The Psychological Maltreatment of Women Inventory was modified and used to assess the occurrence of psychological abuse in 1,625 college-age males and females. Six reliable factors were extracted from the scale reflecting the following concepts: positive behaviors, diminishment of self-esteem, verbal abuse, social and emotional control, jealousy, and withdrawal. Males currently involved in a relationship at the time the questionnaire was administered reported higher levels of psychological abuse and fewer positive behaviors than did females. However, the occurrence of psychologically abusive behaviors within a relationship were likely to result in a lower relationship satisfaction rating for both males and females. In addition, women in more formally committed relationships were most likely to report psychological abuse. Finally, the termination of a relationship was associated with an absence of positive behaviors, rather than a high frequency of negative behaviors. These findings are discussed with respect to physically abusive relationships.

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This study assesses acquital rates using mock jurors in cases involving a battered woman charged with killing her husband. The simulated trial format was based on actual courtroom proceedings including witness cross-examination and jury deliberation proceedings. The type of plea entered was varied and reflected either self-defense, automatism, or a hypothetical plea of psychological self-defense. The severity of abuse incurred by the defendant was also varied along with expert testimony. Jurors more frequently found the defendant not guilty when a plea of automatism was entered compared to a plea of self-defense. The frequency of acquittals following a plea of psychological self-defense resulted in more acquittals than the self-defense plea but significantly fewer than the automatism plea. The likelihood of acquittal increased under conditions of severe abuse as opposed to moderate abuse. Expert witness testimony was observed to influence verdicts during juror deliberations.

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