Deconstructing the associations between executive functioning, problematic alcohol use and intimate partner aggression: A dyadic analysis

Emotion differentiation and intimate partner violence: Effects of provocation and alcohol intoxication

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the impact of relational provocation on intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration as a function of alcohol intoxication and individuals' emotion differentiation (ED; i.e., the ability to differentiate between positive and negative emotions). We hypothesized that provocation and acute intoxication would be associated with lower ED, such that individuals would demonstrate lower ED following provocation and while intoxicated. We also hypothesized an intoxication-by-ED interaction, such that only individuals who were intoxicated and undifferentiated would perpetrate IPV.

METHOD

Two hundred fifty community-based adults completed an aggression paradigm ostensibly with their romantic partners where they were randomly assigned to an alcohol or no-alcohol condition. Participants' ED across positive and negative subscales was calculated at baseline (Time 1), postprovocation and intoxication (Time 2), and postbehavioral aggression (Time 3). IPV was operationalized as the strength and duration of shocks issued to their partner during the aggression paradigm.

RESULTS

Both sober and intoxicated participants experienced lower ED following provocation, suggesting a main effect of provocation but no main effect of intoxication. There was a significant alcohol-by-ED interaction in the predicted direction. For intoxicated participants, low ED was associated with greater IPV perpetration. For sober participants, low ED was associated with less IPV perpetration.

CONCLUSIONS

Consistent with hypotheses, low ED is associated with greater IPV perpetration among intoxicated individuals. In contrast to prior research, low ED was associated with less IPV perpetration among sober individuals. Alcohol-related cognitive impairments may increase the likelihood of IPV perpetration by disrupting the ED process that may otherwise inhibit impulsive aggression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Examining the role of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in intimate partner violence among couples with alcohol use disorder

Separate literatures indicate that both alcohol use disorder (AUD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are robust risk factors for using intimate partner violence (IPV). Despite the strength of these relative literatures, and the common co-occurrence of AUD and PTSD, their combined effects on IPV have rarely been examined. This study begins to address this gap by exploring the moderating effects of provisional PTSD diagnosis on the relation between heavy alcohol consumption and physical IPV using a multilevel modeling approach. Participants were adult romantic couples (N = 100) with current AUD and a history of physical IPV in their relationship. Results from the between-couple comparison indicate that couples who reported more heavy drinking days also experienced more physical IPV when at least one partner had probable PTSD. However, the within-couple comparison indicated that among partners without a provisional PTSD diagnosis, those with fewer heavy drinking days compared to their partner also reported more physical IPV perpetration. These preliminary and exploratory findings require replication and extension but provide new and important information regarding the complex intersection of heavy drinking, PTSD, and IPV among couples with AUD.

Contributions of Demand/Withdraw Processes and Alcohol Consumption on Emotional Flooding in Distressed Violent versus Distressed Non-Violent Couples

Purpose

Although alcohol-related intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health problem, the mechanisms underlying this association are poorly understood. For instance, prior research has shown differences in distressed violent (DV) and distressed nonviolent (DNV) couples' demand/withdraw communication and the extent to which they become emotionally flooded (i.e., physiologically aroused) in response to conflict. Additionally, alcohol use is associated with increased demand/withdraw communication, IPV, and emotional flooding. Therefore, the present study sought to clarify the association between demand/withdraw communication and emotional flooding among relationally couples who use alcohol and who do and do not experience IPV.

Methods

Relationally distressed couples (Mage =30.1 years) reported on their physical aggression, demand/withdraw communication, emotional flooding, and total number of drinks during the past six months. Couples were denoted as DV (N = 58) if at least one partner reported IPV and DNV (N = 29) if neither partner reported IPV. Actor-partner interdependence modeling was used to test whether couple type (DV versus DNV) moderates the link between demand/withdraw behavior and emotional flooding.

