 |
Risk Factors for IPV/DV
Risk factors are associated with a greater likelihood of IPV/DV victimization or perpetration. Risk factors are not necessarily direct causes of IPV/DV, but are contributing factors to IPV/DV (CDC, 2013). Not everyone who is identified as "at risk" becomes involved in violence.
A combination of individual, relational, community, and societal factors contribute to the risk of being a victim or perpetrator of IPV. Understanding these multilevel factors can help identify various points of prevention intervention (CDC, 2013).
Risk factors for DV/IPV are similar for both the victimization and the perpetration of violence. Multiple factors influence the risk of DV/IPV (CDC, 2013; Crandall, et al., 2004; Heise & Garcia-Moreno, 2002; Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000a)>
Individual Factors:
- Prior history of DV/IPV
- Being female
- Young age
- Low self-esteem
- Low income
- Aggressive or delinquent behavior as a youth
- Heavy alcohol and drug use
- High-risk sexual behavior
- Depression
- Anger and hostility
- Antisocial personality traits
- Borderline personality traits
- Having few friends and being isolated from other people
- Unemployment
- Emotional dependence and insecurity
- Witnessing or experiencing violence as a child
- Being less educated/low academic achievement
- Unemployment
- Belief in strict gender roles (e.g., male dominance and aggression in relationships)
- Perpetrating psychological aggression
- Being a victim of physical or psychological abuse (consistently one of the strongest predictors of perpetration)
- History of experiencing poor parenting as a child
- History of experiencing physical discipline as a child
- For men, having a different ethnicity from their partner's
- For women, having a greater education level than their partner's
- For women, being American Indian/Alaska Native or African American
- For women, having a verbally abusive, jealous, or possessive partner
Relationship Factors
- Couples with income, educational, or job status disparities
- Dominance and control of the relationship by one partner
- Marital/relationship conflicts or fights, tension and other struggles
- Marital instability: divorces or separations
- Economic stress
- Unhealthy family relationships and interactions
Community Factors
- Poverty and associated factors (e.g., overcrowding)
- Low social capital-lack of institutions, relationships, and norms that shape the quality and quantity of a community's social interactions
- Weak community sanctions against DV/IPV (e.g., police unwilling to intervene)
Societal Factors
- Patriarchal gender norms (e.g., women should stay at home, not enter workforce, should be submissive)
Continue on to
|
 |
