Victim-perpetrator Relationship Research Articles

The Realities of Stranger Danger across Violent Crimes

ABSTRACT Few crimes induce greater fear and anxiety than stranger-perpetrated violence. Although these crimes are less frequent than family or acquaintance violence, stranger-perpetrated violence encompasses much of the public discourse. The focus of this study is to understand the association between stranger, family, and acquaintance relationships across different types of violence. Utilizing data from the 2016 Survey of Prison Inmates in the United States, this study examines the association between perpetrator-victim relationships across homicide, sexual assault, robbery, and felony assault. The findings reveal most types of violence are perpetrated by family and acquaintances, not strangers.

The Devil in the Details: Changes Under Stable Trends of Femicide in Italy During COVID-19 Lockdowns

In recent decades, the issue of violence against women has increasingly drawn the attention of international and national legislators and policymakers. The term “femicide” became widespread in the early 2000s and was incorporated into the criminal codes of several countries. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent social distancing measures raised significant concerns about their impact on women’s safety. This study examines the effect of COVID-19 confinement measures on femicide trends in Italy, a country which adopted stringent COVID-19 confinement measures and, since 2019, implemented new legislation to counteract violence against women. Using two data sets—one from the Italian Ministry of Interior containing 1,382 cases of female homicides (2013–2022) and another from Italian NGOs detailing 1,253 femicides according to media coverage (2012–2022)—the study employs autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) analysis to assess monthly trends alongside the stringency index for COVID-19 containment efforts. The findings reveal that, although overall femicide rates remained stable during lockdowns, there was a significant shift in victim–perpetrator relationships. Specifically, from March to May 2020, there was a decline in femicides by former partners, offset by an increase in those by cohabiting partners. These results underscore the complexity of femicide and the need for further research on various facets of violence against women. This includes the potential escalation of physical and psychological violence during lockdowns, influenced by forced proximity and substance abuse in domestic environments.

Familial Abuse during Childhood and Later-life Health: Exploring the Role of Victim–Perpetrator Relationships

Familial Abuse during Childhood and Later-life Health: Exploring the Role of Victim–Perpetrator Relationships

Characteristics of Elder Abuse Perpetrators by Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity of the Abused: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) older adults may be more vulnerable to elder abuse (EA) due to prior marginalization and trauma, lifelong discrimination, and health disparities. While characteristics of both victims and perpetrators can modify the risk for EA, few studies have focused on perpetrators. This study examined the number and type of perpetrator-victim relationships and perpetrator profiles for EA experienced in the prior year, by abuse type and sexual orientation and gender identity of the abused. Data are from community-dwelling Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging participants aged 65 or older at follow-up 1 (n = 23,466). Heterosexual men and women reported being abused psychologically and physically most often by spouses or partners. Gay and bisexual (GB) men reported being abused psychologically most often by non-family, non-friend “others”. Lesbian and bisexual (LB) women reported psychological and financial abuse most often by siblings or other family members, and physical abuse by non-family, non-friend “others”. Heterosexual women were abused financially most often by their children, and both heterosexual and GB men reported more financial abuse by “others” or friends. Overall, 15% and 5% of participants reported abuse by multiple perpetrators of psychological and financial abuse respectively. LB women experienced more EA overall (18.8%), by multiple perpetrators (31% for psychological abuse, 66.5% for financial abuse) including by their siblings and other family members. These results have important implications for mitigation and preventive measures. They also highlight the need for further research concerning sexual minorities experiencing multiple abuse types and/or abuse by multiple perpetrators.

Who is killing South African men? A retrospective descriptive study of forensic and police investigations into male homicide

Not much is known about the perpetrators of male homicide in South Africa, which has rates seven times the global average. For the country’s first ever male homicide study we...

Personality Attributions in the Context of Stalking of Ex-Intimates or Others: A Victim's Perspective.

