Gender-Specific Conflicts among Urban African-American Youth: The Roles of Situational Context and Issues of Contention

The literatures on violence among young men and young women have highlighted the importance of situational context. However, few studies have compared disputes that do not result in violence with those that do, and even fewer have been positioned to investigate the role situational context may play across gender in accounting for these outcomes. Drawing on recent scholarship on gender and violence, this research explores the situational contexts of youth conflicts among African-American adolescent boys and girls. Using a large sample of narrative accounts of 153 violent and nonviolent conflicts, we examine how youth describe the issues of contention in their conflicts, how these relate to the situational contexts in which conflicts emerge, and similarities and differences in the antecedents, contexts, and extent of male and female violence.     

Pathways in the offending process of sex offenders who target marginalised victims

Prior literature shows that although marginalised populations are at a high risk of severe violence and homicide, research has focused on their offenders as if they constituted a homogeneous group. On the basis of a sample of 213 sex offenders who targeted marginalised individuals (i.e., sex trade worker, homeless individual, and severe drug user), we investigate the different pathways that these offenders take both prior to and during the commission of their crimes. Results of 2‐step cluster analysis regarding the offender's development, criminal history, crime context, and modus operandi revealed 3 distinct pathways of the offending process. The coercive pathway was characterised by the amount of violence used against the victim. The explosive pathway was defined by offenders who were in a state of rage at the time of the offence. Finally, offenders in the situational pathway committed their crimes out of opportunity and used very little violence. Differences between pathways were investigated with regard to characteristics of the index offence.     

Child Sexual Abuse within Educational Settings: A Qualitative Study on Female Teachers Who Sexually Abuse Their Students

ABSTRACT

Despite growing interest, research on female sex offenders has been limited. Previous research on female sex offenders has focused on understanding behaviors, patterns, and motivations of female sex offenders overall, but only a handful of studies have specifically focused on teachers who are convicted of sexually abusing underaged students. For the present study, we examined the nature of child sexual abuse among a sample of female teachers, focusing specifically on the onset, situational context, and conclusion of these sexual abuses. We examined interviews conducted with 35 female sex offenders who used their position as a teacher to engage in a sexual abuse of underage students from 1995 to 2016 in a southern state. Based on the narratives of both victims and offenders, our findings indicated several categories of female teacher offenders including predatory, sexual friendship, and emotionally dependent. We hope the findings of the current study will help inform educational policy in efforts to prevent the occurrence of these abuses in the future.     

Personality and situational correlates of self-reported reasons for intimate partner violence among women versus men referred for batterers' intervention

This study examines personality and situational correlates of self-reported reasons for intimate partner violence (IPV) among women and men court-ordered to batterers' intervention as IPV offenders. Women endorsed self-defense and men retaliation as their primary reasons for IPV. Both also endorsed emotion dysregulation as a reason for much of their violence. Women's partner violence was largely, but not exclusively, situationally motivated. Women's reasons for violence also related significantly to self-reported borderline personality symptomology. Men's reasons for IPV related primarily to their self-reported antisocial and borderline personality traits, not to situational factors. Thus, the IPV of some women and some men may be considered "characterological," in that it reflects something about the individual's character or personality. Control or domination of one's partner was not a primary reason for violence among women or men, despite the assumption on which many batterer intervention programs are based, that IPV is primarily a power and control tactic. Clinical implications and recommendations for future research are provided.     

Women who perpetrate intimate partner violence: A review of the literature with recommendations for treatment

The purpose of this article is to review the literature on women as perpetrators of violence in their intimate relationships (i.e., domestically violent women) and summarize the scant literature on intervention programs for these women. Particular attention is paid to the cultural influences that shape our conceptualization of “domestic violence” and the fact that empirical research suggests that domestic violence has been falsely framed as exclusively male initiated violence. The article concludes with a discussion of the similarities and differences between male and female domestic violence offenders and identifies areas where treatment for female offenders might be improved.     

Langhinrichsen-Rolling’s Confirmation of the Feminist Analysis of Intimate Partner Violence: Comment on “Controversies Involving Gender and Intimate Partner Violence in the United States”

This article makes four major points in response to Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rolling’s (2010) review of the intimate partner violence literature. First, the evidence is clear that there is more than one type of intimate partner violence. Second, the feminists are right. Gender is central to the analysis of intimate partner violence, and the coercive controlling violence that most people associate with the term “domestic violence” is perpetrated primarily by men against their female partners. Third, different types of intimate partner violence have different causes, different developmental trajectories, and different consequences. They require different models to understand them. Finally, we need more qualitative research focused on the least understood types of intimate partner violence: violent resistance and situational couple violence.     

