An Evaluation of Healthy Relationship Education to Reduce Intimate Partner Violence

This research evaluated the impact of the Within My Reach healthy relationship education program on intimate partner violence for 419 high-risk adults in an urban area. Key outcomes such as relationship knowledge, communication/conflict resolution skills, relationship quality, and physical and emotional abuse were evaluated through survey research immediately post- and 6-months postprogram participation. Results suggest that participation in the Within My Reach program is associated with a statistically significant decrease in physical and emotional abuse, as well as isolation behaviors. Differences by participant demographics and the role of communication skills and relationship quality as mediators of these outcomes are also discussed.     

Intimate Relationships of the Intellectually Gifted: Attachment Style,Conflict Style,and Relationship Satisfaction Among Members of the Mensa Society

To date relatively little is known about the intimate relationships of the intellectually gifted and the way they attach themselves to and handle conflicts with their intimate partner. The present study examined these issues by examining the relationship between attachment styles, conflict styles, and relationship quality in a sample of 196 adult members of the Mensa society. These results were compared with findings from a general community sample (n = 145). Results showed that, overall, Mensa members showed similar levels of relationship quality compared with the control sample but also tended to deal less constructively with conflicts and reported higher levels of fearful attachment. Analyses showed that the relations between relationship quality, conflict styles, and attachment were comparable in the two samples, with the exception of the role of fearful attachment in the relationship. Conflict styles mediated the relations between attachment and relationship quality in both samples. Results are discussed in light of the scarce knowledge on the intimate relationships of the gifted.     

Child Care Preferences of Foreign-Born Immigrant Groups in California

This study using California Health Interview Survey 2005 Child Survey data presents disparities among three major immigrant groups' child care preferences. Asian immigrant families used a grandparent or a relative care and a preschool more than Latino and European immigrant families. Latino immigrant families used child care from a nonfamily member in the provider's home and Head Start more than Asian and European immigrant families. To understand the predictors of time spent in child care by California's immigrant children, a multiple regression analysis was run. Being a child from an Asian immigrant family, child's age, being a girl, and being a child from a single mother-headed immigrant family emerged as predictors explaining 17.2% of the variance in the amount of time spent in child care. Variations in child care usage among immigrant groups warrant concern and suggest a need for culturally sensitive child care programs for immigrants.     

Time,Money and the Gender Order: Work Orientations and Working‐Time Preferences in Britain

In the context of economic restructuring and the reorganization of working time, the question of working‐time preferences is emerging as an important component of both academic and policy debates. Much of the debate about preferences is based upon conjuncture or inadequate indicators, often drawing oppositional models of gender differences in preferences which neglect the similarities between the sexes. This article starts by developing a framework for interpreting preference formation and change, with particular emphasis on the societal institutional system and existing national working‐time regime in which individuals' behaviour and preferences are located. This framework is then applied to highlight the particular features of the national working‐time regime and associated ‘gender order’ in Britain, followed by an analysis of gender similarities and differences in work orientations and working‐time preferences in this country. The results show that work orientations and working‐time preferences are related to labour market circumstances for both sexes. Similarity between women and men in the influences of workplace variables coexists with a gender‐differentiated effect of household circumstances on the types of work schedules preferred; childcare and domestic responsibilities figure more largely in women's accounts of their preferences than in men's. For both, however, the most popular reform would be increased time sovereignty in the organization of their work schedules.     

Consequences of Male Partner Violence for Low‐Income Minority Women

The current study used a random sample of 563 low‐income women to test Johnson's (1995) theory that there are two major forms of male‐partner violence, situational couple violence and intimate terrorism, which are distinguished in terms of their embeddedness in a general pattern of control. The study examined the associations between type of violence experienced and respondents’ physical health, psychological distress, and economic well‐being. Analyses revealed three distinct patterns of partner violence: intimate terrorism, control/no threat, and situational couple violence. Compared to victims of control/no threat and situational couple violence, victims of intimate terrorism reported more injuries from physical violence and more work/activity time lost because of injuries. Compared to women who experienced no violence in the previous year, victims of intimate terrorism reported a greater likelihood of visiting a doctor, poorer health, more psychological distress, and a greater likelihood of receiving government assistance.     

Partner Violence in Transgender Communities: What Helping Professionals Need to Know

ABSTRACT

In recent decades, there has been an increase in scholarly attention devoted to the study of intimate partner violence (IPV) within rainbow communities. While a growing body of scholarship now informs our understanding of the experiences of gay, lesbian, and bisexual men and women with IPV, comparatively less is known about IPV within transgender communities. Drawing on the published literature on transgender intimate relationships, this article seeks to provide practitioners with a foundational understanding of IPV in the lives of transgender people. Specifically, we will examine (a) methodological, political, and social barriers to the creation of knowledge about transgender IPV; (b) the familial and relationship contexts of IPV within transgender communities; (c) the prevalence of IPV experienced by transgender survivors; (d) the dynamics of IPV perpetrated against and/or by transgender persons; (e) the problematic use of the “trans panic” defense by perpetrators of IPV in legal contexts; and (f) recommendations for supporting transgender survivors of IPV in ways that are trans-inclusive and trans-positive.     

