Characteristics of Male Abusers who were Court
Ordered to
Attend
an Intervention Program
Katherine L. Applegate and Michael J. Marshall
West Liberty State College
Domestic
abuse is a serious national issue. There
are at least nine different types of domestic abuse. They include:
1. PHYSICAL ABUSE. This includes slapping,
punching, choking, pulling hair, pushing, restraining, kicking, using
weapons,
throwing things, pressing or forcing sexual intercourse, and engaging
in
violent intercourse.
2. INTIMIDATION. This includes frightening someone
by certain looks, gestures, or actions, smashing things, destroying
personal
property, harming pets, and displaying weapons.
3. EMOTIOTIONAL ABUSE. This includes name calling,
insults, false accusations, jealousy, lying, manipulation, rage,
playing “mind
games,” and making one feel guilty or humiliated.
4. ISOLATION. This includes keeping someone from
going where they choose, not allowing one to go to school, work, family
home,
friend’s home, listening to phone conversations, opening someone’s
mail,
following someone around, and persistent questioning of one’s
whereabouts.
5. MINIMIZING, DENYING, AND BLAMING. This includes
making light of the abuse, saying it did not happen, saying it is the
victim’s
fault, and rationalizing why the abuse occurred.
6. USING CHILDREN. This includes threatening the
children if mate does not do what what the abuser says, making mate
feel guilty
about the children, using visitation to harass mate, and threatening to
take the
children away.
7. MALE PRIVILEGE. This includes treating your mate
like a servant, acting like the “master of the castle,” making all the
“big”
decisions, and defining your mate’s role or job.
8. ECONOMIC ABUSE. This includes preventing your
mate from working outside the home. Making him/her ask for money, and
not
letting your mate know about the family income.
9. COERCION AND THREATS. This includes threats to:
take away the children, harm mate or mate’s family or friends, report
mate to
welfare, destroy mate’s property, commit suicide, and forcing mate to
drop
criminal charges, do something they do not want to do, or do something
illegal.
The better we understand the
characteristics of abusers, the more likely we will be able to develop
solutions. Past research has revealed
which variables tend to be most associated with male abusers. They are
age,
income level, having been abused as a child, having witnessed and abuse
between
parents as a child, violence in previous relationships, alcohol use,
the
presence of an alcoholic parent in the family of origin, educational
level, criminal
record, receiving mental health services, and an unsatisfactory home
life due
to substance abuse. This study used a
hierarchical regression analysis to test which variables were most
predictive
of each of the nine types of domestic abuse in a sample of 93 males in
the
Upper Ohio Valley.
Results showed that physical abuse was
predicted by all the above male characterics found in past research.
None of
these male characteristics however, were associated with economic abuse
in this
study. Most of the male characteristics
were associated with the other seven types of abuse.
A regression analysis was conducted to
determine which of the male characteristics were most predictive of
male
abusers when all the types of abuse were lumped together. Forty-four
percent of
the abuse was explained by four main male characteristics. They were,
an
unhappy home life due to drinking, age, using alcohol, and having
committed violence
in previous relationships. This is not surprising since alcohol is a
well known
contributor to domestic abuse. Previous violence in relationships is
also a
well known predictor of abuse. Augenstein and Ehrlich (1992) found that
up to
two-thirds of men in treatment for domestic violence had been violent
with at
least one past partner. Finally, the age variable may be explained by
its
correlation with an antisocial personality disorder. Antisocials abuse
their
partners more due to their desire for power over others, focus on
meeting their
own selfish needs at the expense of others, and lack of empathy for
others’
suffering. The only cure for antisocials
is time. Their antisocial behaviors tend to diminish in their 40s.
Hence, the
age correlation. Male abusers tend to reduce their abusive behavior as
they get
older, along with a general decline in all their other antisocial
behaviors.
A better understanding of abusive
partners, both male and female, will hopefully increase the success
rate of
treatment programs. Also, research on each of the nine subtypes of
abuse may
help to better match each type of abuser with the most appropriate
treatment
program.
Summary
of article published in Psychology and the Behavioral Sciences, 1997,
Volume 11, pp. 39-45.
