Violence Against Women

The mandated arrest of domestic violence perpetrators is a policy response to the problem of partner violence. Mandatory arrest can result, however, in unintended and sometimes undesirable arrest outcomes, including dual arrests (when both parties are arrested), retaliatory arrests (when the perpetrator has his or her partner wrongfully arrested), and failures to make an arrest (when one is warranted by law). Using an inter-actionist perspective, this research focuses on one negative effect of mandatory arrest: the identity challenge faced by female victims of domestic violence who experience undesirable arrest outcomes. The authors discuss policy implications, focusing on the potential empowerment effects of mandatory arrest.

This article seeks to identify the variables that predict intimate partner violence recidivism. Neither prosecutorial actions, such as case rejection or subsequent dismissal, nor judicial imposition of jail terms or placement in a batterer treatment program demonstrated predictive value. Extralegal variables associated with the defendant, such as cohabitation status, marital status, gender, employment, and substance use at the time of the incident, all failed to attain significance. Victim support for arrest and prosecution were also unrelated to revictimization. Conversely, use of a weapon, the offender’s prior arrest for any offense, and the presence of a protective order at the time of the precipitating incident all predicted rearrest for intimate violence within an 18-month follow-up period. Policy implications are discussed.

The current study of South Asians in the United States was designed to assess quantitatively the association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and emotional abuse by in-laws (n = 169) and to qualitatively identify via in-depth interviews with battered women (n = 23) forms of abuse perpetrated by in-laws. Quantitative findings demonstrate a significant relationship between IPV and abuse from in-laws (odds ratio = 5.7, 95% confidence interval = 1.5-21.5). Qualitative data demonstrate that abuse by in-laws includes emotional abuse (e.g., isolation, social and economic control, and domestic servitude), awareness or support of IPV, and direct physical abuse. Domestic violence interventions with South Asian women must consider abuse from in-laws and IPV experiences.

This study examined how being abused by a current partner versus an ex-partner might affect psychological well-being and social support in a community sample of 398 women, half of whom had experienced abuse in the past 6 months. The impact of emotional and physical abuse was influenced by partner status, with emotional abuse being more detrimental to women abused by current partners and physical abuse being more detrimental to women abused by ex-partners. Emotional support was negatively related to depression in women abused by current partners, whereas practical support was negatively related to depression in women abused by ex-partners. The implications for interventions with abused women are discussed.

This study examined the correlations between everyday (nonviolent) sexism and the development of trauma symptoms in women. A total of 382 women completed a subjective measurement of the experience of sexism, a checklist of gender-based stressors (including acts of violence), a measurement of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and a demographic questionnaire. Results indicated a moderately strong relationship between the experience of everyday sexism and PTSD. A stepwise multiple regression revealed that when all variables (test scores, subscale scores, and demographic characteristics) were entered, the most predictive variable for trauma was recent sexist degradation, accounting for 20% of the variance in PTSD scores.