Stalking perpetrators may suffer from maladaptive personality traits, particularly if they stalk in the context of an (ex-)intimate relationship. To date, no study has examined how different personality attributions may relate to stalker motivation, or the behaviors they engage in, and how this differs across victim-perpetrator relationships. Further, the perspective of the victim is often not taken into consideration, even though most stalking victims know their stalker intimately and a majority are stalked by a former or current partner. The present study employed a correlational design to assess the relationship between stalking behaviors, motivation to stalk, and personality attributions, as perceived by the victim across an ex-intimate or other victim-perpetrator relationship. The study sample consisted of 100 victims of stalking (63% ex-intimate; 85% female) who were recruited through a National Stalking Helpline. Results align with and extend the results of previous researchers, most notably the high proportion of reported Cluster B-aligned personality attributions among stalkers, as well as the proportion of more under-researched personality attributions, and their associated risks. Victims of an ex-intimate partner were more likely to report their stalker was motivated by intimacy, and personality attributions aligned with both borderline and paranoid PD were more often reported than in other relationship contexts. Results and clinical implications are discussed.

Twenty-five year occupational homicide mortality trends in North Carolina: 1992–2017

IntroductionDetermining industry of decedents and victim–perpetrator relationships is crucial to inform and evaluate occupational homicide prevention strategies. In this study, we examine occupational homicide rates in North Carolina (NC) by...

Psychologist attitudes towards disclosure and believability of childhood sexual abuse: Can biases affect perception, judgement, and action?

BackgroundThe perception of CSA disclosure belief is critical to long-term outcomes for CSA survivors. Despite disclosures often occurring in clinical settings CSA survivors do not always report a sense of clinician belief in response to their disclosure. Ascertaining the factors that influence clinician belief is essential to improving outcomes. ObjectiveThis study examined whether language (i.e., word choice to describe abuse) and ongoing relationship status with a perpetrator impact perceptions of CSA belief amongst psychologists. MethodsThis 2 × 2 within subject's study examined relationship effects (ongoing verses estranged) and language effects (consensual verses abusive), embedded in fictitious vignettes, on believability. Seventy-five participants completed demographic surveys, rated and discussed belief in four vignettes, and completed validated scales capturing clinician trauma history and CSA myth endorsement. ResultsA significant main effect for relationship was found with ongoing victim-perpetrator relationships being less believed than depictions of estranged relationships (F(1,3) = 15.57, p = .001, h2 = 0.174). While no main effect for language was found (F(1,3) = 0.06, p = .801, h2 = 0.001) content analysis of the open-ended items revealed 80 % of psychologists reported being influenced by the language manipulations. Correlations revealed male psychologists were less likely to believe disclosures and more likely to endorse CSA myths than females, and psychologists who had engaged in trauma training appeared to have heightened disclosure belief and lower myth endorsement. ConclusionsWhile psychologists generally report belief in CSA disclosures they appear to evaluate specific disclosure aspects to inform this level of belief. Issues around social desirability, measure sensitivity, and learning effects are discussed alongside the importance of trauma training for psychologists.

Intimate Partner Homicide: Comparison Between Homicide and Homicide-Suicide in Portugal.

Intimate partner homicide (IPH) is a tragic event. Studies involving the comparison between IPH and intimate partner homicide-suicide (IPH-S) are scarce, with few studies in Portugal about this issue. The current study aims to compare IPH and IPH-S perpetrators, the victim-perpetrator relationships dynamics, and homicide circumstances. The data was collected through the analysis of 78 judicial processes of IPH that occurred in Portugal, between 2010 and 2015. Of the cases, 51 were IPH, 20 were IPH-S cases, and seven were attempted suicide cases, being perpetrated in 84.6% (n = 66) for male perpetrators. Suicide after intimate homicide were all committed by men. All judicial processes analyzed refer to heterosexual relationships. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to compare the groups concerning perpetrator and victim sociodemographic characteristics, victim-perpetrator dyadic dynamics, and crime circumstances. The results show mostly common trends between the two groups with some differentiating factors when compared individually (e.g., perpetrator professional status, criminal records). Regression logistic analysis showed no differences between IPH and IPH-S.

Victim-perpetrator relationship, age and method of homicide in intimate and non-intimate cases of femicide from the republic of Ireland.

