Typology of reactions to intimate partner violence among men and women arrested for partner violence

This study examined behavioral and emotional responses to partner-initiated violence reported by men and women court-ordered to domestic violence counseling. Respondents provided Likert-type ratings of behavioral and emotional responses to their partners' initiated violence. Cluster analysis to determine heterogeneity of emotional and behavioral responses resulted in a three-cluster solution. The profile for Cluster 1, predominantly male, showed no specific behavioral or emotional reaction pattern. Cluster 2 respondents, evenly split between males and females, but comprising a high proportion of all of the female participants, reported frequently doing what the partner wanted and attempting to escape. Emotional responses experienced by Cluster 2 respondents were anger, insult, and fear. Cluster 3, predominantly male, reported a frequent tendency to use force in response and escape when their partners initiated physical violence. Emotionally, Cluster 3 participants reported experiencing high levels of anger and insult, and relatively low levels of fear and low levels of amusement. Implications of these findings for development of gender-based intervention strategies will be discussed.