Intimate Partner Abuse of Older Men: Considerations for the Assessment of Risk

SUMMARY

Intimate partner abuse among older persons, though less common than among the general population, is a significant concern. Drawing from the intimate partner abuse and elder abuse literatures, this paper presents considerations for the assessment of risk for intimate partner abuse perpetrated against older men, with reference to the prevalent gendered view of abuse between intimate partners. Potential victim and perpetrator risk factors specific to this context are discussed and existing risk assessment tools are introduced. Implications and future research directions are discussed with regard to the application of risk assessment technology to this context.     

Perpetrator or Victim? Relationships Between Intimate Partner Violence and Well‐Being

In national surveys, around half of intimate partner violence perpetrators are also victims of partner assaults. However, data on intimate partner violence victimization and perpetration are rarely examined together. This study examines the relationships between perpetration, victimization, and three psychosocial variables—depression, self‐esteem, and substance abuse—that have been constructed in prior research as both causes and consequences of partner violence. Results indicate that associations between substance abuse and self‐esteem and partner violence perpetration are mediated by controlling for victimization, but depression is associated with both victimization and perpetration. Associations between mutual violence and depression and substance abuse are greater among women than men, supporting the position that gender symmetry in reported violence perpetration does not imply symmetry in outcomes.     

Multiple Partner Maternity Versus Multiple Partner Paternity: What Matters for Family Trajectories

In this analysis the ramifications of parents' multiple partner fertility for the trajectories of both married and unmarried stepfamilies are examined. Using a nationally representative sample of births to parents living in large cities, it was found that mother's children by prior partners are unrelated to subsequent relationship transitions within 5 years of a shared birth. However, men's other children are associated with an increase in the odds of dissolution among all couples and decrease the odds of marriage among the unmarried.     

Got One Another's Backs: Mother-Teen Relationships in Families Escaping Intimate Partner Violence

This Life Story study gained a comprehensive picture of experiences of young adolescents (ages 12–14) accompanying mothers in emergency domestic violence shelters. A holistic, chronological approach in interviews with an ethnically diverse sample of youth and their mothers (N = 27) yielded insights into perspectives on relationships. This article focuses on the complex thematic finding “interconnected family boundaries,” a central dynamic in mother-youth relationships characterized by emotional closeness, highly cohesive boundaries, and interdependence in problem solving regarding family issues. Participants identified this dynamic as essential for adaptation yet entailing losses. Discussion considers theoretical triangulation and implications for research, intervention, and practitioner education.     

Gender and the Seriousness of Assaults on Intimate Partners and Other Victims

We examine the ways in which assaults committed by male intimate partners are more serious than assaults committed by female partners and whether these differences reflect gender differences in offending and victimization generally. Analyses of the National Violence Against Women and Men Survey (N =6,480) show that, in general, gender effects do not depend on the victim's relationship to the offender. Regardless of their relationship (a) men cause more injuries; (b) women suffer more injuries although their injuries tend to be less severe; (c) victims are more fearful of male offenders but only if the offenders are unarmed; and (d) men are particularly likely to precipitate assaults by other men, not their female partners. Violent husbands do assault with particularly high frequency but so do women who assault family members.     

Same-Sex Intimate Partner Violence

ABSTRACT

This article presents a review of literature describing intimate partner violence (IPV) in same-sex relationships. The authors present definitions and the prevalence of the main forms of violence-physical, sexual, and emotional-that can occur within same-sex intimate partner relationships, an overview of the existing research that examines the dynamics and broader social context of same-sex IPV, and implications for counseling affected individuals.     

Lesbian Mothering in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence

SUMMARY

Twenty-four lesbian mothers (12 African American, 9 White, and 3 Latina) who had experienced physical abuse by a same-sex partner were interviewed. Three types of IPV were found: intimate terrorism, situational violence, and mutual violent control. Further, relationships between mothers/abusers, mothers/children, and abusers/children were examined. Regarding relationships with abusers, 71% of mothers reported lengthy sagas, 17% had worked it out, and 13% made a clean break from the abuser. Regarding relationships with their children, 48% of mothers hid the violence, 26% minimized it, and 26% openly communicated about the situation. Relationships between abusers and the mothers' children were found to be either co-parental (29%), playmate (21%), abusive (21%), or non-parental (21%). Correlations among relational and demographic variables were also examined.     