This study presents a review of femicides over 31 years (1991-2021) from the Republic of Ireland. A total of 253 cases were located and reviewed, of those 125 were intimate partner homicides (IPH) and 128 non-intimate homicides (NIH). One hundred and ninety-nine (78%) girls and women were killed by a male known to them - intimate partner (husband, partner, boyfriend, ex-partner, ex-boyfriend) (n = 125; 48%), family members (son, grandson, brother, cousin) (n = 25; 10%) and/or acquaintances (n = 49; 19%) from adolescence to old age. Thirty-one (12%) were killed by a stranger and 23 cases remain unsolved at this time. The method of killing depended on the relationship and age of the victim and perpetrator. The majority of IPH victims were less than 45 years of age (n = 101). Twenty-four were over 45 years of which six were over 60 years of age. The leading method of killing in IPHs was stabbing and strangulation and this was more prevalent in those aged between 26 and 45 years. As age increases, IPH decreases with the exception of cases of IP homicide-suicide. Adolescents (13-19 years) and young women (20-25 years) were more often killed by strangulation. Strangulation was also the leading cause of death in stranger killings particularly with sexual violence. There were 20 cases of matricide, with 17 perpetrators suffering from a mental illness at the time of the killing. The leading method of homicide in non-intimate homicides was blunt force trauma.

Victim-Perpetrator Relationship: Reconnoitering Typology of Victimization in Anita Nair’s Eating Wasps

Violence against women is not new from feticide to cyberbullying. It remains unchanged and experienced by all ages of women from perpetrators in the patriarchal hegemony. Every form of violence affects millions of women’s lives irrespective of age, class, culture, language, religion, and education, and it cannot be stopped by anything due to deep-rooted patriarchy and gender stereotypes. Men (gender stereotypes) become the primary reason for the violence against women and women become vulnerable victims as they are considered ‘Other’, the weaker sex. Victimization has a physical and psychological impact on victims’ rest of their lives. Anita Nair, an Indian author vociferates the different forms of victimization in the modern era in her latest literary oeuvre Eating Wasps (2018). Megha, a six-year-old child, Liliana, an Italian spinster and Najma, a Muslim girl do not share any contribution to victimization but being in the hapless situation entitles them to be victimized. Yet, they are denied to accept the tag ‘victim’ and become survivors by fighting against the odds in their society. This study traverses the relationship between victims and perpetrators through the lens of Benjamin Mendelsohn’s typology of victimization and the challenges encountered by victims in the patriarchal environment.

Relationship Between The "Sexual Abuse Whirlpool" and Gender, Type of Abuse, Victim-Perpetrator Relationship, Disclosure, Psychological Reactions, and Revictimization of Sexual Abuse Victims.

According to the Sexual Abuse Whirlpool framework, when a vulnerable child is noticed by a perpetrator, the state of vulnerability he/she is in will reach a severe level. The SAW asserts that the method applied by the perpetrator has a multiplier effect on the child's vulnerability and accelerates the process resulting in abuse. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between the SAW and gender, type of abuse, victim-perpetrator relationship, disclosure, psychological complaints and reactions (PCRs), and revictimization of sexual abuse victims. A mixed research method was used: First, the vulnerabilities of the victims were extracted from the forensic interview forms with a qualitative method (n = 199). Then collected data were tabulated and digitized quantitatively. Victims who were exposed to penetrative abuses, who did not disclose, had serious PCRs, and who were re-victimized had high scores of the SAW. Whirlpool would decrease in places where there is a quality parent-child relationship.

How can rape investigations be enhanced? Consideration of attrition in rape cases: Second follow-up study

Attrition of rape cases is highest during the police investigation. As annually increasing reports of rape contrast with low conviction rates, this research determines which features of an investigation impact the likelihood of attrition. Cox Proportional Hazards Analysis of 620 rape cases highlights where and when attrition is greatest, in order to improve each stage of the investigation. The analysis found initial attendance by uniformed officers and conducting an interview significantly decreased attrition likelihood. Alternatively, matching the gender of officer to victim significantly increased likelihood. Moreover, victim-perpetrator relationship significantly impacted case length.

