Sexual Aggression Research Articles

VÍTIMAS DE VIOLÊNCIA SEXUAL ATENDIDAS NO IML DE AFOGADOS DA INGAZEIRA – PE NO ANO DE 2018

INTRODUCTION: Sexual violence is any action in which an individual in a power situation forces another to engage in sexual practice against their will. The Institute of Forensic Medicine (IML) located in Afogados da Ingazeira, Pernambuco, Brazil, was established to perform sexological medical examinations. The objective of this study was to analyse medical forensic reports from victims of sexual violence admitted at the IML in 2018. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a descriptive study, comprising all sexological expert reports from the GDL System of the Regional Unit of the Scientific Police of Afogados da Ingazeira between its foundation in July 2018 and Dec. 31st 2018. RESULTS: From the 17 medical records analyzed, it was established that the average age of the victims was 13 years, most of them female (94%). In two cases (11,76%), the aggressor was unknown, in the other cases, most were from the same family environment as the victm. Thirteen victims considered themselves brown and four claimed to be white. Nine cases occurred in the urban area and eight in the rural area. Approximately 12% of victims reported alcohol consumption before the abuse. As for the characterization of sexual abuse, 35% corresponded to the carnal conjunction. DISCUSSION: In this scenario of a small number of cases, there was a predominance of 88,2% of aggressions perpetrated by the victim’s relatives and acquaintances, which is higher than the rate found in another study carried out in the State of Santa Catarina where there is a predominance of 50,9% of cases of sexual aggression arising from family members and acquaintances. CONCLUSION: Victims of sexual violence are on average young women who declare themselves to be brown, and having a friend or family member as perpetrator.

Links of Perceived Pornography Realism with Sexual Aggression via Sexual Scripts, Sexual Behavior, and Acceptance of Sexual Coercion: A Study with German University Students.

Exposure to pornographic material has been linked to sexual aggression perpetration and victimization in a large body of research. Based on social learning theory and 3A theory of script learning, this study contributes to this research by testing the hypothesis that the more realistic pornography is perceived to be by young adults, the more likely they are to experience and engage in sexual aggression. Two underlying pathways were proposed: one path via scripts and patterns of sexual behavior regarding consensual sexual interactions that contain established risk factors for sexual aggression victimization and perpetration, and a second path via the acceptance of sexual coercion. In a cross-sectional study, 1181 university students in Germany (762 female; 419 male) completed measures of pornography use and perception, risky sexual scripts and sexual behavior, and acceptance of sexual coercion. As predicted, pornography realism was a positive predictor of risky sexual scripts, risky sexual behavior, and acceptance of sexual coercion. Indirect links with sexual aggression victimization and perpetration were found via both pathways. No gender differences in the associations were found. The implications for media literacy interventions addressing the realism of pornography are discussed.

The Role of Dysfunctional Sexual Beliefs and Sexual Self-Esteem in Sexual Aggression: A Study with Male College Students

This study aimed to understand how the endorsement of dysfunctional sexual beliefs is associated with sexual self-esteem and sexually aggressive behavior in male college students; it further tested the mediating role of sexual self-esteem in the relationship between sexual beliefs and sexual aggression. Results revealed significant relationships between dysfunctional sexual beliefs and sexual aggression; even so, no mediating effects were found. Findings suggest that students’ beliefs about sexuality, namely, a conservative pattern of sexual beliefs, work as predisposing factors for sexual aggression. The current results add to the knowledge on the preventive targets regarding sexual offending behavior in community samples.

The imperfect fit: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder as the basis to commit individuals involuntarily as sexually violent predators/persons.

Prenatal alcohol exposure produces a broad range of primary disabilities that lead to adverse life course outcomes in children raised in adverse environments. Inappropriate sexual behaviors are a commonly occurring secondary disability, with a large minority of individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) displaying sexual aggression. Adults with FASD who commit repeated criminal sexual acts may be subject to legal proceedings for indefinite involuntary civil confinement as sexually violent predators/persons (SVP) in certain jurisdictions in the United States. Studies about the diagnostic practices among psychologists and psychiatrists retained by states to evaluate individuals as SVP do not recognize FASD as a mental disorder, despite the likelihood that hundreds of individuals petitioned for involuntary commitment suffer from FASD. Establishing an FASD diagnosis may provide exculpatory evidence to refute a government petition that an individual suffers from a mental condition that affects emotional or volitional capacity by predisposing the person to committing criminal sexual behavior. This article provides a framework for identifying, assessing, and deciding whether individuals with the FASD diagnosis suffer from the legally defined mental disorder that is necessary to indefinitely confine individuals as SVP.

