NCJ Number
216190
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 21 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2006 Pages: 117-125
Date Published
February 2006
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This study tested intergenerational transmission models of family violence that included variables from attachment theory, namely: separation and loss in the family of origin.
Abstract
The results indicated that early life separation and loss events influenced respondents’ violent behavior to a greater extent than did exposure to family of origin violence. Examining the interaction between family of origin violence and separation and loss events revealed that separation and loss might serve as the best predictor for current violence in families with the lowest levels of family of origin violence. These findings suggest that there are at least two pathways into violence during adulthood: (1) violence may arise from the experience of disruption in childhood attachments, or (2) violence may arise from the experience of child abuse victimization. The findings have implications for domestic violence intervention programs that tend to focus heavily on learned models of behavior rather than on the emotional aftermath of disrupted attachments during childhood. Participants were 74 men seeking or referred to a domestic violence treatment program. Participants completed questionnaires measuring early life experiences of separation and loss, erratic caregiving, violence in the family of origin, and violence in the current adult relationship. Data analysis involved the calculation of bivariate correlations and multiple regression models. Future research should focus on gaining a better understanding of psychosocial processes that impact family violence. Tables, references