Substance Use and Abused Women's Utilization of the Police

• NCJ Number: 200929
• Journal: Journal of Family Violence Volume: 18 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2003 Pages: 93-106
• Author(s): Ira W. Hutchison
• Editor(s): Vincent B. Van Hasselt, Michel Hersen
• Date Published: April 2003
• Length: 14 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article examines the influence of alcohol and drugs on women’s use of the police for domestic violence.

Abstract

There is an extensive body of research on police response to domestic violence; however, there is less comparable research of the factors that are associated with women calling the police for assistance during domestic violence. This paper investigates the role of alcohol and drugs in influencing women’s utilization of police for incidents of abuse. Data were collected as part of a spouse assault study in North Carolina. A total of 419 women were located after the incident and agreed to be interviewed. Data analysis indicates that male drunkenness and marijuana use were statistically significant predictors of how frequently women would call the police for assistance for incidents of domestic violence. Substance use by victims had almost no impact on police utilization. The findings suggest that the police response to spouse abuse could and should be strengthened. Tables and references