Development and Validation of the Teen Dating Aggression Measure Among Canadian Youth.

Teen dating violence (TDV) victimization is a traumatic experience that can have adverse consequences for adolescents. Current measures that assess TDV do not fully distinguish between psychological and relational forms of aggression, nor do they capture aggressive acts that are common within adolescent relationships. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Teen Dating Aggression Measure (TeDAM) using a sample of 730 Canadian adolescents (M = 15.88 years, SD = 1.23). The measure is an expansion of the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory and includes items that describe other forms of violence such as coercion and control, along with more traditional indicators of dating violence (e.g., sexual aggression). Factor analyses yielded three factors, namely psychological aggression, sexual and physical aggression, and relational aggression, which were correlated with more frequent cannabis and alcohol use as well as rape myth acceptance. These results provide initial support for the utility of the TeDAM for assessing TDV with adolescents.

A laboratory study of the effects of men's acute alcohol intoxication, perceptions of women's intoxication, and masculine gender role stress on the perpetration of sexual aggression.

Although research has established an association between alcohol use and sexual assault, few studies have examined how characteristics of the perpetrator may influence sexual aggression depending upon whether alcohol is consumed by the perpetrator and/or the victim. This laboratory-based investigation was designed to disentangle the effects of individual differences in masculine gender role stress (MGRS) and the perpetration of sexual aggression as a function of (1) men's acute alcohol intoxication and (2) whether a woman was consuming alcohol or not. A community sample of 156 men participated in two laboratory sessions, during which they completed a self-report measure of MGRS (Session 1) and a modified version of the sexual imposition paradigm after consuming an alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage (Session 2). In this paradigm, participants and a male friend were told that an ostensible female participant had consumed or not consumed alcohol. They were also told that she did not wish to view sexual content. Participants were then provided the opportunity to make the female confederate view a sexually or non-sexually explicit film. Sexual aggression was operationalized by selection of the sexually explicit film. A hierarchical logistic regression showed that men higher in MGRS who were intoxicated were (1) more likely than sober men to select the sexually explicit film when the woman was intoxicated and (2) less likely than sober men to select the sexually explicit film when the woman was sober. These findings suggest that the perpetration of sexual aggression is most likely among men with higher MGRS when there is concordance in drinking (i.e., when either the man and woman are both drinking or are both not drinking).

Alcohol-involved sexual aggression: Emotion regulation as a mechanism of behavior change.

Sexual aggression remains a significant public health problem, with the majority of sexual assaults involving alcohol. Founded upon an experimental medicine approach to behavior change, the current study used a proximal change experiment to target and test emotion regulation (ER) as a mechanism underlying alcohol-involved sexual aggression. Heavy episodic drinking men aged 21-30 with a sexual assault perpetration history (N = 209) were randomly assigned to a brief, online, ER-focused cognitive restructuring or mindfulness intervention or to control. Intervention effects were evaluated during sober and intoxicated states through laboratory-based alcohol administration (target BrAC = .08%). Intoxicated and sober participants completed a proximal change protocol that included implementing ER skills during a sexual aggression analogue that assessed relevant emotions and intentions. Path analysis demonstrated that relative to control, the cognitive restructuring intervention improved emotional modulation and emotional clarity, resulting in lower sexual arousal and anger, respectively, followed by decreased sexual coercion intentions. The mindfulness intervention yielded mixed results, predicting decreased sexual aggression intentions compared to control but also predicting stronger coercive tactic intentions in intoxicated men with more severe sexual aggression histories. Both interventions improved emotional acceptance relative to control, but only for sober men. Overall, the current study demonstrated that ER-focused interventions improved proximal ER skills associated with reduced sexual aggression intentions, signifying ER as an important mechanism for changing sexually aggressive behavior. Because intervention efficacy varied by intoxication state, further research is needed to assess the effectiveness of ER interventions targeting real-world alcohol-involved sexual aggression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Temporal and sequential order of nonoverlapping gene networks unraveled in mated female Drosophila.

