Motives Of Perpetrators Research Articles

Why Did She Do It? College Women’s Motives for Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration

The goal of this study was to examine young adult women’s motives for engaging in psychological, physical, and sexual intimate partner violence (IPV). Participants were 484 college women in relationships who had engaged in at least 1 form of psychological, physical, or sexual IPV perpetration. Women who reported engaging in psychological and physical IPV typically reported motives of anger, retaliation for being hit first or for emotional hurt, and an inability to express themselves verbally, whereas women who reported sexual IPV perpetration reported motives of sexual arousal, to prove love, and a loss of control. These results suggest that women engage in psychological and physical perpetration for many of the same reasons and that women’s motives for sexual perpetration are somewhat different. These findings have implications for the ways in which interventions are tailored, suggesting that there are likely important factors that need to be addressed for all types of IPV (e.g., emotion dysregulation), and some types of IPV (e.g., sexual) might require tailored prevention and intervention efforts (e.g., education about appropriate ways of expressing sexual arousal and love). These findings also underscore the importance of investigating multiple forms of perpetration when studying motives for IPV and the relevance of motives in the development of IPV prevention programming with young women.

"Politics of Defiance": Uncovering the Causes and Consequences of Lynching and Communal Violence

When acts of lynching were first seared into the consciousness of the nation, Ida B. Wells-Barnett recognized them as attacks not only against individuals but also against the “peoplehood” of African Americans. The dehumanizing nature of mob violence enabled white majorities to rationalize laws and norms that effectively denied blacks the full rights of citizenship. Ironically, for much of the twentieth century scholars attempted to comprehend lynching through the actions of perpetrators rather than through the perspective of victims. Historians attributed lynching to lax attitudes toward law, the cult of southern honor, the need to reaffirm traditional hierarchical power relationships, and white-black psychosexual tensions channeled into ritualized killings that helped preserve the economic and social preeminence of southern white males. A discernible shift in focus, however, was evident at Emory University’s 2002 conference, “Lynching and Racial Violence in America: Histories and Legacies,” which featured the insights of over ninety scholars and was held in conjunction with an explicit photographic exhibit that literally put the horrific effects of lynching at the center of academic consciousness. Michael J. Pfeifer’s superlative survey of recent scholarship on lynching suggests that a synthesis may now be emerging that could reconcile earlier work focused on the motivations of white perpetrators with newer insights that consider the perspective of minority victims and the impact that lynching had on communities.1 By broadening the spatial and temporal dimensions of lynching research, scholars have been able to move beyond seemingly intractable debates about the causes of communal violence. The highly contested relationship between the nature of southern law enforcement and lynching, for instance, has been resolved through Pfeifer’s consideration of lynching in a larger national context. In Rough Justice he contends that lynching resulted from a cultural war pitting rural and working-class advocates of “rough justice” against middle-class supporters of “due process.” Hence, lynching resulted not so much from ineffectual systems of law enforcement as from many rural whites’ deeply ambivalent feelings about the law and its ability to constrain the social aspirations of blacks. This conflict

New foundations: Pseudo-pacification and special liberty as potential cornerstones for a multi-level theory of homicide and serial murder

Over the past 30 years the industrialized West has witnessed a move towards space, heterogeneity and subjectivity in the criminological study of violence and homicide. Although large-scale quantitative studies of the temporal and spatial distribution of homicide continue to provide a broad empirical context, aetiological explanations tend to be based on analyses of the heterogeneous psychological interactions and experiences of individual subjects at the micro-level. However, mid-range studies of the temporal and spatial distribution of perpetrators and victims of homicide between unrelated adults have provided a useful link between the micro- and macro-levels. Focusing primarily on British homicide and serial murder, this article attempts to strengthen this link by combining contemporary micro-analyses of the subjective motives of perpetrators with mid-range analyses of space, which can therefore be seen as part of the structural tradition of theorizing about homicide and serial murder. Placing these analyses in a broad underlying context constituted by major historical shifts in political economy and the cultural forms of ‘pseudo-pacification’ and ‘special liberty’ will lay the initial cornerstones for an integrated multi-level theory.

The Relevance of Long‐Term Antecedents in Assessing the Risk of Familicide‐Suicide Following Separation

Familicide‐suicide following separation is under‐researched and remains a poorly understood phenomenon. Findings from previous research are inconclusive in relation to both risk factors and perpetrator motivation. This article explores the relevance of long‐term biopsychosocial antecedents in cases of familicide‐suicide that occurred in Western Australia between 1986 and 2005. A conceptualisation of the hypothesised risk factors in familicide‐suicide is proposed based on attachment theory, personality dysfunction, the neurobiology of trauma and the possible unconscious motivation of perpetrators, which may prove helpful in assessing the risk of familicide‐suicide in family court cases. The research identified and articulated a number of warning signs to familicide‐suicide that are often not identified, or appreciated, by decision makers. Suggestions are offered for changes to practice that may be helpful in identifying and responding to high‐risk cases in a way that enhances safety. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.‘A conceptualisation of the hypothesised risk factors in familicide‐suicide is proposed’Key Practitioner MessagesClinicians need to be aware of the dynamic psychosocial risk factors associated with violent acting out such as: The combination of Cluster B personality diagnoses. A history of domestic violence. Early childhood trauma requires good interagency communication and cooperation.

