39% of women reported premilitary SA victimization and 13% of men admitted premilitary SA perpetration. As predicted, rates were significantly higher in the anonymous than in the identified condition. For the sample of women as a whole, marital status, ethnicity, and family income were associated with SA victimization; for men, only marital status was associated with SA perpetration. Compared to previous college samples, Navy recruits were more likely to have previous SA experience. Given the negative consequences associated with SA victimization and perpetration, the present study reinforces the desirability of developing additional treatment, education, and prevention programs to reduce the occurrence of SA among military recruits.     

Dating violence perpetration and/or victimization and associated sexual risk behaviors among a sample of inner-city African American and Hispanic adolescent females

The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence of physical and psychological dating violence victimization and perpetration reported by inner-city African American and Hispanic adolescent girls as well as associated risky sexual behaviors among this population. Participants in this study were 10th- and 11th-grade female students from seven inner-city Chicago public high schools. Participants were administered with the Safe Dates measures of physical violence victimization, physical violence perpetration, psychological abuse victimization, and psychological perpetration. Approximately half of the sample reported some psychological dating violence victimization and perpetration, and approximately one third reported some physical victimization and perpetration. Hispanic adolescents were significantly more likely to report psychological victimization, whereas African American adolescents were significantly more likely to report physical dating violence perpetration. Victimization was found to predict perpetration in this population, and adolescents who acknowledged being both victims and perpetrators of dating violence were more likely to report having had vaginal sex and a higher number of past-year sexual partners. Inner-city African American and Hispanic adolescent girls may be particularly vulnerable to dating violence victimization and perpetration, which may be due to a number of other social factors not explored within this study. Furthermore, African American adolescent girls continue to engage in behaviors that increase their risk for negative health outcomes, predominantly STIs, highlighting the need for effective interventions with this population.     

Poor parenting and antisocial behavior among homeless young adults: links to dating violence perpetration and victimization

Though research has examined risk factors associated with street victimization among homeless young people, little is known about dating violence experiences among this group. Given homeless youths' elevated rates of child maltreatment, it is likely that they are at high risk for dating violence. As such, the current study examined the association between child maltreatment and parental warmth with dating violence perpetration and victimization through substance use and delinquency among a sample of 172 homeless males and females. Results from path analysis revealed that physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect were all significant correlates of both substance use and delinquency, whereas lack of parental warmth was only associated with substance use. Neglect and substance use had direct effects on dating violence and substance use and was found to mediate the relationship between physical abuse and dating violence. Finally, females, older youth, and non-Whites had significantly higher levels of dating violence compared with their counterparts.     

Interpersonal violence in adolescence: ecological correlates of self-reported perpetration

Although growing attention is being paid to the problem of teen dating violence, to date less is known about perpetrators of victimization. The current article used a subset of 980 adolescents aged 11 to 19 who were surveyed as part of a statewide community service coordinated through Cooperative Extension to survey all youth in target communities about risky health behaviors. The current article examined correlates of perpetration of either physical dating violence or sexual abuse across all levels of the ecological model (individual, family, and community factors). At the bivariate level, individual factors including substance use and low social responsibility, family factors including divorce, low parental monitoring, and low social support, and community variables such as low school attachment and neighborhood monitoring were associated with self-reported perpetration. At the multivariate level, gender and history of victimization were most significant in explaining variance in perpetration.     

Developmental Antecedents of Interpartner Violence in a New Zealand Birth Cohort

This paper examines the developmental antecedents of interpartner violence (IPV) victimization and perpetration in a New Zealand birth cohort (n = 828). The study found: (a) IPV occurred in 70% of relationships, with conflict ranging from minor psychological abuse to severe assault; (b) men and women reported similar experiences of victimization and perpetration of IPV; (c) exposure to abuse in childhood, family dysfunction and adversity, childhood and adolescent conduct problems, and alcohol abuse/dependence were significant predictors of IPV victimization and perpetration at age 25; and (d) the antecedents of IPV were largely the same for males and females, although the specific effects of these risk factors differed according to gender. Conduct disorder was more strongly predictive of IPV for females, whereas family adversity was more strongly predictive of IPV victimisation for males.     