Results

With one exception, alcohol use was unrelated to any of the processes under investigation in the current study. Moreover, men's and women's report of a woman-demand/man-withdraw pattern and man-demand/woman-withdraw pattern, respectively, were positively associated with each partner's own emotional flooding. Couple type (DV vs DNV) did not moderate these associations.

Conclusions

The present results highlight the need for sensitive measures that can capture the nuanced processes that underlie IPV in couples who use alcohol.

The Proximal Effect of Alcohol on Intimate Partner Violence: Comparing the Antecedents of Intoxicated and Sober Men's Violent Acts

Alcohol use is known to correlate with intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration, yet little research examines how alcohol influences how the violence unfolds. The current study used sequential analysis to examine descriptions of past violent incidents and explore the behaviors that preceded men's perpetration of IPV. In accordance with the alcohol myopia model of alcohol use, it was hypothesized that intoxicated men would respond violently to a wide range of partner cues, whereas men who were sober would only react violently in response to the most threatening partner cues. Moreover, intoxicated men were expected to demonstrate less inhibition of violence to suppressor cues of the partners' distress as compared to sober men. Participants were 80 couples reporting male-to-female IPV within the past year. Female partners' descriptions of two past violent events were coded and entered into sequential analysis. Antecedents to the men's first violent action were examined. While sober men were likely to react violently to their partner's physical threat and perceived threat, intoxicate men did not. Sober men were less likely to become violent after their partners displayed distress cues, whereas there was no suppressor effect of women's distress for intoxicated men. The precursors of the violence of intoxicated men appears to be indiscriminate and unpredictable. Clinical interventions that rely on behavioral strategies or communication skills training are unlikely to be effective for those who have an unmanaged alcohol use disorder.

Relationship Dissatisfaction, Emotion Regulation, and Physical Intimate Partner Aggression in Heavy-Drinking, Conflict-Prone Couples: A Dyadic Analysis

Relationship dissatisfaction is a known risk factor for intimate partner aggression (IPA). However, the possible effect of weak emotion regulation skills on this association is unclear, particularly in couples at risk for violence who drink alcohol heavily. This study examined the moderating effect of emotion regulation on the association between relationship dissatisfaction and physical IPA perpetration within a dyadic framework. Participants were 583 heavy drinking couples (N = 1,166) with a recent history of psychological and/or physical IPA recruited from two metropolitan cities in the United States. Multilevel models were used to examine effects within an actor-partner interdependence framework. Gender, Actor dissatisfaction, and Actor and Partner emotion regulation were associated with greater physical IPA perpetration. Actor relationship dissatisfaction predicted significantly greater physical IPA perpetration in Actors characterized by weak versus strong emotion regulation. Furthermore, partner relationship dissatisfaction predicted significantly increased physical IPA perpetration in Actors reporting weak, versus strong, emotion regulation. Gender did not significantly interact with model variables. Utilizing the I3 metatheoretical model of IPA within a dyadic framework, results provide insight into the interactive effects of relationship dissatisfaction and emotion regulation deficits on physical IPA perpetration, particularly in those individuals already at risk for perpetration.

Sexual Violence Perpetration Within Intimate Relationships: An I3 Model Analysis of the Effects of Sexual Violence Victimization and Psychological Flexibility

The I³ Model posits that intimate partner violence (IPV) is determined by the relative strength of instigatory, impellance, and inhibitory factors. Although much research has examined nonsexual IPV, few studies have used the I³ Model to examine sexual IPV. This study investigated the effects of sexual IPV victimization (an impellor) and psychological flexibility (an inhibitor) on sexual IPV perpetration within a dyadic framework. Participants nested within 617 intimate couples completed measures of psychological flexibility and sexual IPV perpetration and victimization. Results showed that Actor IPV victimization was positively and Actor psychological flexibility was negatively associated with Actor IPV perpetration. Among those who experienced low levels of IPV victimization, psychological flexibility inhibited IPV perpetration. This inhibiting effect did not extend to Actors who experienced high levels of IPV victimization. Findings highlight the complex interactions between I³ factors and support continued dyadic examination of IPV perpetration etiology.