Blame attribution in sexual victimization

The current study explored how victims and third-parties attribute blame and perpetrator motivation for actual sexual victimization experiences. Although we do not assert that victims are responsible for perpetrators’ behavior, we found that some victims do not allocate all blame to their perpetrator. We sought to examine how victims and third-parties allocate blame in instances of actual completed and attempted sexual victimization and how they perceived perpetrator motivations. Victims of completed rape (n=49) and attempted sexual assault (n=91), and third-parties who knew a victim of sexual assault (n=152) allocated blame across multiple targets: perpetrator, self/victim, friends, family, and the situation. Participants also described their perceptions of perpetrator’s motivation for the sexual assault. Victims tended to assign more blame to themselves than third-parties assigned to victims. Furthermore, victims perceived perpetrators as being more sexually-motivated than third-parties did, who viewed perpetrators as more power-motivated. Results suggest that perceptions of rape and sexual assault significantly differ between victims and third-party individuals who have never directly experienced such a trauma.

Motivations for intimate partner violence in men and women arrested for domestic violence and court referred to batterer intervention programs.

Research has attempted to elucidate men and women's proximal motivations for perpetrating intimate partner violence (IPV). However, previous research has yet to clarify and resolve contention regarding whether motives for IPV are gender-neutral or gender specific. Thus, the purpose of this present study was to compare motives for physical IPV perpetration among a sample of men (n =90) and women (n =87) arrested for domestic violence and court-referred to batterer intervention programs. Results demonstrated that the most frequently endorsed motives for IPV by both men and women were self-defense, expression of negative emotions, and communication difficulties. With the exception of expression of negative emotions and retaliation, with women endorsing these motives more often than men, there were no significant differences between men and women's self-reported reasons for perpetrating physical aggression. The implications of these findings for future research and intervention programs are discussed.

Familicide‐Suicide: From Myth To Hypothesis And Toward Understanding

Familicide‐suicide following separation is an underresearched and poorly understood offense. Findings from previous research are inconclusive about risk factors and perpetrator motivation. This article explores common myths about the offense in relation to some of the findings from two studies of familicide‐suicide following separation undertaken in Western Australia. A new conceptualization of the offense is proposed based on attachment theory, the neurobiology of trauma, and the possible subconscious motivation of perpetrators, which may be helpful in assessing risk of familicide‐suicide in family court cases.Keypoints There are warning signs to familicide‐suicide following separation. Warning signs are often not recognised or not adequately communicated to decision makers. Risk factors are dynamic and therefore not always able to be assessed in tests that measure static personality characteristics. Assessment needs to involve input from family members and collaboration with other agencies. Judicial decision making should be informed by comprehensive psychological profiles including childhood abuse history, adult attachment assessments, level of narcissism, degree of symbiosis in the relationship and history of domestic violence, including threats to kill and/or suicide.

What lessons can be learned from Madoff's crimes? Individual responsibility of financial criminals does not justify the lack of shared responsibility in the fight against financial crime

Analysing individual acts committed by financial criminals such as B. Madoff requires not only addressing the collective perception of individual responsibility but also the need for shared responsibility in the fight against financial crime. Given that financial crime impacts both on the functioning and financing of society, this paper highlights the need to explore the far-reaching implications of every criminal act. Engaging the necessary resources to effectively and collectively combat this scourge cannot be achieved if analysis is restricted to the nature of criminal acts and motives of the perpetrators.

Hate thy neighbor: move-in violence and the persistence of racial segregation in American housing

Acknowledgments Introduction: Violence and the Neighborhood Color Line 1. The Roots of Contemporary Move-In Violence 2. The Contemporary Dynamics of Move-In Violence 3. Anti-Integrationist Violence and the Tolerance-Violence Paradox4. Racism or Power? Explaining Perpetrator Motivation in Interethnic Cases5. When Class Trumps Race: Explaining Perpetrator Motivation in Interclass Cases6. Responding to Neighborhood Hate Crimes Conclusion: The Reality of Anti-Integrationist Violence and Prospects for IntegrationNotes Index About the Author

Social Scientific Inquiry Into Genocide and Mass Killing: From Unitary Outcome to Complex Processes

This article reviews social scientific research on the occurrence of genocide and mass killing, focusing on the underlying, contributing processes. Relevant studies are grouped by their primary analytic focus: (a) macro-level state and institutional processes, (b) political elites and policy decisions, (c) nonelite perpetrator motivation and participation, (d) social construction of victim group identity, and (e) local and regional variation within larger episodes. We also discuss issues relating to the conceptualization and definition of genocide, the utilization of different sources of data, methodological tendencies, and general analytic trends. Although recent studies show a promising move toward greater analytic disaggregation and engagement with various causal processes and outcomes at the meso and micro levels, genocide scholars must broaden their theoretical engagement with parallel fields of inquiry, continue to be creative in locating original data sources, and account for both positive and negative cases.

