The “Golden Thread”: Coercive Control and Risk Assessment for Domestic Violence

Abstract

This is the accepted version of the paper.This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. threats, controlling behavior and sexual, coercion, and victims' isolation and fear, had highest item loadings and were thus the most representative of the overall construct. Permanent repository linkSub-lethal physical violence -choking and use of weapons -was also consistent with a course of controlling conduct. Whether a physical injury was sustained during the current incident, however, was not associated consistently either with the typical pattern of abuse, or with other context-specific risk factors such as separation from the perpetrator. Implications for police practice and the design of risk assessment tools are discussed. We conclude that coercive control is the 'golden thread' running through risk identification and assessment for domestic violence and that risk assessment tools structured around coercive control can help police officers move beyond an 'incident-by-incident' response and towards identifying the dangerous patterns of behavior that precede domestic homicide.3

Service Provider Difficulties in Operationalizing Coercive Control

“…The combination of limited resources, varying definitions and actuarial risk assessment that prioritises violent abuse over non-violent abuse means that it will always be difficult to deliver a uniform response to domestic abuse and more specifically, even when it is recognised, to coercive control. The DASH risk assessment does provide some guidance with risk scores (Myhill & Hohl, 2016). Despite this, almost all of the respondents in our study asserted their confidence in the use of professional judgement in assessing risk.…”

“…Within this research study, some specialist service providers urged caution with regard to the current models of risk assessment and mechanisms to manage thisthe DASH risk assessment It is clear that in the current climate of limited resources, risk management dictates resource allocationefficiency and prioritising being an underlying aim of all risk assessment. This focus on triaging cases diminishes the importance of coercive control because the risk assessment tools are designed to focus on physical violence and prevention of fatality, placing much less emphasis on non-violent behaviours (Hester, 2011;Westmarland & Kelly, 2012;Myhill & Hohl, 2016;Pitman, 2016). Another respondent below echoes this point:…”

Risk assessment for intimate partner violence: how can the police assess risk?

“…For example, including risk items such as 'strangulation' and 'controlling behaviour' may encourage police officers to investigate for these factors. With regards controlling and coercive behaviour, this might be critical because it can have a profound impact on the victim but may not be immediately apparent to police officers without probing questions (Myhill & Hohl, 2016: Robinson, Pinchevsky, & Guthrie, 2016bRobinson, Myhill, & Wire, 2017). Requiring officers to rate this factor may encourage a greater depth of investigation than would otherwise occur.…”

Real Lives and Lost Lives: Making Sense of ‘Locked in’ Responses to Intimate Partner Homicide

“…These have grown in popularity in the UK and elsewhere and Robinson (2006) concludes they have been invaluable in enabling agencies to assist victims of domestic abuse more efficiently and in maximising their safety. However, more recent work in the UK criticises this approach for only focussing on high risk victims (Myhill and Hohl 2016). In addition, there are endemic concerns about initiatives such as these in terms of their ability to effectively engage with meaningful and appropriate information sharing on which their decisions might be based (see for example Stanley and Humphreys 2014).…”