The relationship of offending style to psychological and social risk factors in a sample of adolescent males

Research has indicated that life‐course persistent offenders typically vary their offending style, following a criminal career progression from co‐ to solo‐offending. Few studies have investigated the offenders who contemporaneously mix their style of offending. A sample of 1,047 male adolescent offenders from the Pathways to Desistance study was investigated over a 7‐year period. Participants were identified as solo, co or contemporaneous mixed style (CMS) offenders for each wave of data and one‐way between groups analysis of variance was conducted to examine variations between the different offending styles in terms of offending frequencies, exposure to violence, peer antisocial behaviour and influence, resistance to peer influence, impulse control and psychopathy. CMS offenders were found to consistently report significantly higher rates of offending and present significantly higher negative risk factors and lower protective risk factors than solo‐ and co‐offenders for the duration of the study. A multinomial logistic regression was used to investigate predictors of offending style with CMS as the reference category. Higher levels of exposure to violence and peer antisocial behaviour and lower levels of impulse control predicted membership of the CMS group for the first part of the study when compared with co‐offenders; and higher levels of exposure to violence and peer antisocial behaviour continued to predict CMS offending when compared to solo‐offenders until the end of the study.     

Comparing serial homicides to single homicides: A study of prevalence,offender, and offence characteristics in Sweden

Multiple and serial homicides constitute around 1.6% of all homicides but have unusually tragic outcomes. The aims of this study were to report the prevalence serial‐homicide offences and the characteristics of serial‐homicide offenders in a non‐North American context. The study included all convicted serial‐homicide offenders in Sweden from 1973 to 2012 (n = 25), as well as a population‐based control sample of single‐homicide offenders collected during 2007 and 2009 (n = 201). Similar to U.S. findings, approximately 1.6% of homicides could be attributed to serial‐homicide offenders. Serial offenders were more often diagnosed with personality disorders and autism‐spectrum disorders compared with single offenders; and serial offences more often involved victims who were female and unacquainted with the offender, as well as planning, sexual motives, and asphyxia as method of violence. One third of serial offences involved actions aimed at disguising the manner of death; such actions were considerably less common in single‐homicide offences. Few offenders displayed the traditional profile of a serial‐homicide offender; however, one third displayed sexual motives, a rate roughly 10 times higher than that in the single‐homicide group. The study concludes that serial‐homicide offenders should be subjected to forensic‐psychiatric examinations and that research involving cross‐contextual differences and similarities in serial‐homicide offenders is needed.     

Teacher-instigated in-school interpersonal violence: Types and prevalence in South African public schools

The study examined types and prevalence of interpersonal violence in South African schools. Data on in-school interpersonal violence by the South African Council of Teachers (SACE) were analysed. The sample consisted of 1 184 teachers (rural = 32.6%, urban = 59.8%, peri-urban = 7.6%). Following logistic regression analyses, results indicated male teachers were the majority offenders. Furthermore, results showed that female teachers and learners were over nine times more likely to be victims of all types of violence, as compared to males. Findings support a social role theory perspective of gendered aggression in which males are likely to resort to physical violence, while females may engage in verbal violence.     

Non-Violent Survival Strategies in the Face of Intimate Partner Violence and Economic Discrimination

Intimate partner violence (IPV) theory often locates violence equitably between women and men. Women, however, sustain greater degrees of injury than men and often use violence as a measure of protection rather than as an act of aggression. Yet measures of protection must be viewed in multiple contexts. In this case, the context is poverty, which reveals that violence by women in response to IPV is not the only way that women deal with the violence in their lives. This article explicates four strategies that battered women in poverty deploy in their protective trajectory and highlight alternative resistance strategies women use to overcome multiple structural barriers.     

In search of the “Tossed Salad Man” (and others involved in prison violence): New strategies for predicting and controlling violence in prison

This article addresses two fundamental questions: 1) Can we accurately identify a subgroup of high risk inmates who will likely be involved in various forms of prison violence; and if so, 2) Is there an empirical research supporting the contention that current classification systems reduce the risk posed by those offenders predicted to be violent (such as gang/security threat group members)? Based on a review of the empirical evidence from the past two decades, we conclude that current classification strategies do not predict prison violence very accurately and perhaps more importantly, they do not appear to reduce the risk of violence in prison. New classification systems focusing on changing – rather than controlling – offenders while in prison represent one possible alternative strategy, given recent evidence that participation in prison programming/treatment is the most effective prison violence reduction strategy currently available.     

