Skip to main content
Log in

Characteristics of court-involved men and non-court-involved men who abuse their wives

  • Published:
Journal of Family Violence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The characteristics of court involved (CI) (n=86) and non-court-involved (NCI) men (n=42) who abused their wives and attended a treatment program were investigated. The groups experienced similar childhoods concerning family violence. The NCI men had more years of education, were more likely to be employed full-time, and tended to earn more money than the CI men. The NCI men also had more social support and scored higher on interpersonal problems than the CI men. The CI men were more likely to be separated, more reported drinking during their most recent assaultive occasion. Compared to the norms on the Basic Personality Inventory, both groups scored significantly higher on depression, anxiety, feelings of alienation, hypochondriasis, and impulse expression. CI men had higher denial and social introversion scores and NCI men had higher interpersonal problem scores than the norm. These findings have some implications for the planning of treatment programs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ball, M. (1977). Issues of violence in family casework.Social Casework,:58 3–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benjamin, L., and Waly, E. (1983).Violence in the Family: Child and Spouse Abuse, ERIC/CAPS, Ann Arbor, MI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Browning, J. (1984).Stopping the violence: Canadian programmes for assaultive men, National Clearinghouse on Family Violence, Health and Welfare, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byles, J., Byrne, C., Boyle, M. H., and Offord, D. R. (1988). Ontario Child Health Study: Reliability and validity of the General Functioning subscale of the McMaster Family Assessment Device.Fam. Proc. 21(1): 97–104.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, H., Bersani, C., Myers, S. C., and Denton, R. (1989). Evaluating the effectiveness of a court sponsored abuser treatment program.J. Fam. Viol. 4(4): 309–322.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eddy, M., and Myers, T. (1984).Helping men who batter Profile of programs in the United States. Paper presented at the Second National Conference for Family Violence Researchers, Durham, NH.

  • Feazell, C. S., Mayers, R. S., and Deschner, J. (1984). Services for men who batter: Implications for programs and policies.Fam. Relat. 33: 217–233.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flynn, J. (1975).Spouse Assault: Its Dimensions and Characteristics in Kalamazoo County, Mich. Kalamazoo, Mich. Field Studies in Reseach and Practice, Western Michigan University.

  • Ganley, A. (1981).Court-mandated counseling for men who batter A three-day workshop, Centre for Women Policy Studies, Washington, D.C.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gelles, R. J. (1974). Abused wives: Why do they stay?J. Marr. Fam. 38: 659–668.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gelles, R. J. (1980). Violence in the family: A review of the research in the seventies.J. Man. Fam. 42(4): 873–885.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gelles, R. J. (1982). Applying research on family violence to clinical practice.J. Marr. Fam. 2: 9–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giles-Sims, J. (1983).Wife Battering: A Systems Theory Approach, Guilford, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gondolf, E. E. (1985). Fighting for control. A clinical assessment of men who batter.Social Casework 61: 48–54.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grunsznski, R. J., and Carrillo, T. P. (1988). Who completes batterer's treatment groups? An empirical investigation.J. Fam. Viol. 3(2): 141–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamberger, L. K., and Hastings, J. E. (1988). Skills training for treatment of spouse abusers: An outcome study.J. Fam. Viol 3(2): 121–130.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hill, T. D., and Jackson, D. N. (1984).Parallel Forms for The Basic Personality Inventory, Research Bulletin #616, Dept. of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, D. N. (1989).Basic Personality Inventory, Sigma Assessment Systems, Inc., London, Ontario.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, G. K., and Straus, M. A. (1987). The ‘drunken bum’ theory of wife battering.Social Probl. 3334(3): 213–230.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLeod, L. (1987).Battered But Not Beaten: Preventing Wife Battering in Canada, Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Ottawa, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Owens, D. J., and Straus, M. A. (1975). The social structure of violence in childhood and approval of violence as an adult.Aggr. Behav. 1: 193–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pirong-Good, M. A., and Stets-Kealy, K. E. (1985). Male batterers and battering prevention programs: A national survey.Resp. Vict. Wom. Child 8: 8–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ponzetti, J., Cate, R., and Koval, J. (1982). Violence between couples: Profiling the male abuser.Person. Guid. J. 61: 222–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prescott, S., and Letko, C. (1977). Battered women: A social psychological perspective. In Roy, M. (ed.),Battered Women: A Psychosocial Study of Domestic Violence, Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pressman, B. M. (1984).Family Violence: Origins and Treatment, Children's Aid Society of the City of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, R. (1987). Psychosocial characteristics of batterers: A study of 234 men charged with domestic violence offenses.J. Fam. Viol. 2(1): 81–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenbaum, A. (1988). Methodological issues in marital violence research.J. Fam. Viol. 3: 91–104.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenbaum, A., and O'Leary, K. D. (1981). Marital violence: Characteristics of abusive couples.J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 49: 63–71.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roy, M. (1982).The Abusive Partner: An Analysis of Domestic Battering, Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schuerger, J. M., and Reigle, N. (1988). Personality and biographic data that characterize men who abuse their wives.J. Clin. Psychol. 44: 75–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stacy, W., and Shupe, A. (1983).The Family Secret Domestic Violence in America, Beacon Press, Boston.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinmetz, S. K. (1977).The Cycle of Violence: Assertive, Aggressive and Abusive Family Interaction, Praeger Publishers, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Straus, M. A. (1979). Measuring intrafamily conflict and violence: The Conflict Tactics (CT) Scales.J. Marr. Fam. 41: 75–86.

    Google Scholar 

  • Straus, M. A., Gelles, R. J., and Steinmetz, S. K. (1980).Behind Closed Doors: Violence in the American Family, Anchor Press/Doubleday, Garden City, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wetzel, L., and Ross, M. (1983). Psychological and social ramifications of battering: Observations leading to a counselling methodology for victims of domestic violence.Person. Guid. J. 61: 423–428.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Barrera, M., Palmer, S., Brown, R. et al. Characteristics of court-involved men and non-court-involved men who abuse their wives. J Fam Viol 9, 333–345 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01531943

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01531943

Key words

Navigation