Citation

Fenton B, Rathus JH. J. Fam. Violence 2010; 25(2): 149-158.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s10896-009-9278-8

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This study examines descriptions and precipitants of domestic violence events, as reported by 24 males in intake interviews for a domestic violence treatment program. Six categories were derived for men’s descriptions/explanations of violent incidents and 11 categories were derived for precipitants of violence. Men’s accounts of their violent interactions reveal a wider range of descriptions than those often discussed in the literature, including direct acknowledgment and remorse. The most frequently reported precipitants were arguments regarding children/pets, violence of partner, alcohol use, overwhelming emotions, and arguments regarding jealousy; these were consistent with previously identified precipitants. Kappas indicated that rates of interrater agreement for descriptions and precipitants reached acceptable reliability. Results extend the widely-cited findings on men’s self-appraisals of intimate partner violence and support past work on proximal factors that elicit violent partner responses. We propose a taxonomy of proximal antecedents of intimate partner violence to integrate present findings with previous research.