Abusive Personality Research Articles

Факторный анализ индивидуально-личностных характеристик лиц группы аддиктивного риска

This article deals with the problem of early diagnosis of the use of psychoactive substances in the child and adolescent environment, as well as the study of individual and personal characteristics of individuals at addictive risk. On the basis of the conducted research, the authors carried out a factor analysis of the personal characteristics of individuals of the addictive risk group, based on the use of the psychodiagnostic questionnaire PDO «Narcorisk» (Syrkin et al., 2016) together with a teenage version of the 16-factor Ketell questionnaire and a standardized multifactor method modified for adolescents personality studies (SMIL L. Sobchik). It is assumed that there are correlations between the risk profiles of persons prone to the use of psychoactive substances and their individual and personal characteristics, consideration of which makes it possible to personalize preventive work. The authors note that the factor analysis of the obtained results makes it possible to identify characteristic features of the studied personality profiles. Thus, the abusive personality profile is characterized by: openness, subordination, credulity, conformity, pessimism and anxiety, as well as disorganization and lack of individuality. The hedonistic personality profile correlated with such indicators as openness, emotional stability, courage, tension, impulsivity, individuality, optimism, impracticality and insubordination. The antisocial personality profile is characterized by emotional instability, insubordination, intemperance, rigidity, straightforwardness, anxiety, tension, low self-control, impulsivity, rigidity and social introversion. The conformal personality profile is characterized by: subordination, credulity, practicality, anxiety, conservatism, conformity, self-control, tension, neurotic overcontrol, pessimism and rigidity. The cognitive-destructive personality profile is represented by such characteristics as: reduced intelligence, subordination, conformity and rigidity.
 The results obtained allow practitioners in the field of psychology and pedagogy of dependent behavior to better understand the nature of the formation of the risk profile of adolescents prone to the use of psychoactive substances, provide them with targeted preventive care, develop and adjust the content of preventive measures, predict behavioral strategies, build an individual preventive route taking into account their individual and personal characteristics.

Data driven review of commonalities and differences in gender and self-reported victimisation in Ugandan urban sample and Western published literature

Although there are many theories on domestic violence and battering applicable in Europe and the USA these are often regarded as carrying little currency in the African context (Robinson & Rowlands, 2006). Many African scholars writing on domestic violence emphasize battering and domestic violence as falling under the rubric of ‘culture’ rather than offering psychological explanations. This is because most theories on domestic violence have been derived from research conducted in western countries and by professionals working with male batterers, however, such programmes are rare or absent in Africa. This is confirmed by Dutton, 1998, National Policy on Elimination of GBV in Uganda, 2019 who indicated that psychological research, for example on the notion of the ‘abusive personality’, has not been conducted in Africa and that psychology-based explanations are generally overlooked in favour of cultural explanations. The review revealed that although there are some commonalities about the domestic violence globally. However, the differences were noted mainly in over emphasis of cultural rather than psychological causes by African scholars. Thus, this review recommends that African scholars and policy makers need also to adopt an approach that views domestic violence using a psychological lens, if they must continue to use psychological interventions developed using western empirical studies to help victims and perpetrators of domestic violence in the African setting.

In Praise of Indignation

As a survivor of interpersonal violence and expert in recovery from relational abuse, I instinctively reacted with indignation when I recognized Trump as an abusive personality. Indignation advocates righteous anger in opposition to immoral, disgusting, or unfair behavior aimed at reducing the dignity of others. Accessing indignation to confront abusers is essential for the health of interpersonal relationships. In the same way, I had a moral obligation to be a truth-teller about Trump in service of the country. Prosocial emotions help manage antisocial behaviors universally judged as nonreciprocal. When Trump’s mental health was first discussed, I predicted it would be frustrating, because the medical model of psychiatry has lost its way in many regards, notably its disavowal of the role of emotions. Evolution designed emotions as essential guides for healthy human relationships. A case formulation model I designed advocates identifying those like Trump as other-blamers—people with low self-worth who manage shame and social downranking by blame-shifting. They are attracted to partners with low self-worth who readily accept blame ( self-blamers). The profession should educate on the power of shame, the widespread harms of narcissistic abuse, and help clients access indignation and assertiveness. Moral elements should be reintegrated into psychology.

Mediating Role of Loneliness in Relation between Abusive Personality Dimensions and Internet Addiction in Social Networking Users

Mediating Role of Loneliness in Relation between Abusive Personality Dimensions and Internet Addiction in Social Networking Users

The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence: The abusive personality as a disordered mental state

Does the perpetration of domestic violence reflect a distinct mental disorder? This essay does not and cannot definitely answer that question. Rather it aims to prompt a discussion of the various indices for surmising a position on this issue. For example, batterer behavior and attitudes are associated with severe psychopathology. Batterers are treated in intervention programs for an unnamed condition. Ultimately, domestic violence is contextualized as abnormal behavior. This paper reviews research in the field of domestic violence to establish a forum for discussion and debate about the potential for an abnormal mental state to describe the psychology of a batterer. This review posits that at minimum, the field of psychiatry should consider a review of batterer characteristics to formally investigate the “abusive personality” as a categorization of a distinct mental disorder.

