NCJ Number
175001
Journal
Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency Volume: 35 Issue: 4 Dated: November 1998 Pages: 413-428
Date Published
1998
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study used a Massachusetts statewide criminal data based to test three explanations of female-female aggression drawn from feminist evolutionary positions.
Abstract
One hypothesis tested is that female-female aggression diminishes when State benefits provide a source of resource provision as an alternative to dependence on males (reflected in a negative correlation with Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). The second hypothesis is that female-female aggression indicates competition for resource-rich males (reflected in a positive correlation with female biased sex- ratios and high male unemployment). The third hypothesis tested is that female-female aggression is a function of female destitution that results in economic dependence on males (reflected in a positive correlation with female unemployment and AFDC receipt). To test these hypotheses, crime data were taken from the NIBRS files for Massachusetts for 34 reporting district for the year 1994. For each district, information was collected on numbers of simple and aggravated assaults. The study combined the two forms of assault into a single index to increase the baseline and reliability of the data Each episode of assault was coded by the sex composition of the incident and by age. There were 917 episodes of male-male assault and 1,466 episodes of male-female assault there were 268 episodes of female-female assault and 214 episodes of female-male assault. Researchers conducted multiple regression analysis of the female-female assault rate onto ecological measures of sex ratio, unemployment, and welfare receipt. The analysis supported the hypothesis that female-female aggression is a function of female destitution that results in economic dependence on males, which is reflected in a positive correlation with female unemployment and AFDC receipt. The article concludes with a discussion of how the feminization of poverty has implications not only for property crime, as emphasized by mainstream feminist theory, but also for assault. 2 tables and 74 references