The “Nazi Detective” as Provider of Justice in Post-1990 British and German Crime Fiction: Philip Kerr's The Pale Criminal, Robert Harris's Fatherland, and Richard Birkefeld and Göran Hachmeister's Wer übrig bleibt, hat recht

The “Nazi Detective” as Provider of Justice in Post-1990 British and German Crime Fiction: Philip Kerr's <i>The Pale Criminal</i>, Robert Harris's <i>Fatherland</i>, and Richard Birkefeld and Göran Hachmeister's <i>Wer übrig bleibt, hat recht</i>

Mengapa Kami Tawuran? Tawuran Dari Kacamata Pelaku

This study aims to look at what the motive actors participating in the brawl, brawl how their perceptions, what they expect from the fight, as well as their feelings after the brawl passed. The study was conducted in Makassar using a qualitative approach, the student respondents were involved in fighting the two faculties are most frequently involved in brawls action Makassar State University, the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Arts and Design. Results showed that participants recognize that fighting is not tepuji action and not supposed to do. The actors involved in fighting for reasons that are divided into three categories, namely because they feel trapped brawl situation, a sense of solidarity, and as a senior call. In addition, they recognize that fighting is unacceptable behavior and do not deserve them, but because they feel actors participate brawl was caught in a brawl tradition. It is then a perpetrator motive. Things that become expectations of actors during and after the fight is to prove that they are solid and strong, so respected, so that the opponent deterrent and uphold Keywords : brawl, students

The Role of Perpetrator Motivation in Two Crime Scenarios

Undergraduate volunteers (n = 134) were randomly assigned in a 2 × 2 design that manipulated type of crime (rape vs. robbery) and perpetrator motivation (anger vs. desire). After reading one of the crime scenarios, participants responded to a series of attitude items regarding responsibility for the crime, assigned blame to agents mentioned in the scenario, and assigned a prison sentence to the perpetrator. A two-way ANOVA showed a significant interaction of motivation and crime (p = .026), with the victim rated least responsible in the anger-motivated rape scenario. Likewise, the assignment of blame produced a significant interaction of motivation and crime (p = .034); the victim was blamed the least in the anger-motivated rape scenario. Although the perpetrator was viewed as more responsible for the crime of rape than robbery (p = .022) and received a significantly longer sentence for rape (p < .001), perpetrator motivation did not affect perceptions of the perpetrator's responsibility for either crime. These results stand in contrast to those of Mitchell, Angelone, Kohlberger, and Hirschman (2009) and suggest their findings may have been the result of homophobic statements by the perpetrator rather than anger per se.

Motivations for Men and Women’s Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration: A Comprehensive Review

The main purpose of this review article was to collect and summarize all available papers that reported empirical data related to men’s and women’s motivations for IPV. To facilitate direct gender comparisons, the motives reported in each obtained study were coded by the current authors into seven broad categories: (a) power/control, (b) self-defense, (c) expression of negative emotion (i.e., anger), (d) communication difficulties, (e) retaliation, (f) jealousy, and (g) other. Across the 75 samples (located in 74 articles) that were reviewed and coded for this study, 24 contained samples of only women (32%), 6 samples consisted of only men (8%), and 46 samples used both women and men (62%). Power/control and self-defense were commonly measured motivations (76% and 61%, respectively). However, using violence as an expression of negative emotion (63%), communication difficulties (48%), retaliation (60%), or because of jealousy (49%) were also commonly assessed motives. In 62% of the samples, at least one other type of motive was also measured. Only 18 of the located study samples (24%) included data that allowed for a direct gender comparison of men’s and women’s reported motivations. Many of these studies did not subject their data to statistical analyses. Among those that did, very few gender-specific motives for perpetration emerged. These results should be viewed with caution, however, because many methodological and measurement challenges exist in this field. There was also considerable heterogeneity across papers making direct gender comparisons problematic.