The Relationship between Eating Disorders and the Narrative Self: An Intimate Partner Violence Comparison

Eating disorders (EDs) are associated with significant psychiatric and medical morbidity and carry unique challenges for treatment providers. An ED can become powerful to the point that it controls every aspect of the individual, and these patterns of control can be seen as similar to interactions observed within an intimate partner violence (IPV) relationship. This paper examines the literature on EDs and IPV and attempts to answer two research questions: (1) Does the ED–narrative self relationship share similarities to the victim–perpetrator relationship in IPV relationships? (2) Do individuals living with an ED report themes related to IPV in their discussion of the recovery process? Utilising a phenomenological analysis, online data from individuals living with an ED are analysed. The researchers find three themes and 10 subthemes that reveal similarities between EDs and the narrative self and the perpetrator and victim in IPV relationships. Clinical implications and future research recommendations are discussed.

Victim-Centred Peacemaking: The Colombian Experience

ABSTRACT This article interrogates how survivors/victims participate in peacemaking and victim-centred Transitional Justice initiatives, focusing on the role of the victims' delegations during the Santos-FARC/EP peace talks in Colombia (2012-2016). The article presents unique empirical data, drawing on sixty-eight interviews with participants from the talks. The research assesses Colombia's victim-centred approach, arguing that the delegations shaped the content of the peace agreement, influenced historic narratives of victimhood and shaped victim-perpetrator relationships, facilitating victim agency and empowerment. However, wider political and economic prerogatives and dominant TJ tendencies constrained the broader exercise of agency, whilst participants experienced episodes of disempowerment and instrumentalisation.

Sexual Aggression among Women and Men in an Iranian Sample: Prevalence and Correlates

This pre-registered study examined the prevalence and correlates of sexual aggression in a sample of 530 Iranians (322 women, 208 men) with a behaviorally specific questionnaire distinguishing between different coercive strategies, victim-perpetrator relationships, and sexual acts. Significantly more women (63.0%) than men (51.0%) experienced at least one incident of sexual aggression victimization since the age of 15 years, and significantly more men (37.0%) than women (13.4%) reported at least one incident of sexual aggression perpetration. In women and men, the experience of child sexual abuse predicted sexual victimization and sexual aggression perpetration after the age of 15 years, both directly and indirectly through higher engagement in risky sexual behavior. Greater endorsement of hostile masculinity among men explained additional variance in the prediction of sexual aggression perpetration. This research is a first step towards documenting and explaining high rates of sexual aggression victimization and perpetration among Iranian women and men, providing important information for sex education as well for the prevention of sexual aggression. However, to achieve these goals, we highlight the need for systematic actions in all educational, social, and legal sectors of Iranian society.

Unacknowledged and missed cases of sexual victimization: A comparison of responses to broad versusbehaviorally specific questions.

From the beginning of systematic research on sexual victimization, it has been recognized that a substantial proportion of women report nonconsensual sexual experiences meeting the defining criteria of rape in response to behaviorally specific items, but do not acknowledge their experience as rape in response to broad questions about whether they have ever been raped. Recent studies suggest that rates of unacknowledged rape may be as high or even higher among men than among women. This study examined rates of unacknowledged female and male victims of rape and sexual assault by comparing responses to behaviorally specific items of the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S) with responses to broad questions using the labels of sexual assault and rape (SARA) in 593 participants (303 women) in Germany. As predicted, more women and men were classified as rape victims based on behaviorally specific items than on the basis of the broad rape item. The rates of unacknowledged rape were about 60% for women and 75% for men. The gender difference was not significant. Against our prediction, no significant differences in acknowledgement of sexual assault were found in relation to coercive strategy and victim-perpetrator relationship. Few cases of rape and sexual assault identified by the SARA items were missed by the behaviorally specific questions. The implications for establishing prevalence rates of rape and sexual assault and for comparing victims and nonvictims in terms of vulnerability factors and outcomes of sexual victimization are discussed.

Examining the Factors that Impact Suicide Following Heterosexual Intimate Partner Homicide: Social Context, Gender Dynamics, and Firearms.

