Differential MCMI-III psychopathological profiles between intimate partner violence perpetrators with and without childhood family violence.

Abstract

This study explored the differential prevalence of personality disorders (PD) and clinical syndromes between male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) with and without a history of childhood family violence (CFV). A sample of 981 perpetrators of IPV was assessed with the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III). Comparisons of sociodemographic characteristics and MCMI-III scales' scores between perpetrators with (n=293) and without (n=688) CFV were carried out. Results showed that IPV perpetrators with CFV had a lower level of education, were less frequently employed, and had higher rates of previous psychiatric history than perpetrators without CFV. Statistically significant differences between groups in almost all the MCMI-III scales were found. Perpetrators with CFV presented with higher scores on most of the evaluated scales and showed a more severe psychopathological profile than perpetrators without CFV. The multivariate analysis showed that the main MCMI-III domains related to CFV were higher scores on the disclosure and alcohol dependence scales and lower scores on the passive-aggressive scale. These findings reveal that CFV is associated with a more severe psychopathological profile in perpetrators of IPV. In order to develop tailored interventions, the presence of CFV and psychopathological symptoms should be assessed in IPV perpetrators.