Two dilemmas in dealing with workplace bullies – false positives and deliberate deceit

Purpose – This paper aims to highlight how workplace bullies manipulate services by presenting themselves as victims. In the absence of robust screening and assessment tools to distinguish between bully and victim, personnel staff are at risk of being coerced into perpetuating the abuse of victims. The paper also aims to argue for an in‐depth investigation of the psychological motivations of perpetrators to inform the development of a specialised assessment tool.Design/methodology/approach – The paper contains two short case studies drawn from staff attending a workshop on responding to domestic violence in the workplace. Similarities between the coercive behaviour patterns of the domestic violence perpetrator and the workplace bully were striking. The approach taken to discussing the case studies closely follows the approach used in the assessment of domestic violence perpetrators where controlling behaviours and coercive control are captured.Findings – The case studies used in the paper illustrate the d...

Defining torture: A review of 40 years of health science research

The current review critically examines the body of torture research (N = 209), focusing on the definition and operationalization of the primary construct. Almost three-quarters (69.9%) of the studies reviewed did not reference any definition of torture. Few studies identified important contextual variables related to defining torture such as identities and motivations of perpetrators and severity of abuse. Definitional ambiguity further impacted how individuals were queried about their experiences and the extent to which torture was distinguished from other forms of maltreatment. Although there are notable exceptions, the methods used in the torture literature are variable and often undefined, impacting the interpretation of findings of risk factors, consequences, and treatment of torture events.

Contrasting Robbery- and Non–Robbery-Related Workplace Homicide: North Carolina, 1994–2003

Most research regarding the perpetration of occupational homicide has focused on robbery-related violence; relatively little is known about the circumstances surrounding non-robbery-related occupational homicides and interventions that may prevent these events. A case series was assembled and utilized to examine occupational homicides that were and were not motivated by robbery to determine if select characteristics of the events differed according to the perpetrator's motivation for the crime and relationship to the workplace. Information on occupational homicides that occurred in North Carolina from 1994 to 2003 was abstracted from medical examiners' records and death certificates and was obtained by interviews with law-enforcement officers and from newspaper accounts (data collection occurred in 1996-2001 and 2003-2007). Each homicide was classified by motive and the perpetrator's relationship to the workplace and its employees. Characteristics of robbery-motivated and non-robbery-motivated homicides were compared. Analysis was conducted in 2006 and 2007. Most occupational homicides occurred during robbery of the workplace (64%). However, 36% of occupational homicides during the study period were not robbery-related. Strangers perpetrated 73% of robbery-related killings but only 11% of non-robbery-related homicides. Homicides unrelated to robbery occurred in several industrial sectors, including retail (28%); service (26%); and manufacturing (22%), whereas robbery-related homicides occurred overwhelmingly in retail (67%). The type of firearm used to perpetrate these killings differed by the perpetrator's relationship to the workplace. Non-robbery-related homicides constitute a meaningful proportion of occupational homicides, and the characteristics of these cases can differ from those that are robbery-related. The current system by which workplace homicides are classified could be expanded to include robbery motivation. Efforts to examine occupational-homicide-prevention strategies for non-robbery-related homicides are important.

Some Australian Children's Perceptions of Physical Punishment in Childhood

Despite ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, children remain the only people in Australia against whom violence may be justified as discipline. This article presents findings from qualitative research conducted in the State of Victoria, in which children were invited to contextualise incidents of physical punishment by describing the experience from different standpoints and reflecting on the feelings and motivations of victims and perpetrators. The research provides new insights into children's experiences of childhood ‘discipline’, as children reveal the physical and emotional impact of being hit by a parent, the futility of ‘physical punishment’, parents’ confusing reactions and children's awareness of double standards. Children suggest more positive ways to communicate and to resolve conflict, and provide insightful comments that have the potential to enlighten adults’ thinking about the issue.

The Effect of Perpetrator Motive and Dispositional Attributes on Enjoyment of Television Violence and Attitudes Toward Victims

Previous research (Zillmann & Bryant, 1975) suggests that over-retributive and under-retributive violent acts are deemed unjust, enjoyed less, and influence attitudes toward perpetrators and victims of violence. This study extends this research to examine how disposition and motive influence enjoyment and liking of victims and perpetrators. An experiment manipulating perpetrator disposition and motive for violence showed that liking for neutral targets is decreased by incongruous perpetrator disposition and motive, whereas liking for perpetrator was affected only by motive. Balance Theory is offered to explain how dispositional considerations influence the evaluation of characters and other features of a story line.

The Microdynamics of Hate Violence

By examining the link between attitudes and actions by perpetrators of hate violence and interpretation of hate violence by its victims, this article demonstrates how interpretive analytic strategies can illuminate aspects of the microdynamics of hate crime violence that are difficult to understand with variable-centered analysis. Data on the relationship between perpetrator motive and actions are from semistructured interviews of female rank-and-file members of organized racist groups in the modern United States. Data on victim interpretations are from ethnographic case studies of victims and victim communities in various settings across the United States. Interpretive analyses of these data suggest new implications for formulating effective responses to hate violence.