Type:	Journal Article
Title:	Differentiation among types of intimate partner violence: research update and implications for interventions
Other Titles:	Family court review
Authors:	Johnson, Michael P Kelly, Joan B
Keywords:	Family law;Perpetrators;Impact on children and young people;Theories of violence;Post-separation violence;Measurement;Men as victims
Year:	2008
Publisher:	Association of Family and Conciliation Courts
Citation:	46 (3), July 2008
Notes:	General Overview: This North American article advocates the differentiation of intimidate partner violence into four typologies: coercive controlling violence, violent resistance, situational couple violence, and separation-instigated violence. According to the authors, differentiation can be used to develop more effective screening instruments and processes, as well as appropriate interventions. Discussion: The article begins by highlighting the divergence between research on domestic violence by feminist practitioners and family sociologists, in particular with respect to whether there is gender symmetry in the perpetration of domestic violence. The authors propose that greater differentiation between different types of violence may help to bridge this gap, claiming that while coercive controlling violence is primarily perpetrated by men, situational couple violence is perpetrated equally by men and women. The article discusses the nature and prevalence of the four types of violence. Coercive controlling violence, involving a pattern of power and control, accords most closely with the feminist understanding of ‘battering’ and is the type of violence most frequently encountered by police, courts, hospitals and women’s shelters. Violent resistance, including self-defensive violence, is often short-lived but can attract significant media attention, particularly where it involves women who murder their abusive partners. Situational couple violence, resulting from situations or arguments between partners that escalate into physical violence but which are not part of a wider pattern of power and control, is the most common type of intimidate partner violence and, according to the authors, is perpetrated by both men and women. Separation-instigated violence consists of post-separation violence where there was no prior history of violence and is more likely to be perpetrated by the partner who is left. The final section of the article explores the implications of differentiating between the four types of intimate partner violence for the interventions undertaken with victims and offenders, including the use of batterer programs and mediation, as well as the implications for Family Court decisions.
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/14201
ISSN:	1531-2445
Appears in Collections:	Journal Articles

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