Despite a wealth of research on intimate partner homicide, research on intimate partner homicide followed by suicide of the perpetrator is sparse. Existing studies on intimate partner homicide-suicide: tend to be descriptive, not keeping pace with quantitative advances in the epidemiological and social sciences; have yet to examine how context impacts intimate partner homicide-suicide; and are typically limited to male perpetrators, given small localized samples of female-perpetrated intimate partner (homicide and) homicide-suicide. This study uses data on 7584 heterosexual intimate partner homicide and homicide-suicide cases distributed across 2465 places and 42 U.S. states from the National Violent Death Reporting System (2003-2018) to examine the victim and perpetrator characteristics, relationship dynamics, situational factors, and contextual features that influence the likelihood of committing suicide following intimate partner homicide. Hierarchical logistic regression models indicate that victim characteristics that increase the vulnerability to victimization (alcohol and drug use, mental health problems, less than some college education) decrease the odds of committing suicide following intimate partner homicide. Similarly, situational (victim weapon usage, additional perpetrators) and contextual (concentrated disadvantage, residential instability) risk factors decrease the odds of committing suicide following intimate partner homicide. Conversely, impairment of the perpetrator (alcohol use, mental health problems) and a more intimate victim-perpetrator relationship (spousal relationship, caregiver) increases the odds of homicide-suicide. Additionally, results indicate that firearms play an integral part in homicide-suicide as well as in decreasing the gender gap in homicide-suicide. The findings suggest that the internalization of guilt by perpetrators of intimate partner homicide may play a key role in subsequent suicide. Practically, limiting firearm exposure will not only reduce the lethality of intimate partner violence, but will decrease the odds of perpetrator suicide following intimate partner homicide. This is particularly true for female-perpetrated homicide-suicide, which is unlikely to occur without a firearm.

The Victim-Perpetrator Relationship and Peritraumatic Schemas as a Result of Sexual Trauma.

The development of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) due to sexual trauma is complex. Various mechanisms have been studied to explain the relationship between sexual trauma and PTSS. Other studies have looked at the impact of the victim-perpetrator relationship on the relationship between sexual trauma and PTSS with mixed results. Lacking from the literature is the possible mediating effect of peritraumatic schemas for the relationship between sexual trauma and PTSS. Additionally, the impact of the type of victim-perpetrator relationship may have on the development of peritraumatic schemas has also been unaddressed. This study seeks to close the gap in the literature by asking if peritraumatic schemas mediate the relationship between sexual trauma, specifically attempted and completed rape, and PTSS. The moderating role of the victim-perpetrator relationship on the association between sexual trauma and peritraumatic schemas was also examined. Using a college student sample that had endorsed experiencing at least one sexual trauma in their life, this study examined path analysis model explaining the mediating effects of peritraumatic schemas and the moderating effects of the victim-perpetrator relationship. Results indicated that peritraumatic schemas partially mediated the relationship between attempted rape and PTSS when controlling for completed rape. This effect was not found for the relationship between completed rape and PTSS when controlling for attempted rape. The interaction between attempted rape and the acquaintance perpetrator relationship was significant, indicating that peritraumatic schemas increased more severely for those that experienced attempted rape by an acquaintance. Recognizing that PTSS partially results from the peritraumatic schemas experienced, which are impacted by the victim-perpetrator relationship, helps increase understanding of the experience of attempted rape.

Elder financial abuse based on victim–perpetrator relationship as perceived by Asian young adults

AbstractObjectiveThe current study aimed to examine how Asian adults perceive the severity of elder financial abuse (EFA) based on victim–perpetrator relationship and the explanations they give for minimizing it when the perpetrator is a close family member.BackgroundFinancial abuse, one of the fastest growing forms of abuse in the elderly population, has remained understudied, especially in Asian communities, due to cultural variations in its definition and perception.MethodA mixed‐methods study design was utilized. One hundred sixty‐four participants responded to two vignettes depicting EFA perpetrated by a close family member (son) and nonfamily member (neighbor).ResultsPaired samples t test found significant differences in severity ratings of EFA committed by son and neighbor within Asian adults. The qualitative report explored participants' explanations for minimizing EFA perpetrated by close family member using thematic analysis, which identified two major themes: (a) dismissal of severity and responsibility and (2) justification of abuse.ConclusionThis is one of the few studies to provide valuable insight into the influence of culture on perceptions of elder abuse.ImplicationsWith the elderly population in Asia increasing steadily, culturally relevant risk factors of abuse need to be identified because this could guide legal provisions that help protect the rights of older individuals.