Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a maladaptive conflict behavior, and IPV is both a precipitant and consequence of drug use problems among couples. It is unknown how drug use problem severity modulates the association between IPV and observed conflict behaviors. As part of a larger clinical trial, a sample of 30 different-sex substance-misusing couples completed self-report questionnaires and participated in a laboratory conflict resolution task. The current exploratory study tested whether drug use severity moderated the association between IPV perpetration and positive and negative conflict resolution behaviors, respectively, while controlling for IPV victimization. The results suggest that among men, drug use severity moderates the association between psychological IPV perpetration and negative conflict behaviors. Men who report more severe IPV display more negative behaviors when their drug use problems are more severe. Among women, drug use severity moderated the effect between psychological IPV perpetration and negative conflict behaviors among women, such that women with lower drug use problem severity displayed more negative conflict behaviors when psychological IPV perpetration was more versus less severe. Drug use severity also moderated the association between physical IPV perpetration and negative and positive conflict behaviors among women. That is, women who reported more severe physical IPV displayed more negative and fewer positive behaviors when their drug use problems were more severe. Results have preliminary implications for targeting conflict resolution strategies differentially in men and women with drug use and a history of IPV perpetration. Future studies should replicate the current findings in larger, more representative samples, and examine the role specific drugs have on the association between IPV and conflict behaviors.
PurposePsychological intimate partner violence (IPV) will impact almost half of US adults throughout the lifespan and as many as 80% of undergraduate college students; however, psychological IPV remains understudied. Examining perceptions of IPV can aid in the identification of potential barriers to treatment seeking and advance intervention efforts. The current study intended to determine how myths and stigmatizing beliefs about IPV affected the minimization (i.e., neutralization) of IPV acts and how history of psychological IPV victimization could moderate the aforementioned associations.MethodsParticipants were undergraduate students in the southeastern United States (N = 52) who were currently, or had previously been, in a relationship for at least 1 month. Data were collected regarding IPV victimization and perpetration and perceptions of IPV, including stigmatizing beliefs, myth endorsement, and neutralizing beliefs.ResultsFindings indicated that those reporting higher levels of psychological IPV victimization endorsed more neutralizing beliefs about IPV more stigmatizing beliefs about females experiencing IPV victimization, compared to those reporting fewer stigmatizing beliefs towards females experiencing IPV. That is, individuals who have experienced psychological IPV and also stigmatize females experiencing IPV victimization may tend to normalize IPV.ConclusionsFindings illuminate how perceptions and personal experiences of IPV can minimize someone’s views of the severity of others’ IPV victimization. This research has implications for highlighting barriers to help-seeking behaviors for individuals experiencing IPV and informing future studies about help-seeking in undergraduate populations.
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