The Continuation of Intimate Partner Violence From Adolescence to Young Adulthood

Little attention has been paid to whether violence in adolescent romantic relationships is associated with relationship violence later in young adulthood. This study examined the continuation of intimate partner violence (IPV) from adolescence to young adulthood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, results from negative binomial models and propensity score models showed that being victimized by relationship partners in adolescence was significantly associated with both perpetration and victimization in romantic relationships in young adulthood. Women reported higher levels of perpetration and lower levels of victimization than men did. Those who were living together (married or cohabiting) reported higher levels of victimization and perpetration than those who were dating. Further, such associations existed beyond the effects of parent–child violence and general aggression tendencies, suggesting the continuation of relationship‐specific violence. Finally, these patterns persisted after controlling for participants' age, race and ethnicity, parental education, and family structure.     

Partner Choice and the Differential Retreat From Marriage

The contemporary retreat from marriage in the United States has had a differential impact across socioeconomic and racial groups. Here, 1990 marriage rates and propensities for Virginia, North Carolina, and Wisconsin are analyzed regarding (a) the likelihood that persons in different groups ever marry and (b) patterns of partner choice with respect to race and educational level. Marriage remains strong in most race‐education groups but is substantially lower among Blacks and among those with less than 12 years of education. Patterns of partner choice have shifted to show greater symmetry between the educational levels of brides and grooms. Changes have been modest with regard to the level and pattern of interracial (Black‐White) marriage. Marriage is increasingly a union of equals, but a union chosen more by Whites than by Blacks and more by the well educated than by the poorly educated.     

Problem Gambling and Intimate Partner Violence

This study examined the prevalence and severity of intimate partner violence (IPV) among 248 problem gamblers (43 women, 205 men) recruited from newspaper advertisements. The main outcome measures used were the Canadian Problem Gambling Index, the Conflicts Tactics Scale-2, the State Trait Anger Expression Inventory-2, the drug and alcohol section of the Addiction Severity Index and the substance use section of the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV. In this sample, 62.9% of participants reported perpetrating and/or being the victims of IPV in the past year, with 25.4% reporting perpetrating severe IPV. The majority of the sample (64.5%) also had clinically significant anger problems, which was associated with an increased risk of being both the perpetrator and victim of IPV. The presence of a lifetime substance use disorder among participants who had clinically significant anger problems further increased the likelihood of both IPV perpetration and victimization. These findings underscore the importance of routinely screening gambling clients for anger and IPV, and the need to develop public policy, prevention and treatment programs to address IPV among problem gamblers. Future research to examine IPV among problem gamblers is recommended.     

Risk and Resilience of Immigrant Women in Intimate Partner Violence

Violence inflicted against women by their intimate partners presents an especially critical area of inquiry among battered female immigrants following the striking ethnic diversification after the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. This article reviews contemporary literature of intimate partner violence; seeks to illustrate the current state of knowledge; and provides a conceptual framework that summarizes the unique experiences of immigrant women confronting the challenges of couple violence. Five underlying cultural and structural mechanisms influencing immigrant women's susceptibility, re-adjustment, and recovery were identified: (1) acculturation, (2) cultural mechanisms, (3) mental health, (4) structural elements, (5) legal contexts, and (6) social support. A synopsis of practice implications in the context of the literature is discussed.     

Epidemiology of Partner Abuse Within Military Families

Partner abuse (PA) is a public health problem that affects a significant number of families. Experiencing PA places victims at risk for a variety of negative outcomes, including substance use or abuse, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and, in extreme cases, permanent injury or death. Furthermore, children who are exposed to PA are at risk for problems in the areas of cognitive functioning, self-esteem, psychological and emotional well‐being, interpersonal relationships, and behavior. Most of what is known about PA has accrued through studies of civilian families. In this article, the authors report the results of an in depth review of the epidemiology of PA in each branch of the military. Results revealed that most studies of the military have been conducted with Army families. Rates of nonclinically significant PA are higher in military samples than civilian samples. Men and women connected to the military engage in rates of mild to moderate PA at similar rates. Males in the military engage in more violent PA than do women. These findings are discussed within a prevention and risk/resilience framework. Practical suggestions for clinicians working with military personnel and families and ideas for future research are provided.     

Housing Preferences of Vulnerable Elders in Suburbia

This article explores whether well and vulnerable elders residing in the suburbs differ in terms of: their level of satisfaction with their current living arrangement; their perception that they face a move within the next two years; and their level of interest in a series of different housing options. Our data support theoretical models that pose that diminished economic, physical, and social resources "push" vulnerable elders towards relocation. The data revealed that while the majority of well and vulnerable elders expressed high levels of satisfaction with their current homes, the vulnerable elders were significantly more likely to feel they faced an upcoming move. Housing options of interest to these vulnerable elders and implications for community planners are also addressed.