This study assessed the construct validity of two different measurement models of male partners’ perpetration of physical violence, sexual violence, psychological abuse, and stalking against intimate partners. Data were obtained from a sample of 340 men arrested for physical assault of a female spouse or partner and court ordered into batterer intervention programs. Men were surveyed before starting the intervention. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to compare the construct validity of a four-factor measurement model of intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration to a three-factor measurement model that combined psychological abuse with stalking; overlap in the perpetration of the various forms of IPV was also examined. CFA results supported the superiority of a four-factor measurement model. There were 96.8% of participants who reported perpetration of all four types of violence; most men perpetrated multiple types of violence. Future studies should determine whether there are distinct risk factors associated with each of the four types of IPV perpetration.
Archer, J. ( 2000). Sex differences in aggression between heterosexual partners: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 126, 651-680.
2.
Archer, J. ( 2002). Sex differences in physically aggressive acts between heterosexual partners: A meta-analytic review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 7, 313-351.
3.
Basile, K.C. ( 1999). Rape by acquiescence: The ways in which women "give in" to unwanted sex with their husbands. Violence Against Women , 5, 1036-1058.
4.
Basile, K.C., & Saltzman, L.E. (2002). Sexual violence surveillance: Uniform definitions and recommended data elements (Version 1.0). Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
5.
Bentler, P.M. ( 1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107, 238-246.
6.
Bergen, R.K. ( 1996). Wife rape: Understanding the responses of survivors and service providers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
7.
Breiding, M.J., Black, M.C., & Ryan, G.W. ( 2008). Prevalence and risk factors of intimate partner violence in eighteen U.S. states/territories, 2005. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 34, 112-118.
8.
Coker, A.L., Davis, K.E., Arias, I., Desai, S., Sanderson, M., Brandt, H.M., et al. (2002). Physical and mental health effects of intimate partner violence for men and women. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 23, 260-268.
9.
Cupach, W., & Spitzberg, B. ( 2000). Obsessive relational intrusion: Incidence, perceived severity, and coping. Violence and Victims, 15, 357-372.
10.
Davis, K.E., Ace, A., & Andra, M. ( 2000). Stalking perpetrators and psychological maltreatment of partners: Anger-jealousy, attachment insecurity, need for control, and breakup context. Violence and Victims, 15, 407-425.
11.
Davis, R.C., & Taylor, B.G. ( 1999). Does batterer treatment reduce violence? A synthesis of the literature. Women and Criminal Justice, 10, 69-93.
12.
DeKeseredy, W.S. ( 2000). Current controversies on defining nonlethal violence against women in intimate heterosexual relationships. Violence Against Women, 6, 728-746.
13.
Dye, M.L., & Davis, K.E. ( 2003). Stalking and psychological abuse: Common factors and relationship-specific characteristics. Violence and Victims , 18, 163-180.
14.
Finkelhor, D., & Yllo, K. ( 1985). License to rape: Sexual abuse of wives. New York: Free Press.
15.
Follingstad, D.R., Rutledge, L.L., Berg, B.J., Hause, E.S., & Polek, D.S. ( 1990). The role of emotional abuse in physically abusive relationships . Journal of Family Violence, 5, 107-120.
16.
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D.F. ( 1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research , 18, 39-50.
17.
Gondolf, E., Heckert, A., & Kimmel, C. ( 2002). Non-physical abuse among batterer program participants . Journal of Family Violence, 17, 293-314.
18.
Kurt, J.L. ( 1995). Stalking as a variant of domestic violence. Bulletin of the Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 23, 219-223.
19.
Logan, T.K., Cole, J., & Shannon, L. ( 2007). A mixed-methods examination of sexual coercion and degradation among women in violence relationships who do and do not report forced sex . Violence and Victims, 22, 71-94.
20.
Logan, T.K., Leukefeld, C., & Walker, B. ( 2002). Stalking as a variant of intimate violence: Implications from a young adult sample. In K. E. Davis , I. H. Frieze, & R. D. Maiuro (Eds.), Stalking: Perspectives on victimization and perpetration (pp. 265-291). New York: Springer.
21.
Logan, T.K., & Walker, R. ( 2009). Partner stalking: Psychological dominance or "business as usual."Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 10, 247-270.
22.
Magdol, L., Mofitt, T.E., Caspi, A., Newman, D.L., Fagan, J., & Silva, P.A. ( 1997). Gender differences in partner violence in a birth cohort of 21 year olds: Bridging the gap between clinical and epidemiological approaches . Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65, 68-78.
23.
Mechanic, M.B., Uhlmansiek, M.H., Weaver, T.L., & Resick, P.A. ( 2002a). The impact of severe stalking experienced by acutely battered women: An examination of violence, psychological symptoms and strategic responding. In K. E. Davis, I. H. Frieze, & R. D. Maiuro (Eds.), Stalking: Perspectives on victimization and perpetration (pp. 89-111). New York: Springer .
24.
Mechanic, M.B., Weaver, T.L., & Resick, P.A. ( 2002b). Intimate partner violence and stalking behavior: Exploration of patterns and correlates in a sample of acutely battered women. In K. E. Davis, I. H. Frieze, & R. D. Maiuro (Eds.), Stalking: Perspectives on victimization and perpetration (pp. 62-88). New York: Springer.
25.
Miller, J. ( 2006). A specification of the types of intimate partner violence experienced by women in the general population. Violence Against Women, 12, 1105-1131.
26.
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. ( 2003). Costs of intimate partner violence against women in the United States. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
27.
O’Connor, M., & Rosenfeld, B. ( 2004). Introduction to special issue on stalking: Finding and filling the empirical gaps. Criminal Justice and Behavior , 31, 3-8.
28.
Peacock, P. ( 1998). Marital rape. In R. K. Bergen (Ed.), Issues in intimate violence (pp. 225-235). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
29.
Russell, D.E.H. ( 1990). Rape in marriage. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
30.
Saltzman. L. E., Fingerhut, L.A., Rand, M.R., & Visher, C. ( 2000). Building data systems for monitoring and responding to violence against women: Recommendations from a workshop. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 49(RR-11), 1-16.
31.
Snow, D.L., Sullivan, T.P., Swan, S.C., Tate, D.C., & Klein, I. ( 2006). The role of coping and problem drinking in men’s abuse of female partners: Test of a path model. Violence and Victims, 21, 267-285.
32.
Spitzberg, B.H. ( 2002). The tactical topography of stalking victimization and management. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 3, 261-288.
33.
Spitzberg, B.H., & Cupach, W.R. ( 2007). The state of the art of stalking: Taking stock of the emerging literature. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 12, 64-86.
34.
Straus, M.A. ( 1979). Measuring intrafamily conflict and violence: The Conflict Tactics (CT) Scales. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 41, 75-88.
35.
Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. ( 2000). Full report of the prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women (National Institute of Justice, Research Report, NCJ No. 183781). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