A Two-Way Street for Alcohol Use and Partner Violence: Who’s Driving It?

Using lifetime data from two waves of the National Epidemiologic Surveys on Alcohol and Related Conditions, this study sought to examine sex- and race-specific risks in the temporal relationship between adult onset severe physical intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization and alcohol misuse (binge drinking) and alcohol use disorders (abuse and dependence) and whether or not childhood trauma moderated these relationships among U.S. non-Hispanic White and Black women and men. IPV predicted most alcohol outcomes among White and Black women and White men. Conversely, binge drinking among White and Black women and alcohol abuse among Black women and men predicted IPV. Childhood trauma moderated the relationship between IPV and alcohol misuse mainly among Black respondents, with an increased risk of either outcome among those without childhood trauma. These findings suggest a reciprocal relationship between IPV victimization and alcohol misuse, with implications for sex- and race-specific prevention and intervention efforts.     

Exploring gender differences in dating violence/harassment prevention programming in middle schools: results from a randomized experiment

In this study, we randomly assigned 123 sixth and seventh grade classrooms from seven middle schools in the greater Cleveland area to one of two five-session curricula addressing gender violence/sexual harassment (GV/SH) or to a no-treatment control group. A baseline survey and two follow-up surveys were administered immediately after the treatment (Wave 2) and about six months post-treatment (Wave 3). In an earlier paper, we demonstrated the effectiveness of two approaches to youth GV/SH prevention programming (a fact-based, law and justice curriculum and an interaction-based curriculum). In this paper, we explored whether these largely positive findings remain for both girls and boys, including whether girls experience higher levels of GV/SH than boys. Most of our statistical models proved to be non-statistically significant. However, in 2 of our 48 victimization/perpetration (any violence, sexual violence and non-sexual violence) models (across two post-intervention follow-up points), we observed that the interventions reduced peer (male or female, non-dating partner) sexual violence victimization and reduced peer perpetration, but another outcome model indicated that the interventions increased dating perpetration. These mixed findings will need to be explored further in future research. Regarding our primary research question, we observed no statistically significant differences for the treatment multiplied by gender interaction terms for any of the perpetration or victimization outcome models, suggesting that the treatment had similar effects on girls and boys. However, we did observe that boys are more involved in violence than girls: both as victims and perpetrators. Boys experienced significantly more of three types of victimization from peers and dating partners compared to what girls experienced at the hands of their peers and dating partners. As perpetrators, boys committed more sexual victimization against peers (immediately post-intervention only) and more sexual victimization against dating partners than girls. The implications of these results are discussed.     

Intimate partner violence within a cohort of Pacific mothers living in New Zealand

Maternal reports of intimate partner violence (IPV) were obtained from a cohort of Pacific mothers living in New Zealand. The Conflict Tactics Scale was completed by 1,095 women who had given birth in the past 12 months, and who were married or living with a partner as married. The 12-month prevalence of "victimization" through verbal aggression was 77%, 21% for "minor" physical violence, and 11% for "severe" physical violence. The 12-month prevalence of "perpetration" of verbal aggression against a partner was 90%, 35% for "minor" physical violence, and 19% for "severe" violence towards their partner. The experience of social inequality and acculturation are associated with IPV, albeit differentially across the experience of victimization and perpetration. Factors significantly associated with victimization are ethnicity, maternal education, social marital status and household income. Factors significantly associated with perpetration are ethnicity, cultural alignment, maternal birthplace and alcohol consumption since the birth of the child.     