In this study, we reanalyzed available datasets of gene expression changes in female Drosophila head induced by mating. Mated females present metabolic phenotypic changes and display behavioral characteristics that are not observed in virgin females, such as repulsion to male sexual aggressiveness, fidelity to food spots selected for oviposition, and restriction to the colonization of new niches. We characterize gene networks that play a role in female brain plasticity after mating using AMINE, a novel algorithm to find dysregulated modules of interacting genes. The uncovered networks of altered genes revealed a strong specificity for each successive period of life span after mating in the female head, with little conservation between them. This finding highlights a temporal order of recruitment of waves of interconnected genes which are apparently transiently modified: the first wave disappears before the emergence of the second wave in a reversible manner and ends with few consolidated gene expression changes at day 20. This analysis might document an extended field of a programmatic control of female phenotypic traits by male seminal fluid.

Do community females display a propensity towards sexual aggression? An empirical assessment of prevalence and psychological predictors

ABSTRACT Objective: Despite growing interest in female sexual offending, academic understanding of community females who display a propensity towards sexual aggression (PSA) is lacking. Method: Across three vignette studies, we recruited three independent samples of community females (Noverall = 555) to assess the prevalence of female PSA towards males. We also examined whether established risk factors associated with male PSA are valid predictors of female PSA. These included ambivalent sexist attitudes, inappropriate sexual interests, non-sexual aggression, impulsivity, male rape myth acceptance, and sexual preoccupation. Results: Across studies, findings showed that between 26.9% and 44.0% of participants did not emphatically reject an interest in adult male-directed PSA. Key predictors of participants’ non-zero endorsement included an interest in violent sexual activities, rape myth acceptance, and sexual preoccupation. Conclusions: Though lower than their male counterparts (see Bohner, G., Reinhard, M. A., Rutz, S., Sturm, S., Kerschbaum, B., & Effler, D. (1998). Rape myths as neutralizing cognitions: Evidence for a causal impact of anti-victim attitudes on men’s self-reported likelihood of raping. European Journal of Social Psychology, 28(2), 257–268), some community females self-report an interest in perpetrating male-directed sexual aggression. We discuss the implications of our findings on harm prevention efforts with females, alongside avenues for future research.

Exploring Rape Myth Acceptance and Psychopathy as Predictors of Sexual Coercion

ABSTRACT Evidence suggests certain psychological traits and inaccurate cognitions or beliefs are important predictors of sexual coercion. While research has demonstrated that psychopathic traits are one of the best sexual aggression predictors, research has also shown the importance of rape myth acceptance as a predictor. Although both constructs have significant evidence supporting their predictive power with sexual coercion, some recent research has found that the relationship between rape myth acceptance and sexual coercive tactics was negated with the addition of psychopathy scores. The current study seeks to extend this previous researchby using a larger sample of college males (N = 481), different measures of rape myth acceptance and psychopathy, and both retrospective and prospective methods. The results of the current study partially support previous findings, but also demonstrate differences in the predictive utility of rape myth acceptance and psychopathy constructs in the prospective prediction. Both psychopathy, particularly callousness, and rape myth acceptance were significant predictors of the sample’s intention of using both verbal and illegal sexual coercive tactics.

Understanding Sexual Aggression in UK Male University Students: An Empirical Assessment of Prevalence and Psychological Risk Factors.

University-based sexual aggression is an international public health issue; however, to date, there have been no formal assessments of the prevalence or psychological indicators associated with the proabuse behaviors of the most common perpetrators at UK universities: heterosexual male students. To facilitate the development of effective primary prevention interventions for domestic students who have sexually harmed, we assess across two empirical studies (Ns = 259 and 295) the psychological risk factors associated with recent sexual aggression amongst two distinct samples of UK male university students. Cumulatively, results highlighted that one in nine participants (11.4%) self-reported recent sexual aggression. These participants could be statistically differentiated from their non-offending peers on various established indicators of general sexual offending, of which logistic regression analyses highlighted atypical sexual fantasies, general aggression, hostility toward women, and rape myth acceptance as being the most reliable predictors. Our data extend the international evidence base by providing the first detailed overview of sexual aggression amongst UK male university students, as well as the psychological risk factors associated with their proabuse behaviors. We discuss the importance of our findings for the development of more effective evidence-based reduction strategies and primary prevention interventions for male students who have sexually harmed.

Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence, Substance Use Disorders and Depression among Incarcerated Women in Lima, Perú.

Background: Globally, there is evidence supporting the co-occurrence of intimate partner violence (IPV), substance use disorders (SUD) and mental health disorders among women in prisons, however, there is limited research investigating these domains in the Andean region where rates of female incarceration have increased. The study objective was to explore the prevalence of IPV, SUD and depression among incarcerated women in a Peruvian prison and explore associations among these variables and related correlates. Methods: 249 incarcerated women responded to a questionnaire about IPV, substance use, depression, and sexual behavior, and were screened for HIV/sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Univariate analysis and logistic regression were used to estimate relative risk and the influence of substance use and depression on IPV rates. Results: Twelve months prior to incarceration, of the women with sexual partners pre-incarceration (n = 212), 69.3% experienced threats of violence, 61.4% experienced ≥1 acts of physical violence, and 28.3% reported ≥1 act of sexual aggression. Pre-incarceration, 68.1% of drug-using women had a SUD, and 61.7% of those who consumed alcohol reported hazardous/harmful drinking. There were 20 (8.0%) HIV/STD cases; and 67.5% of the women reported depressive symptoms. Compared to women with no experiences of physical violence, a greater proportion of women who experienced least l violent act had depressive symptoms and engaged in sex work pre-incarceration. Depression was associated with physical violence (adjusted relative risk = 1.35, 95% confidence interval: 1.14–1.58). Recommendations: The findings provide evidence of a syndemic of IPV, substance abuse and depression among incarcerated women in a Peruvian prison. To help guide policy makers, further research is needed to determine if this is indicative of trends for other at-risk women in the region, and viable options to treat these women during incarceration to prevent recidivism and other long-term negative sequalae.

Sexual, physical, and emotional aggression, experienced by autistic vs. non-autistic U.S. college students

ObjectiveTo compare rates of aggression victimization for autistic vs. non-autistic U.S. college students. Participants: n = 1,411 autistic and n = 218,430 non-autistic students from 78 colleges. Methods: We used a three-way interaction term to examine moderation of the relationship between autism and sexual, physical and emotional aggression victimization by depression and sense of belonging. Results: Autistic students were nearly twice as likely as non-autistic students to report past-year emotional victimization (44% vs. 26%, p < 0.001), and more likely to report physical victimization (8.4% vs. 5.7%, p < 0.001). Autistic students who experienced sexual assault were 2.23 times more likely than non-autistic students to report it affected academic performance (80.4% vs. 36.0%, p < 0.001). At both low and high levels of depression, sense of belonging was protective against physical and sexual victimization for autistic students more than for non-autistic students. Conclusions: Institutions of higher education should prioritize preventing and responding to interpersonal aggression against autistic students.

“The Girl Who Cried Rape”: An Assessment of Rape Myths in the Moroccan Sociocultural Context

Empirical studies have unequivocally and consistently shown that rape myths are integral to the aetiology of sexual coercion and aggression. The present article reviews the literature on rape myth acceptance as an important risk factor in the sexual victimization of women and a precursor for a hostile social attitude towards victims of rape. Through the examination of the verbal reactions of the Moroccan public to the case of rape and torture of Khadija “the tattoo girl” (fata:t lwaʃm) on YouTube, it attempts to assess and debunk specific examples of rape myths present in the Moroccan sociocultural context. Discussion focuses on the social perception of female victims of sexual violence and the measurement and evaluation of its physical and psychological impact on them. Victims' emotional responses and psychic trauma constitute an important part of this discussion. Findings suggest the existence of immanently cultural rape myths, such as “the myth of the willing victim”, “it is impossible to rape a resisting woman”, and “women are prone to make false allegations”, along with deleterious victim-blaming cultural stereotypes, such as “she was asking for it”. Another noteworthy finding this paper presents is the social requirement of conspicuous "psychological/emotional harm" to legitimize the status of the victim.

