Defense against Attack

Abstract

Despite similarities in physical IPV perpetration rates among men and women, researchers have noted that the context of men's and women's violence may be very different. For example, men's IPV perpetration is more likely than women's to be driven by power and control motives, while women's violence is more likely to be motivated by self-defense. In fact, of the potential motivational differences for men's and women's physical violence, self-defense is among the most commonly cited.