Cognitive behavioral therapies have positive effects on anger and aggression; however, individuals differ in their response to treatment. The authors previously found that dynamic factors, such as increases in readiness to change, are associated with enhanced outcomes for violence reduction training. This study investigated how less dynamic…

Studies have found that male batterers are more often insecurely attached as compared with nonbatterers. However, it is still not clear how insecure attachment is related to domestic violence. Many studies compared batterers and nonbatterers regarding pathological personality characteristics that are related to attachment (e.g., dependency,…

The problem of domestic violence is widespread, with research indicating men and women both perpetrate a substantial amount of aggression. However, aggression perpetrated by women is a relatively understudied area compared to aggression perpetrated by men. Additionally, research is needed to determine the correlates of aggression perpetration…

Domestic violence is a serious problem with far-reaching consequences. This study applies a new methodology to derive subtypes of male perpetrators of intimate partner violence. As part of a larger National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded study, a national sample of randomly selected psychologists and psychiatrists describe 188 adult male…

Male survivors of childhood sexual abuse face challenges resolving sexual victimization experiences with the ideals of masculinity, often experiencing intimacy problems, emotional discomfort, alienation, and anger. Little attention has been paid to how male survivors learn to develop long-term connections, disclose emotions in relationship…

It has been suggested that psychological interventions for personality disorders should focus on improving adaptive expression of the functional needs expressed through problematic behaviors such as aggression. The measurement of function is a necessary condition for devising a function-based treatment approach. Two studies that employ a method…

A group of 63 domestically violent patients and a group of 103 generally violent patients at a Dutch forensic psychiatric outpatient clinic are examined with regard to personality traits and problem behaviors to develop treatment programs for domestically violent patients. The domestically violent patients are more unstable from a psychological…

An 8-month prospective study examined behavioral, personality, and psychological variables thought to increase vulnerability for college women's experience of rape and verbal sexual coercion. Participants were 276 college women who completed self-report surveys. During 1 academic year, 9.5% of women were raped and 11.7% reported verbal sexual…

The current study explores whether theorized risk factors in Western countries can be used to predict school violence perpetration in an Asian cultural context. The study examines the associations between risk factors and school violence perpetration in Taiwan. Data were obtained from a nationally representative sample of 14,022 students from…

The perpetration of severe inter-sibling violence (SISV) remains a largely unexplored area of family violence. This article describes an investigation of risk factors for intentional SISV perpetration. A sample of 111 young people under the care of the Scottish criminal justice or welfare systems was studied. A SISV perpetration interview schedule…

There are a number of reasons why wives are battered and beaten; however, no adequate explanation can safely ignore the fundamental contribution of the male batterer. "The relationship violence of severely violent men is related to stable individual characteristics of these men" (Holtzworth- Munroe & Meehan, 2003, n.p.). There are situational…

Etiologic and taxonomic research on rapists during the past decade suggests three dimensions that may be potentially useful for classification research on male batterers: (a) distinction between those whose anger is exclusively misogynistic and those whose anger is pervasive or undifferentiated with respect to target, (b) attitudes characterized…

This study examined the impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks on graduate and undergraduate students and the role of optimism in posttraumatic distress. A sample of 457 students who attended courses at three schools of social work (Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Washington) participated in the study. A quarter of them had a known person as an…

Investigated the effects of reading one of four priming stimuli stories (control, consenting sex, rape, or family) on males' evaluations of, and emotional reactions to, two videotaped date-rape scenarios. Results supported the concepts of a macho personality and revealed interactive effects for both the rape and family prime. (RJM)

Positive psychologists found the increase of seven character strengths that encompass the so-called theological virtues, including hope and spirituality, in Americans after the September 11, 2001, attacks. Little is known about how they may affect post-September 11, 2001, mental health. Using multivariate analysis, this study investigated the…