Lebenszeitpr\xe4valenz des Erlebens von Sex und sexueller Ber\xfchrung gegen den eigenen Willen sowie Zusammenh\xe4nge mit gesundheitsbezogenen Faktoren

ZusammenfassungHintergrundDie negativen Auswirkungen von sexueller Gewalt auf die Gesundheit sind im vergangenen Jahrzehnt weltweit erneut stark in den gesundheitspolitischen Fokus gerückt. Bislang fehlen für Deutschland bevölkerungsrepräsentative Daten, auf deren Basis die Lebenszeitprävalenz für unterschiedliche Altersgruppen sowie spezifische Zusammenhänge zu gesundheitsbezogenen Faktoren dargestellt werden können.Ziel der ArbeitDie Studie untersucht 1) die Lebenszeitprävalenz für Sex sowie sexuelle Berührung gegen den eigenen Willen im Kindesalter und über die Lebensspanne sowie 2) die Zusammenhänge mit gesundheitsbezogenen Faktoren.Material und Methoden4955 Personen im Alter von 18 bis 75 Jahren wurden in einer zweistufig geschichteten, randomisierten Einwohnermeldeamtsstichprobe im Rahmen des bundesweiten wissenschaftlichen Survey „Gesundheit und Sexualität in Deutschland“ (GeSiD) befragt. Die Zusammenhänge mit soziodemografischen und gesundheitsbezogenen Faktoren wurden (altersadjustiert und stratifiziert für Geschlecht) mittels logistischer Regression berechnet.ErgebnisseFür Frauen lag die Lebenszeitprävalenz für (versuchten/vollzogenen) Sex bei 14,9 % und für (versuchte/vollzogene) sexuelle Berührung gegen den Willen bei 40,8 %, für Männer bei 3,1 % respektive 13,2 %. Für erzwungenen Sex vor dem 14. Lebensjahr lag die Prävalenz bei 2,1 %, für sexuelle Berührung bei 7,5 %. Es zeigten sich höhere Prävalenzen bei Personen mit beeinträchtigter Lebensqualität, schlechtem Gesundheitszustand, chronischer Erkrankung oder Behinderung, einer Behandlung aufgrund von Depression oder einer anderen psychischen Störung im letzten Jahr.DiskussionDie Studie verdeutlicht Zusammenhänge von sexueller Gewalt mit psychischer und somatischer Gesundheit. Sie unterstreicht die Dringlichkeit, nach solchen Erfahrungen regelhaft in der ärztlichen Anamnese zu fragen.

Recidivism Rates of Treated, Non-Treated and Dropout Adolescent Who Have Sexually Offended: a Non-Randomized Study.

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral treatment in reducing recidivism by adolescents who have sexually offended (ASO). A secondary objective was to determine whether typologies based on victim age (child, adult/peer, mixed) and relationship (intrafamilial, extra familial, intra/extra familial) discriminate ASO in terms of response to treatment and recidivism. The sample comprised 327 adolescents 12–18 years old (M = 15.8 years, SD = 1.9) who were evaluated in an outpatient clinic after committing a contact sexual assault. Official data on recidivism (criminal charges) was collected after a follow-up period of 21–162 months (M = 7.8 years, SD = 32.2). Survival analysis indicated that adolescents who completed treatment (n = 62) had a recidivism rate for violence (including sexual violence) almost half that of adolescents who had either not completed the treatment or not received treatment (n = 261), (16.1 vs. 30.7%). Neither of the two typologies studied had any effect on the completion of treatment. However, sexual aggression against adults/peers was associated with an increased probability of violent re-offending. These results confirm the effectiveness of this cognitive-behavioral treatment —which targets risk factors associated with sexual aggression as well as those associated with violence in general—in ASO.

60.4 PORN IN THE USA: HOW SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MEDIA AFFECTS MENTAL HEALTH AND RISK BEHAVIORS

This session aims to summarize the current state of research regarding the extent of contemporary youth engagement with pornography and its effects on their mental health and risk behaviors. An ongoing literature review was conducted on pornography use among youth, as well as its relationship to mental health and risk behaviors. Resulting studies were evaluated for relevancy and level of evidence, and the most important themes are consolidated for this presentation. Pornography use has become increasingly prevalent as easy unsupervised access to the internet has been enabled by easy internet access such as by smartphone ownership. The increase in screen media usage during the global pandemic has only further increased pornography engagement. Exposure to sadomasochistic, violent, and aggressive sex has become commonplace. Older boys, those who spend more time online, those with same-sex interests, and those with poor family relationships spend the most time viewing pornography. Parents reliably underestimate the amount and types of pornography their teens have viewed. With relatively few receiving sex education from schools or parents, pornography is the default sexual education for many, with implications for sexual attitudes and practices. Youth have a poor understanding of what is real and what is theater when viewing pornography. Pornography exposure affects adolescents’ perceptions of and engagement in risky sexual behaviors such as sex with multiple partners, infidelity, unprotected sex, sex after alcohol and drug use, and sharing nude pictures of oneself online. Violent pornography exposure correlates with perpetration of sexual assault among boys and with sexual victimization among girls. Exposure to online pornography is now normative among older children and teens, significantly affecting attitudes toward sex. Adolescents often learn sexual performance scripts or practices from pornography, and imitate these with peers, leading to risky behaviors and habits. Clinicians who work with children and adolescents should understand how to talk with and advise patients and their families about pornography and its effects. Parent-child conversations on the topic can be difficult but easier when parents pick an appropriate time and place, take a curious stance, and avoid emoting shock or judgment.