Alcohol-related relationship dissatisfaction: A putative mechanism for intimate partner aggression

Decades of research has identified alcohol use as a contributing cause of intimate partner aggression (IPA) perpetration; however, there have been fewer studies that seek to identify mediators of the relation between alcohol use and IPA perpetration. Building on research showing a positive association between problematic drinking and relationship dissatisfaction and relationship dissatisfaction and IPA, we examined whether relationship dissatisfaction accounted for the relation between problematic drinking and IPA perpetration in couples using statistical modeling that accounted for the interdependence between partners. Our results showed that (a) actor problematic drinking was related to actor psychological and physical IPA perpetration and that this relation was partially explained by actor relationship dissatisfaction, (b) partner problematic drinking was related to actor physical and psychological IPA perpetration and that this relation was partially explained by actor relationship dissatisfaction, and (c) partner problematic drinking was related to actor psychological IPA perpetration and that this relation was partially explained by partner relationship dissatisfaction. Together, our results highlight that when partner interdependence is considered, relationship dissatisfaction could be a potential mechanism of the alcohol-IPA association and provide some evidence for different pathways for psychological and physical aggression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Alcohol, conflict, and aggression in intimate relationships: A dyadic approach

Intimate partner aggression (IPA) is a critical public health problem that requires clear and testable etiological models that may translate into effective interventions. While alcohol intoxication and a pattern of heavy alcohol consumption are robust correlates of IPA perpetration, there has been limited research that examines this association from a dyadic perspective. In the present review, we discuss compelling reasons for understanding dyadic factors that assist our understanding of alcohol-facilitated IPA, review the relatively small number of studies that have investigated such factors, and provide a theoretical and methodological framework for researchers to conceptualize how to model alcohol-facilitated IPA from a dyadic framework.

Committed relationships and substance use: recent findings and future directions

Recent research on substance use in committed relationships covers three general areas. First, partners tend to be concordant for substance use, and concordance is at least partially the result of partner influence (or convergence). Second, substance use (particularly discrepant use) predicts relationship outcomes such as lower relationship quality and greater conflict, intimate partner aggression, and risky sex. Concordant use, however, can be protective. Finally, relationship variables, such as conflict, intimate partner aggression, and support for cessation, predict substance use. Recent advances in methodological innovation, such as the use of longitudinal designs and dyadic data, are noted. Although the field has moved in some new directions conceptually, the research in this area is still relatively atheoretical. Suggestions for future research directions are discussed.

Alcohol, Self-Regulation and Partner Physical Aggression: Actor-Partner Effects Over a Three-Year Time Frame

The question of how individual differences related to self-regulation interact with alcohol use patterns to predict intimate partner aggression (IPA) is examined. We hypothesized that excessive drinking will be related to partner aggression among those who have low self-regulation. In addition, we explored the extent to which differences in self-regulation in one partner may moderate the relationship between alcohol use and partner aggression. A sample of married or cohabitating community couples (N = 280) ages 18–45 was recruited according to their classification into four drinking groups: heavy drinking in both partners (n = 79), husband only (n = 80), wife only (n = 41), by neither (n = 80), and interviewed annually for 3 years. IPA, drinking, and scores on measures of negative affect, self-control, and Executive Cognitive Functioning (ECF) were assessed for both members of the couple. The Actor Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) was used to analyze longitudinal models predicting the occurrence of IPA from baseline alcohol use, negative affect, self-control and ECF. Actor self-control interacted with partner self-control such that IPA was most probable when both were low in self-control. Contrary to prediction, actors high in alcohol use and also high on self-control were more likely to engage in IPA. Partner alcohol use was predictive of actor IPA when the partner was also high in negative affect. Low partner ECF was associated with more actor IPA. These findings suggest that self-regulatory factors within both members of a couple can interact with alcohol use patterns to increase the risk for relationship aggression.