NCJ Number
216580
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 21 Issue: 5 Dated: July 2006 Pages: 327-339
Date Published
July 2006
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This study tested a risk and resilience model of criminal violence against women to more fully explore the process of the intergenerational transmission of violence.
Abstract
Main findings indicated that attachment and chaotic family factors influenced adult men’s violence toward women. Internalizing and externalizing behaviors may be the mechanisms through which attachment and chaotic family factors impact violence against women. Affect dysregulation was found to mediate the effects of attachment and family chaos on adult violence against women. The findings suggest that as the boys in the sample developed, their emotional needs were ignored or rejected, leading to a prolonged state of negative emotional arousal. The attachment relationships formed in abusive and chaotic families may not foster the development of positive affect regulation strategies, resulting in high levels of internalizing and externalizing behaviors, which in turn may lead to adult violence against women. Data were drawn from a previous study collected between 1940 and 1948 on 500 White males aged 10 to 17 years who were living in Boston and who had juvenile delinquency records. Participants were recruited through correctional facilities. Data sources included official criminal records, medical records, psychological assessments, and semi-structured interviews with the boys, their parents, teachers, police officers, and social workers. Data were analyzed with the help of PRELIS 2.0 and LISREL 8.30 computer software and included the use of principle components analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Future research should continue to explore the relationship between affect dysregulation and the intergenerational transmission of violence. Tables, figures, references