The Interplay of Sexual Arousal and Power-Related Emotions in Men’s Alcohol-Involved Sexual Aggression Intentions

ABSTRACT Research has identified power/dominance and sexual arousal as key motivators of men’s sexual aggression; however, little research has examined the interplay of these two factors in alcohol-involved sexual aggression. Two alcohol administration experiments investigated the roles of power-related sex motives and power- and sexual arousal-related emotions on men’s sexual aggression intentions. In Study 1, participants (N = 96) read a sexual aggression scenario after random assignment to consume either an alcoholic (target peak BrAC = .10%) or nonalcoholic beverage. Results indicated that power-related sex motives indirectly predicted stronger sexual aggression intentions through greater in-the-moment power-related emotions but not through sexual arousal-related emotions. Intoxicated men with more severe perpetration histories reported stronger sexual aggression intentions. In Study 2, participants (N = 203) completed similar measures after random assignment to receive either a brief emotion regulation-focused intervention (cognitive restructuring or mindfulness) or a control, followed by either alcohol (target peak BrAC = .08%) or nonalcoholic beverage consumption. Results demonstrated that greater power-related sex motives indirectly predicted stronger sexual aggression intentions through greater feelings of power and sexual arousal. Additionally, findings suggest that cognitive restructuring approaches may mitigate these relationships in sober men, while mindfulness approaches may exacerbate these relationships in intoxicated men.

Gender Equitable Attitudes, Rape Myth Acceptance, and Perceived Peer Approval of Violence as Correlates of High School Boys' Intention to Garner Sexual Consent.

The current study examines correlates of high school boys' intentions to garner consent in a future sexual encounter (N = 816). Bivariate correlation analyses demonstrated that increased intention to garner sexual consent was negatively correlated with rape myth acceptance and perceived peer acceptance of violence, and positively correlated with gender equitable attitudes. In multivariate linear regression analyses, perceived peer acceptance of violence and gender equitable attitudes remained significant in relation to intentions to garner sexual consent. Specifically, boys who reported a greater likelihood of perceiving their peers as accepting of violence and a lower likelihood of holding gender equitable attitudes also reported a lower likelihood to garner sexual consent. These findings highlight the importance of developing sexual assault prevention programs for high school boys that address the complex relationships between perceived peer norms, harmful gender role expectancies, and risk for sexual aggression. Results from this study also add to the existing literature on sexual consent communication in adolescents.

Severe versus less severe intimate partner violence: Aggressors and victims

In order to study the differences between severe intimate partner violence (S-IPV) and less severe intimate partner violence (LS-IPV), reports by 16,385 women who had suffered some type of abuse in 2016 and 2017 were analysed by means of the Police Risk Assessment Questionnaire. Chi-square tests indicate that S-IPV aggressors present criminological features to a significantly greater extent and are more likely to perpetrate various types of violence against their partners (for example, sexual aggression, death threats, degrading treatment, and controlling behaviour). Their behaviours seem to depend more on their beliefs and attitudes than on any possible psychopathological disturbance. Likewise, the victims of S-IPV are significantly more likely to report substance abuse, isolation from their environment, and vulnerability due to a mental disorder or disability; furthermore, they are less likely to report their abusers and continue with the judicial process. Therefore, efforts must be focused on fighting isolation, guaranteeing access to assistance and support services, and protecting victims during the processing of the criminal investigation. Professionals must also be alert to conflicts between partners linked to emotional breakdown and apply the relevant risk-management strategies, especially in cases with a history of mistreatment of women and an increase in violence severity.