NCJ Number
139627
Journal
Violence and Victims Volume: 7 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1992) Pages: 109-128
Date Published
1992
Length
20 pages
Annotation
A sample of 234 women with some history of physical abuse was asked questions about the patterns of violence within their abusive relationships.
Abstract
A comparison of women out of the relationship and women still in the relationship was made to determine whether early reactions differed between the two groups. The authors hypothesized that women who employed the ultimate sanction of leaving their relationship may have had different experiences which influenced their leaving, may have shown different responses to earlier abusive incidents, or may have perceived the abuse differently. The interview responses showed that abuse generally increased for the first 18 months of a relationship and then continued at a relatively stable rate. The types of abusive incidents and their severity tended to quickly increase over early events. Women in short-term abusive relationships were more likely to make plans, including changing their marital status, following early incidents than women involved in long-term relationships. All the respondents believed their own sanctions against their abusers helped to stop the violence. 1 table and 31 references