Family of Origin Violence Predictors of IPV by Two Types of Male Offenders

The aim of this study was to determine the role of family of origin violence in predicting intimate partner violence (IPV). Male participants were divided into generally offending and family-only groups according to whether their violence occurred exclusively within intimate partner and family contexts or toward others outside the family as well. Results showed that exposure to family of origin violence affected IPV differently between the two groups of offenders. For generally offending offenders, exposure to family of origin violence significantly predicted IPV above and beyond demographic factors, alcohol and drug use, and bidirectional aggression. For family-only offenders, witnessing father-initiated violence toward the mother had a significant influence on their violent behavior toward their intimate partners. Clinical implications of these findings are addressed.     

Predictors of aggression in Southeast Asian female prisoners

Although aggression is universal, few studies examine violence from an Asian perspective, and even fewer consider female offenders from Southeast Asia. The current study examined whether correlates of aggression in western male offenders are similarly effective for predicting aggression in female inmates (n = 114) from a local prison in Singapore. Aggression was measured using the Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire (comprising dimensions of physical and verbal aggression, anger and hostility) which we sought to predict from measures of impulsivity, general personality traits (neuroticism, agreeableness), psychopathy, and empathy. Impulsivity and agreeableness were significant predictors of self-reported physical and verbal aggression and anger, whereas neuroticism contributed to anger. Neuroticism and psychopathy were significant predictors of hostility. Empathy did not significantly predict any of the four aggression dimensions. Personality, impulsivity and psychopathy appear fair predictors of aggression for female offenders from Southeast Asia, just as they are for the western male offenders.     

An Examination of Triarchic Psychopathy Constructs in Female Offenders

This study sought to expand scientific knowledge on psychopathic personality traits in female offenders by evaluating the relationship between MMPI–2–RF triarchic scales and self-reported external variables in a sample of 205 female offenders. Results indicated that boldness was inversely related to internalizing dysfunction, including suicidal behavior, psychosis, youth conduct problems, problems stemming from alcohol use, and a history of outpatient mental health treatment. Meanness was positively related to internalizing dysfunction as well as youth conduct problems, anger, prison disciplinary reports, and psychosis. Disinhibition was associated with a history of abuse in childhood, suicidal behavior, internalizing dysfunction, problems associated with alcohol and drug use, family history of mental illness, prison disciplinary reports for violence, number of previous criminal charges, and anger. Consistent with views of psychopathy as a configural condition, interactive effects of boldness with disinhibition and meanness were observed for multiple key external variables (e.g., conduct problems, substance use, nonsuicidal self-injurious behavior). This study provides further evidence for the triarchic conceptualization of psychopathy in female offenders and lends additional support for the validity of MMPI–2–RF triarchic psychopathy scales.     

Adversary effects and the tactics of violent offenders

We examine the implication of adversary effects for target choice, lethal intent, and the use of weapons and allies in violent incidents. Adversary effects refer to the tendency of offenders to make tactical decisions based on the coercive power of victims and potential victims. Using the victim's gender as a proxy for coercive power, we analyzed violent incidents from the National Incident‐Based Reporting System (2005–2014). The sample included over six million assaults, robberies, and homicides. Consistent with adversary effects, offenders who attack males (vs. females) are more likely to (a) kill victims; (b) use guns, knives, blunt objects, poison, and automobiles; (c) use male (but not female) allies; and (d) use multiple allies. The evidence for target choice is mixed: unarmed female offenders, but not unarmed male offenders, are more likely to target females than males. The evidence shows how a simple theoretical principle can parsimoniously account for basic patterns of violence in society related to gender, weapons, and group violence.     

Childhood Sexual Abuse and the Perpetration of Violence: The Moderating Role of Gender

This study sought to increase specificity in our knowledge of links among child sexual abuse (CSA), aggression, and physical intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration by criminal offenders, with particular interest in gender. Participants were 202 men and 72 women (N = 274), who were recruited from an urban pretrial supervision program. Women reported higher rates of CSA than men. After controlling for relevant covariates, CSA was associated with general aggression and severe IPV. We found a gender by CSA interaction; CSA was associated with aggression and severe IPV for women, but not men. Findings provide preliminary evidence that CSA impacts aggression and IPV perpetration differently for female offenders compared to male offenders and gender-specific treatment might be warranted in pretrial settings.     