The Abusive Personality in Women in Dating Relationships

This study adds to the available literature on female-perpetrated intimate abuse by examining Dutton’s (2007) theory of the “abusive personality” (AP) in a sample of 914 women who had been involved in dating relationships. Consistent with the AP, recalled parental rejection, borderline personality organization (BPO), anger, and trauma symptoms all demonstrated moderate-to-strong relationships with women’s self-reported intimate psychological abuse perpetration. Fearful attachment style demonstrated a weak-to-moderate relationship with psychological abuse perpetration. A potential model for explaining the interrelationships between the elements of the AP was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). Consistent with the proposed model, recalled parental rejection demonstrated relationships with BPO, trauma symptoms, and fearful attachment. Similarly, consistent with the model, trauma symptoms demonstrated a relationship with anger; and BPO demonstrated strong relationships with trauma symptoms, fearful attachment, and anger. Additionally, anger itself had a strong relationship with women’s self-reported perpetration of intimate psychological and physical abuse. Contrary to the proposed model, fearful attachment had a nonsignificant relationship with anger when this relationship was examined using SEM.

The Abusive Personality in Women in Dating Relationships

This study adds to the available literature on female-perpetrated intimate abuse by examining Dutton’s (2007) theory of the abusive personality (AP) in a sample of 914 women who had been involved in dating relationships. Consistent with the AP, recalled parental rejection, borderline personality organization (BPO), anger, and trauma symptoms all demonstrated moderate-to-strong relationships with women’s self-reported intimate psychological abuse perpetration. Fearful attachment style demonstrated a weak-to-moderate relationship with psychological abuse perpetration. A potential model for explaining the interrelationships between the elements of the AP was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). Consistent with the proposed model, recalled parental rejection demonstrated relationships with BPO, trauma symptoms, and fearful attachment. Similarly consistent with the model, trauma symptoms demonstrated a relationship with anger; and BPO demonstrated strong relationships with trauma symptoms, fearful attachment, and anger. Additionally, anger itself had a strong relationship with women’s self-reported perpetration of intimate psychological and physical abuse. Contrary to the proposed model, fearful attachment had a nonsignificant relationship with anger when this relationship was examined using SEM.

Dutton Donald G. The Abusive Personality. New York: Routledge, 2007. 262 pages. $50.00.

Dutton Donald G. The Abusive Personality. New York: Routledge, 2007. 262 pages. $50.00.

The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships (2nd edn) by Donald Dutton

Journal of Family TherapyVolume 30, Issue 3 p. 326-328 The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships (2nd edn) by Donald Dutton Louise Yorke, Louise Yorke Clinical Psychologist in Private Practice, Bristol, UKSearch for more papers by this author Louise Yorke, Louise Yorke Clinical Psychologist in Private Practice, Bristol, UKSearch for more papers by this author First published: 11 July 2008 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6427.2008.00433_5.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Volume30, Issue3August 2008Pages 326-328 RelatedInformation

Book Review: The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships. 2nd ed.

Book Review: The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships. 2nd ed.

Book Review: Dutton, D. G. (2003). The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships. New York: Guilford press, pp. 214

Book Review: Dutton, D. G. (2003). The Abusive Personality: Violence and Control in Intimate Relationships. New York: Guilford press, pp. 214

A Review of: The Abusive Personality: Violece and Control in Intimate Relationships, Second Edition. By Donald G. Dutton

A Review of: The Abusive Personality: Violece and Control in Intimate Relationships, Second Edition. By Donald G. Dutton

Predicting Preferences for Dating Partners From Past Experiences of Psychological Abuse: Identifying the Psychological Ingredients of Situations

Are women who have been the victim of psychological abuse in the past more likely to prefer an abusive dating partner in the future? Are men who have been the perpetrator of abuse more likely to prefer a dating partner with high attachment anxiety, a characteristic associated with victims of abuse? The present research used a highly repeated, within-subject, multilevel approach to identify the characteristics of potential dating partners that constitute salient psychological ingredients of situations influencing partner preference. Study 1 found that college-age women who reported more instances of receiving psychological abuse, compared to women who did not, showed a stronger preference for male dating partners who possessed characteristics associated with an abusive personality (e.g., possessiveness). Study 2 found that college-age men who reported more instances of inflicting psychological abuse, compared to men who did not, showed a stronger preference for female dating partners characterized by high attachment anxiety.

