Forensic Psychology - Chapter 13 and Chapter 6

Conflict Tactics Scale

- 18 items

- A measure how a couple resolves conflict
o Constructive problem solving
o Verbal/indirect aggression
o Physical aggression

- Items are rated by how
o How frequently they have engaged in the acts themselves
o How frequently they have experienced the acts

1. It introduces the questionnaire by focusing on how couples settle disputes. However, not all acts of violence are precipitated by an argument, and thus this introduction may cause some respondents to not report all events.

2. The CTS doesn’t include the full range of potential violent acts (e.g. sexual abuse)

3. It is likely that different results would be found if acts such as kicking, biting, and punching were not combined into one item

4. The CTS doesn’t take into account the different consequences of the same act for men and women. Women are more likely than men to suffer both physical and psychological consequences from domestic violence (with an injury rate of 42% and 19%)

5. The CTS doesn’t assess motive for violence and therefore offensive violence is treated as equal to a defensive response

6. Items on the CTS may be interpreted differently depending on the gender of the respondent

Response to Criticisms of the CTS

- A variety of physically aggressive acts have been included (e.g. sexual aggression, burning, etc.)

- The verbal aggression scale was re-named ‘psychological aggression’ and additional items were added (e.g. did something to spite partner)

- The consequence (physical injury) has been added

Archer (2002) Meta Analysis

- Females were more likely to engage in minor aggression

- Men were more likely to beat up or choke their partners

- Respondents reported fewer violent acts than their partners

- Men were more likely to under-report than women

- Differences between groups:
o Treatment samples: men engage in higher rates of minor and severe violence
o Community samples and university samples: males and females commit equal amounts of violence

Myths about domestic violence

1) Domestic violence is uncommon
· In Canada 1/8 women are abused by their partners
· Highest rates of domestic violence are experienced by women between the ages of 15 and 25

2) Only heterosexual women get battered by men
· Men can be victims of domestic violence and women can be batterers

3) When a woman leaves a violent relationship, she is safe
· The most dangerous time for a battered spouse is after separation
· 75% of spousal homicides occur after separation

4) Alcohol and/or drugs cause people to act aggressively
· Alcohol and drugs do not cause violence nor do they justify it

5) When a woman gets hit by her partner she must have provoked him in some way
· No one deserves to be hit, regardless of provocation

6) Maybe things will get better
· Once violence begins in a relationship, it usually gets worse

Dutch Model (theory of patriarchy)
· Patriarchy: broad set of cultural beliefs and values that support male dominance of women
· Evidence: States with male dominant norms have higher rates of spousal assault than those with more egalitarian norms

Theory of observational learning

· Observational learning: learning behaviors by watching others perform them

· Three main sources of observational learning:
o Family of origin
o The subculture the person lives in
o Televised violence

· Evidence: male batterers are more likely to have witnessed parental violence than nonviolent men

· Instigators: events in the environment that act as a stimulus for acquired behavior
o Aversive instigators: produce emotional arousal and how a person labels that emotional arousal with influence how he/she responds
§ Male emotional funnel: studies with male batterers have found that they tend to label many different emotional states as anger
o Incentive instigators: perceived rewards for engaging in aggression

· Regulators: consequences of behavior
o External punishment: e.g. if a person were arrested
o Self punishment: e.g. if the person felt remorse for their behavior

Nested Ecological Model
· Macro-system: broad sets of societal and cultural beliefs and attitudes (e.g. patriarchy, social norms)
· Exosystem: the social structures that connect the individual to the wider society such as social supports, employment, or friends (e.g. job stress or unemployment)
· Microsystem: this level focuses on the immediate environment in which abuse occurs (e.g. the couples pattern of communication or level of conflict)
· Ontogenic level: focuses on the psychological and biological features of the individual (e.g. the individuals abuse history, exposure to violent models, and ability to manage emotions)

Ewing and Aubrey (1987)

- Gave community samples a hypothetical scenario about a couple having problems including an description of the man assaulting the wife

- The female victim “bears at least some responsibility” (men: 47%, women: 30%)

- The battered woman could simply leave her battering husband (men: 47%, women: 71$%)

- The battered woman who stays is somewhat masochistic (men: 57%, women: 50%)

- The women can prevent battering by seeking counseling (men: 86%, women: 81%)

- The battering is an isolated event: (men: 40%, women: 27%)
- The women can rely on the police to protect her (men: 18%, women: 15%)

Why do Women Stay?

- 42% of women left their abusive partner for a short while or permanently
o Severity of the violence
o Having children witness the violence
o Reporting the violence to the police

Reasons Abused Women Returned
- 70% of women who left their abusive partner returned home at least once
o For the sake of the children (31%)
o To give the relationship another chance (24%)
o The partner promised to change (17%)
o Lack of money or a place to go (9%)
o Mate promised to change (71%)
o Lack of money (46%)
o Mate needed me (36%)
o Nowhere to go or stay (29%)
o Threats of mate to find me and kill me (22%)
o Children wanted to go back (19%)
o Shelter was full (5%)
o Felt safer knowing what the abuser was doing (22%)

Family only batterer

- Engages in the least amount of violence

- Typically is neither violent outside the home nor engages in other criminal behaviors

- Doesn’t show much psychopathy, but may have
a passive-dependent personality

- Doesn’t report negative attitudes supportive of violence and has moderate impulse control problems

- Typically displays no disturbance in attachment to his partner

Dysphoric/Borderline Batterer

- Engages in moderate/severe violence

- Exhibits some extra-familial violence and
criminal behavior

- Of all types of batterers, displays the most depression and borderline personality traits and has problems with jealousy

- Has moderate problems with impusivity and alcohol and drug use

- Has a preoccupied attachment style

Generally violent/antisocial behavior
- Engages in moderate to severe violence
- Of all types of batterers, engages in the most violence outside of the home and in criminal behavior
- Has antisocial and narcissistic personality features
- Has drug and alcohol problems
- Has extreme issues with impulse control and many violence-supportive beliefs
- Shows a dismissive attachment style

Criminal Justice and Domestic Violence

- Mandatory charging policies: give the police the authority to lay charges against a suspect where there is reasonable and probable grounds to believe domestic assault has occurred

- Prior to ‘mandatory charging policies’ women were required to bring charges against their husbands

- In the 1970’s and 1980’s arrest rates in Canada and the US ranged from 7-15%

- Recently arrest rates between 30% and 75%
have been reported

Sherman and Berk (1984)
- Randomly assigned 314 domestic assault calls to three police responses: separation, mediation, or arrest
- The recidivism rates for the arrested men were lower than those of the men in the separation or mediation groups


Sherman, Schmidt, and Rogan (1992)
- Randomly assigned police calls to domestic violence to non-arrest or arrest
- Lower recidivism rates were reported in the short term for both responses (30 days)
- In the long term follow up (7-9 months) the arrest group had slightly higher rates of recidivism
- The arrest was not effective for those offenders who were unemployed