A longitudinal examination of the relation between co‐offending with violent accomplices and violent crime

Although the idea that youthful offenders are affected by the company they keep is widely accepted, evidence in support of this idea is based primarily on reports provided by offenders and their peers. As an alternative to relying on reports of criminal behavior, a method that may overestimate the role that peers play in criminal behavior, the current research on co‐offending uses court records to identify and track over time individuals who are known to commit crimes together. The present investigation is the first co‐offending study to track patterns of violent criminal behavior (over an 18‐year period) among a sample of urban offenders and their accomplices. The study tests whether violence “spreads” from violent offenders to those inexperienced in violence. Results indicate that nonviolent offenders who commit their first co‐offense with violent accomplices are at increased risk for subsequent serious violent crime. Findings suggest that lessons of violence can be learned “on the street,” where knowledge is passed along through impromptu social contexts, including those in which offenders commit crimes together. Aggr. Behav. 28:97–108, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Automatic Associations and Conscious Attitudes Predict Different Aspects of Men’s Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Harassment Proclivities

Intimate partner violence against women (IPV) and sexual harassment are both widespread. Research on their causes and attitudinal correlates has rarely examined implicit, automatic cognitive associations related to the partner (in IPV aggressors) or to women (in sexual harassment offenders). The aim of the present research was to study these implicit associations in 129 male German students. Participants completed scales of hostile sexism (HS), masculine gender role stress (MGRS), short-term (STMO) and long-term mating orientation (LTMO), and proclivity to both IPV and sexual harassment. Next they performed a primed lexical decision task that measured whether concepts of violence, power, hostility, and sexuality were differentially associated with representations of women, men, and the participant’s own intimate partner. Results showed that implicit associations of own partner with violence as well as hostility were generally high but did not correlate strongly with the proclivity measures. Furthermore, the proclivity measures were positively predicted by HS, MGRS, and STMO, whereas LTMO negatively predicted IPV proclivity. Practice implications point to the need to address early socialization processes that may shape men’s negative associations with female partners. Some strategies to prevent and reduce these types of implicit associations are discussed.

     

Prevalence of Types of Perpetration: Gender and Patterns of Intimate Partner Violence Within a Prison Sample in Singapore

It has been reported in Western research on intimate partner violence (IPV) that there are similar rates between males and females (Filbert, 2010). The objective of this study was to compare male and female prisoners from Singapore on rates of IPV as well as the Johnson (2006) types of IPV. Women (n = 75) self-reported higher rates of physical IPV perpetration in the past year (64.0%) than (n = 75) did men (46.1%). Women reported similar rates of IPV for themselves and their partners in the past year (64.0%), while men reported slightly more physical IPV for themselves (46.1%) than they did for their female partners (41.3%). In line with Johnson (2006), rates of intimate terrorism were calculated between 5% and 7% for themselves and their partners, with little variation due to gender. Violent resistance (VR) was calculated at between 2.1% and 7%, with more female than male VR reported for women. Much higher rates of situational couple violence was calculated for both males and females, ranging from 53.3% to 66.7% in the past year, while mutual violent control was significantly lower, ranging from between 14.8% to 20.0%, with data being discussed in relation to patriarchal and family violence perspectives. We concluded that the rates of IPV between males and females were very similar as were the types of IPV. Further research with other cultures should be encouraged for comparison with Western samples.     

The Catalytic Situation in the Violence Equation1

This paper discusses views of violence that point to situational impingements on the aggressor as precipitants of his or her aggression. The view (situational determinism) is illustrated through excerpts from a trial that was concerned with police responsibility for incidents of police-citizen violence. The excerpts high-light the exonerating and antipsychological corollaries of the situational view and its emphasis on victim-related variables. This deterministic scenario (violence situation) is contrasted with an interpersonal emphasis (violence transaction) and an offender-centered perspective (violence opportunity). In contrast to the latter's emphasis on aggressor motivation, situational determinism implies the generic motivation (“normalcy”) of aggression. As a corollary, the view rejects the possibility of introducing deescalating options into evolving violence transactions.