Differential MCMI‐III psychopathological profiles between intimate partner violence perpetrators with and without childhood family violence

Abstract

This study explored the differential prevalence of personality disorders (PD) and clinical syndromes between male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) with and without a history of childhood family violence (CFV). A sample of 981 perpetrators of IPV was assessed with the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory‐III (MCMI‐III). Comparisons of sociodemographic characteristics and MCMI‐III scales' scores between perpetrators with (n = 293) and without (n = 688) CFV were carried out. Results showed that IPV perpetrators with CFV had a lower level of education, were less frequently employed, and had higher rates of previous psychiatric history than perpetrators without CFV. Statistically significant differences between groups in almost all the MCMI‐III scales were found. Perpetrators with CFV presented with higher scores on most of the evaluated scales and showed a more severe psychopathological profile than perpetrators without CFV. The multivariate analysis showed that the main MCMI‐III domains related to CFV were higher scores on the disclosure and alcohol dependence scales and lower scores on the passive‐aggressive scale. These findings reveal that CFV is associated with a more severe psychopathological profile in perpetrators of IPV. In order to develop tailored interventions, the presence of CFV and psychopathological symptoms should be assessed in IPV perpetrators.

Personality characteristics in specialist and generalist intimate partner violence perpetrators

“…Moreover, desirability was high for both groups. This high desirability has also been reported in other studies (e.g., Catalá‐Miñana et al, 2014 ; Siria, Fernández‐Montalvo, et al, 2021 ). Desirability assesses underreporting of psychiatric symptoms (Millon, 1997 ), and, therefore it is important to take into account when IPV perpetrators are assessed.…”

“…Despite these limitations, the characteristics of participants are an important strength. Although other studies have been conducted in Spain using the MCMI‐III in IPV perpetrators (e.g., Herrero et al, 2016; Juarros‐Basterretxea et al, 2018; Siria, Fernández‐Montalvo, et al, 2021), to the authors ́ knowledge this is the first that has addressed personality traits in a large sample of generalist and specialist perpetrators. Moreover, this study contributes to a better understanding of personality among generalist and specialist perpetrators.…”

“…One of the most used personality measures is the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) (Torres et al, 2013 ). This instrument has been widely used in the assessment of personality characteristics in male IPV perpetrators (Siria, Fernández‐Montalvo, et al, 2021 ; Torres et al, 2013 ). As Craig ( 2003 ) pointed out, a specific MCMI profile associated with IPV perpetration cannot be established.…”

“…Cluster 2 (those individuals who presented a more generalized violence) showed higher scores on personality disorders scales compared to individuals from cluster 1. Although there are few recent studies in Spain that have addressed personality in IPV perpetrators using the MCMI‐III (e.g., Herrero et al, 2016 ; Juarros‐Basterretxea et al, 2018 ; Siria, Fernández‐Montalvo, et al, 2021 ; Siria, Leza, et al, 2021 ), it is necessary to deeply analyse the personality profile according to the specialist and generalist classification in large samples of IPV perpetrators. Therefore, the present study intends to fill this gap in literature and our general aim is to describe personality in a large sample of IPV Spanish male perpetrators considering their classification (specialist vs. generalist).…”

Risk Factors and Treatment Needs of Batterer Intervention Program Participants with Substance Abuse Problems

“…The Spanish version reported Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficients between .67 and .89. This inventory has traditionally been used with BIP participants (Fernández-Montalvo et al, 2020;Romero-Martínez et al, 2015;Siria et al, 2021).…”