Childhood Abuse and Women’s Use of Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring the Role of Complex Trauma

Abstract

Much research now indicates significant long-term effects for individuals who have experienced various forms of abuse in childhood. Recent research also has examined the role of women as perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV), including potential factors that contribute to their use of violence. One trend revealed in the research is that many of the women who engaged in acts of IPV also had a history of experiencing one or more types of childhood abuse (e.g., physical or sexual abuse, or witnessing family violence). This article discusses the specific framework of complex trauma as a theoretical model to understand how unresolved triggers of childhood trauma may potentially serve as ongoing catalysts for women's IPV. Using the lens of complex trauma illuminates the critical interpersonal factor yet to be studied thus far, which suggests that many women's IPV experiences may be rooted in having childhood traumas triggered by their intimate partner. Suggestions for treatment are recommended as exploring the intersection between past trauma and present violence, which seems to be the key for unlocking important answers in treating violent women and decreasing IPV.

Childhood Trauma and Dissociative Intimate Partner Violence

“…The extant literature on IPV, as well as clinical best practices, suggest that childhood abuse and neglect (CAN), including childhood physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; exposure to domestic violence (DV); and exposure to emotional and physical neglect, is a key risk factor for perpetration of IPV as an adult. Some research demonstrates a direct relationship between CAN and adult IPV, particularly for female perpetrators of IPV (e.g., Fang & Corso, 2008; Flemke, Underwood, & Allen, 2014; Trabold, Swogger, Walsh, & Cerulli, 2015) and survivors of childhood sexual abuse (e.g., Fang & Corso, 2008; Jennings, Richards, Tomsich, & Gover, 2015; McMahon et al, 2015; Teitelman et al, 2017). Other research proposes mediators or moderators between CAN and IPV perpetration such as emotion dysregulation (Gratz, Paulson, Jakupcak, & Tull, 2009), anger expression and stress reactivity (Maneta, Cohen, Schulz, & Waldinger, 2012), a hostile-dominant interpersonal style (Edwards, Dixon, Gidycz, & Desai, 2014; Murphy & Blumenthal, 2000), attachment anxiety (Brassard, Darveau, Péloquin, Lussier, & Shaver, 2014), and psychopathic traits (Swogger, Walsh, Kosson, Cashman-Brown, & Caine, 2012).…”

Childhood experiences of female family-violence perpetrators

“…One way to develop understanding of this phenomenon is to explore the childhood experiences of women involved in such violence. Research on female family‐violence and childhood experiences has focused primarily on women who have been convicted of family‐violence and received court‐ordered help . There are several batterer intervention programs developed for men aiming to reduce men's power and controlling behavior against women, but it has been suggested that family‐of‐origin issues are essential to consider when designing interventions for female family‐violence perpetrators .…”

“…Research on female family-violence and childhood experiences has focused primarily on women who have been convicted of family-violence and received court-ordered help. [3][4][5] There are several batterer intervention programs developed for men aiming to reduce men's power and controlling behavior against women, 6 but it has been suggested that family-of-origin issues are essential to consider when designing interventions for female family-violence perpetrators. 7 The purpose of this study was to explore childhood experiences of female family-violence perpetrators who voluntarily sought help.…”

Views of women with dissociative identity disorder on intimate partner violence : a grounded theory approach

“…IPV occurs in both heterosexual and homosexual relationships and does not require sexual intimacy (CDC, 2015). IPV can be unidirectional, meaning only one partner is the abuser, or bidirectional (also referred to as mutual or reciprocal IPV) in which both partners are abusive toward each other (Flemke & Underwood, 2014;Gay et al, 2013;Iverson et al, 2014).…”

“…A study of American college women indicated that emotional CM had a stronger link to all forms of IPV than any other type of CM (Gay et al, 2013), while another study conducted with both men and women demonstrated that neglect had the most significant link to IPV (Widom et al, 2014). Other researchers have found that more severe IPV is linked to specific forms of CM: betrayal trauma (CM perpetrated by a trusted primary caregiver on which the child is dependent for survival, usually a parent) (Babcock & DePrince, 2012;Babcock & DePrince, 2013), complex trauma (repeated and sustained CM perpetrated by a primary caregiver at key, early developmental junctures) (Flemke & Underwood, 2014), and double betrayal trauma (betrayal trauma coupled with a negative response to CM disclosure to an authority figure) (Wager, 2013).…”