College Students' Perceptions of Intimate Partner Violence: The Effects of Type of Abuse and Perpetrator Gender

A retrospective descriptive study of male perpetrators of intimate partner violence referred by judicial authorities: an example from Turkey

PURPOSE

Our study examines the socio-demographic, forensic psychiatric, and childhood trauma exposure (CTE) data of Turkish intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrators and draws comparisons with the violence data.

METHODS

Data of male perpetrators referred to the domestic violence outpatient clinic by judicial authorities between November 2019 and June 2022 were retrospectively examined, with a focus on CTE data.

RESULTS

The mean age of the male perpetrators examined in the study was 37.1 years. Among the overall sample, 16.2% (n = 17) had experienced violence at school in childhood, and 22.9% (n = 24) had experienced CTE. Regarding the frequency of domestic violence in their households, of the perpetrators admitted to the clinic for IPV, 40% (n = 42) reported rarely, 43.8% (n = 46) sometimes, and 16.2% (n = 17) often engaged in violent acts. There is a significant relationship between the frequency of IPV and the level of CTE (χ2: 13.052, SD: 2, p = 0.001, Cramer's V: 0.353). Similarly, individuals who witnessed domestic violence during childhood were found to commit partner violence more frequently (χ2: 8.157, SD: 2, p = 0.017, Cramer's V: 0.279).

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, we found a strong relationship between CTE and IPV. To the best of our knowledge, our study is only example that investigates the relationship between CTE and IPV in a Turkish sample.

An assessment of appraisals of dating relationship conflicts and perceptions of appropriate coping strategies with psychologically abusive interactions

Introduction

Stemming from a stress appraisal and coping perspective, the present investigation developed a methodology for assessing how individuals appraise abusive dating relationship conflicts (Study 1) and the implications of such appraisals for informing coping responses to abusive interactions (Study 2).

Methods

Participants ranging in age from 17 to 29 years (Study 1: 102 males, 339 females; Study 2: 88 males, 362 females) completed a survey in which they were presented with a series of 10 scenarios that conveyed relationship conflict cues that were ostensibly aligned with various forms of psychological abuse.

Results

Factor analyses indicated that blatant actions conducted in privacy were differentiated from more ambiguous public forms of psychological abuse, in that the latter were appraised by both males and females as more abusive. Females were further likely to appraise blatant conflicts as more threatening but at the same time more resolvable. Participants who had encountered abuse in their own intimate relationships were especially likely to appraise conflicts as abusive, threatening and uncontrollable. Such appraisals were associated with greater endorsement of avoidant coping strategies in response to an abusive encounter, irrespective of personal relationship experiences.

Discussion

It is suggested that how individuals appraise relationship conflicts may be key to their ability to cope effectively with such encounters or to provide appropriate support to those experiencing psychologically abusive relationships.

Normative Beliefs about Adolescent-to-Parent Violence: The Spanish Adaptations of the Beliefs about Child-to-Parent Abuse Questionnaire and the Abusive Behavior by Children-Indices

Ascertaining the true prevalence of adolescent-to-parent violence (APV) is challenging because the measurement of APV in research is complex. There is no consensus on which behaviors constitute APV or how frequently they need to occur to be considered abusive. This study aimed to explore the normative beliefs about APV related to the perpetrator's gender in a sample of Spanish parents, by developing Spanish adaptations of the BACPAQ and the ABC-I. The participants were 329 Spanish parents aged 19 to 81, and 77% were mothers. They answered the Spanish adaptation of the BACPAQ online after being contacted by university students using the snowball sampling technique. Results show that sons were judged more harshly than daughters; although, differences were statistically significant only for a few psychologically abusive behaviors. There was agreement with the original study on the abusive nature of most behaviors, especially regarding physical violence. Cultural differences were reflected in verbal, psychological, and economic violence, and Spanish parents used more stringent thresholds than Australians. Future research should tackle the difficulty of carrying out studies on APV using a single tool able to reflect normative beliefs about this type of domestic violence in different cultures.

Intimate Partner Violence Victimization, Mental Health, and Unemployment: Year One of the Covid-19 Pandemic

We assessed the impact of mental health and participant and partner unemployment on physical, sexual, and psychological intimate partner violence (IPV). Data were collected within 1 month of individual state Covid-19 mandates (Time I) and 2 months after mandates eased (Time II). Sexual IPV was highest when both partners were unemployed for reasons other than Covid-19 while physical IPV was highest when both partners were unemployed due to Covid-19. Physical IPV victims reported more depression and somatization at Time II than at Time I. Nonvictims did not. There were no differences in IPV prevalence during and after restrictions. Clinical and policy implications are discussed.

From harassment to disappearance: Young women’s feelings of insecurity in public spaces

Background

There are processes of gender socialization that increase the vulnerability of young women against a continuum of threats in the public space. This study explored the feeling of insecurity in public spaces among young women in a city located near the northern border of Mexico.

Methods and findings

This study was based on the tradition of grounded theory. Purposive sampling was used, and 24 group interviews were conducted with junior high school, high school and university students to understand the conditions that favour the emergence of the feeling of insecurity, its psychosocial consequences and management strategies. A computer-assisted qualitative analysis was performed using MAXQDA 18 software. The study showed that street harassment was manifested mainly as sexual harassment but generated a continuous threat of feminicide and disappearance. Young women experienced discomfort and restrictions on mobility, and they had to assume individual responsibility for their safety in the absence of support from the state.

Conclusions

The interaction between gender and age determines the vulnerability to crime in urban spaces. Future studies could analyse the chronic impact of this continuum of threats and develop psychosocial interventions that promote the empowerment of young women.

The Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Sexual Attitudes, Sexual Assertiveness, and Sexual Functioning in Men and Women

BACKGROUND

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) causes physical, sexual, or psychological harm. The association between psychosexual (sexual assertiveness, erotophilia, and attitude towards sexual fantasies) and sexual function (sexual desire, sexual excitation, erection, orgasm capacity, and sexual satisfaction), and the experience of physical and non-physical IPV was assessed.

METHODS

Data from 3394 (1766 women, 1628 men) heterosexual adults completed the Spanish version of the Index of Spouse Abuse, scales measuring psychosexual and sexual function, and demographic characteristics were collected.

RESULTS

For men, poorer sexual health was associated with an experience of physical abuse (F = 4.41, p < 0.001) and non-physical abuse (F = 4.35, p < 0.001). For women, poorer sexual health was associated with physical abuse (F = 13.38, p < 0.001) and non-physical abuse (F = 7.83, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The experience of physical or non-physical abuse has a negative association with psychosexual and sexual functioning in both men and women.