Seeking for risk factors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in a Greek national sample: the role of self-esteem

The objective of this article is to gain a better understanding of the magnitude of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Greece and to explore factors associated with increased risk of IPV prevalence. A cross-sectional study was undertaken among 1,122 men and women, aged 18 to 65, who are residents of urban areas of Greece. The questionnaire used included 3 sections and 39 items that examined the sociodemographic characteristics of the participants, rate of IPV victimization and perpetration (physical, sexual, emotional), childhood experience of violence, and level of self-esteem. Statistical analysis showed self-esteem to be significantly associated with physical violence victimization and perpetration (odds ratio [OR] = .975, confidence interval [CI] = .955-.996; OR = .972, CI = .951-.993, respectively), whereas experience of abuse during childhood was shown to be a strong predictor in all six models of IPV victimization and perpetration (p < .001). Finally, gender, age and years of cohabitation were some sociodemographic and background characteristics found to increase the risk of specific forms of IPV. Conclusions drawn from the current study should be taken into account in attempts aiming at preventing or ameliorating the problem.     

Antisocial Personality Disorder and Physical Partner Violence Among Single and Dual Substance-Abusing Couples

The current study examined how antisocial personality disorder (APD) and substance use disorder contributed to partners’ reports of physical partner violence among single and dual substance-abusing couples. Participants were 69 heterosexual couples entering treatment in which one or both partners met criteria for substance use disorder. APD diagnosis of the male partner was linked to significantly higher male-to-female and female-to-male perpetration of physical partner violence and victimization. Female partner’s APD diagnosis was associated with women’s reports of victimization by their male partners. Dual substance use diagnosis emerged as a moderator, in which the effect of men’s APD diagnosis on men’s perpetration of physical partner violence and victimization was significantly reduced if both partners had substance use disorder. Findings underscore the importance of both partners’ APD diagnosis and substance use status for understanding physical partner violence among single and dual substance-abusing couples.     

The Intergenerational Transmission of Intimate Partner Violence: Differentiating Correlates in a Random Community Sample

The current study used a random sample of 502 men and women to investigate the intergenerational transmission of violence and assess the impact of family-of-origin violence on later adult intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration and victimization while controlling for a host of theoretically-relevant factors and demographic characteristics. Six multivariate logistic regression analyses were modeled to identify differential correlates depending upon type of violence perpetration and victimization. Findings indicated a significant relationship between family-of-origin violence and psychological perpetration and victimization. The acceptance of violence in relationships significantly correlated with physical violence perpetration. Finally, being married, older, and employed protected against several forms of interpersonal violence. Policy implications are discussed.     

Dissatisfaction with relationship power and dating violence perpetration by men and women

This study focuses on the relationship between an individual's dissatisfaction with the level of power they have in their dating relationships, parental violence they experienced during their childhoods, and their dating violence perpetration. A sample of 352 male and 296 female undergraduate college students completed a dating violence survey, including selected subscales from the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2) and the Relationship Power Scale. Findings show that relationship power dissatisfaction is associated with the use of violence in dating relationships for both men and women. However, parental violence emerged as an even stronger predictor of dating violence perpetration. Findings also indicate that male perpetration of dating violence is related to mother's violence, whereas female perpetration of dating violence is related to father's violence. The results indicate the importance of including gender in the study of dating violence perpetration.     

Sexual relationship power as a mediator between dating violence and sexually transmitted infections among college women

This study examined relationship power as a possible mediator of the relationship between dating violence and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The proposed mediation model was based on the theory of gender and power as well as previous research on intimate partner violence and STI risk. Survey results from a sample of 290 single, undergraduate women indicated that 85% experienced at least one form of dating violence victimization in the past year, 5.9% tested positive for an STI, and 5.2% received treatment for an STI. Results revealed that women with lower levels of sexual relationship power had higher rates of dating violence victimization and STIs; also, sexual relationship power partially mediated the relationship between dating violence victimization and STIs. Future dating violence and STI-prevention interventions targeting young women may want to use an empowerment approach to decrease their likelihood of dating violence victimization and STI risk.