Betrayal Trauma and Gender: An Examination of the Victim–Offender Overlap

Abstract

Empirical research has demonstrated widespread support for the association between violent victimization and offending, or the “victim–offender overlap.” This study adds to this body of research by applying the betrayal trauma framework to investigate whether the relationship between the victim and perpetrator impacts the presence of the victim–offender overlap and whether these effects differ across gender. Specifically, this study utilizes a series of binary logistic regressions to investigate (a) whether violent victimization is associated with violent offending, (b) whether this relationship varies by victim–perpetrator relationship (familial vs. nonfamilial vs. both), and (c) whether the impact of this relationship varies across gender. Data come from the third and most recent wave of the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV III; n = 1,949). Results indicate that violent victimization is associated with violent offending. When disaggregated by perpetrator-type, the results show that experiencing familial-only perpetrated violence and experiencing both familial and nonfamilial perpetrated violence are significantly associated with violent offending while experiencing nonfamilial-only perpetrated violence is not significantly associated with violent offending. Furthermore, the results indicate that the effects of the perpetrator–victim relationship vary across gender, such that the impacts of familial- and nonfamilial-only perpetrated violence were significantly weaker for males compared with females. The effects of experiencing violent victimization from both familial and nonfamilial perpetrators does not vary across genders. These findings lend support to a gender-specific betrayal trauma framework as well as research on the effects of cumulative victimization. Directions for future research and clinical implications are identified.

Correlates of the victim–offender overlap based on daily conflict-Level data from digital diaries

“…Findings regarding gender have been mixed. Gender has not distinguished the V-O overlap in some studies (Muftić et al, 2015; Reingle, Jennings, & Maldonado-Molina, 2012; Tillyer & Wright, 2014), but was a significant characteristic in two nationally representative studies (Kushner, 2020; Taylor et al, 2019). Background factors such as substance use have also been implicated in the V-O overlap (Klevens et al, 2002; Reingle, Staras, et al, 2012).…”

Constituting Child-to-Parent Violence: Lessons from England and Wales

“…This has included discussion of whether witnessing intimate partner violence is a risk factor for CPV, and the nature of any causal pathways. Evidence suggests that children who experience family violence are at heightened risk of violent behaviour generally (Kushner 2020), and that between 50 -80% of children engaged in CPV have witnessed or been subjected to violence at home, although the causal mechanisms between violent victimization and CPV remain unclear (Simmons et al 2018: 38-9). The complex interplay between intimate partner violence and CPV is a central theme of this article.…”

A Network Approach to Examining Co-occurring Victimization and Perpetration in Dating Abuse Among a Nationally Representative Sample of US Adolescents

“…An additional dimension of ADA requiring more empirical work concerns gender differences [12,13]. Although research has identified the co-occurring nature of victimization and perpetration across genders [2,6,14], several studies found gender differences in ADA experiences [7,15,16]. For example, some research finds that boys and men are more likely to perpetrate ADA than girls and women, who are more likely to experience victimization [4].…”