NCJ Number
141486
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 8 Issue: 1 Dated: (March 1993) Pages: 39-58
Date Published
1993
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This study compares perceived life stressors, alcohol usage, and perceived quality of the intimate relationship of a group of males who have abused their female partner with a group who have no history of abuse toward their partner.
Abstract
Interviews were conducted with 42 men who were defined as violent and 50 men who were defined as nonviolent. Interviews consisted of various demographic and health questions as well as standardized instrumentation (Michigan Alcoholism Screen Test, Autonomy/Relatedness Scale, Life Experiences Survey, and Conflict-Tactics Scale). Student's tests indicated that the two groups differed as a function of perceived life stressors, perceived quality of the intimate relationship, race, and depression. Stepwise logistic regression indicated that higher perceived quality of the intimate relationship, black race, and greater depression were significant predictors of male violence toward female intimates. As the proponents of the ecological model contend, violence toward intimates is a more complex phenomenon than the literature suggests. The importance of using more than one or two predictor or explanatory variables and understanding combined effects is illustrated by this study. 5 tables and 77 references