Rethinking domestic violence

1 The History of Spouse Assault 2 Nested Ecological Theory 3 Measurement and Incidence of Abuse 4 Theories of Wife Assault: Psychiatric Contributions 5 Feminist and Sociobiological Explanations for Intimate Partner Violence 6 The Gender Debate and the Feminist Paradigm 7 The Domestic Assault of Men 8 Victims, Causes, and Effects 9 The Social Psychology of the Perpetrator 10 Subtypes of Perpetrators 11 The Cycle of Violence and the Abusive Personality 12 Relationship/Interactionist Explanations 13 The Failure of Criminal Justice Intervention Policy 14 Risk Assessment 15 Treatment Policy Issues 16 Treatment: The Next Step 17 Rethinking the Response to Domestic Violence.

Book Review: The abusive personality: Violence and control in intimate relationships

Book Review: The abusive personality: Violence and control in intimate relationships

MCMI Results for Batterers: A Response to Gondolf

Gondolph [Gondolf, E. W. (1999). J. Fam. Violence 14: 1–17] recently published MCMI-III results on men in batterer treatment groups that appeared to indicate much lower levels of psychopathology than previous studies. Gondolph concluded from these results that the existence of an “abusive personality” was debatable. Gondolph is mistaken in drawing conclusions about the abusive personality based solely on MCMI results. The assessment of the abusive personality is not based on this instrument. Also, respondents in Gondolph's study had extremely high Desirability scores on the MCMI-III, so even his estimates of the incidence of personality disorder are questionable. Current assessment of personality disorder has begun to steer away from self-report instruments such as the MCMI-III; this practice should be utilized in assessing batterers.

MCMI results for batterers: Gondolf replies to Dutton's response.

Dutton [Dutton, D. (2003). J. Fam. Violence 18: 253–255] dismissed Gondolf's MCMI subscale results from batterer program participants because of the inadequacies of the MCMI and how it was used. In this reply, Gondolf argues that Dutton's criticisms of the MCMI are debatable and the criticisms of the study methods are mistaken. It remains curious, to the author, why evidence for the “abusive personality” is not more evident in personality scales.

The Development of Abusive Personality: A Trauma Response

This article contains a review and counseling implications for an article titled “Witnessing Parental Violence as a Traumatic Experience Shaping the Abusive Personality” by Donald Dutton (2000). Dutton contends that the early combination of witnessing or directly experiencing violence, shaming, and insecure attachment contributes to the development of abusive personality in males. These individuals experience great difficulty in modulating aggression toward others. In particular, children who witness interpersonal violence have a greater likelihood of becoming partner abusers than do children who are victims of violence.

The Self and the Psychology of Domestic Homicide-Suicide

Men commit the vast majority of domestic homicide-suicides (H-Ss) wherein a person kills their intimate partner (and/or other family members) before taking their own life. Studies of men who commit H-S have looked at the act from psychopathology and evolutionary psychology viewpoints. To complement those approaches, this article presents additional views of domestic H-S. Applications of theories from social (escape from self), developmental (evolution of self and continuity of self), gender role (power and the male role), and family violence psychology (abusive personality and proximal antecedents of abuse) are outlined. These conceptualizations are offered because they pertain to instability and deconstruction of the self amidst the life changes and intimate distress that precede many cases of domestic H-S.

Witnessing Parental Violence as a Traumatic Experience Shaping the Abusive Personality

Summary Previous work by Dutton and his colleagues has established a clinical profile on intimately abusive adult men that is quite similar to profiles of trauma victims in many essential clinical respects. Dutton (in press) showed that arousal modulation problems, affective monitoring, cognitive problem solving deficits, externalizing attributional styles, aggression and dissociative states are common to both groups. Furthermore, intimately abusive men demonstrate similar profiles as men diagnosed independently with PTSD on the MCMI-II. Dutton (1995a, 1995b) attributed the trauma to early assaults on the self through parental shaming, accompanied by insecure attachment and physical abuse victimization. Bowlby (1973) considered insecure attachment itself both a source and consequence of trauma. Since the infant turns to the attachment-object during periods of distress seeking soothing, a failure to obtain soothing maintains high arousal and endocrine secretion. Van der Kolk (1987) considered child abuse as an “overwhelming life experience” and reviewed the defenses that children use to deal with parental abuse: hypervigilance, projection, splitting, and denial. Terr (1979) also described driven, compulsive repetitions, and reenactments that permeate dreams, play, fantasies and object relations of traumatized children. Shaming, conceptualized as verbal or behavioral attacks on the global self, has been found to generate life-long shame-proneness or defenses involving rage. A combination of all three early experiences is traumatizing (Dutton, 1995a, 1995b; Dutton, in press). However, some evidence exists that suggests observation of interparental attacks can be substituted for physical abuse victimization as the third prong in this triad of traumatogenic experiences.