Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Theorizing Gender in Intimate Partner Violence Research

  • Published:
Sex Roles Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Research findings of sex-symmetry in the perpetration of intimate partner assaults have sparked vigorous debate about the appropriate definition and measurement of intimate violence. A neglected but central issue in this debate is the conceptualization and measurement of gender. This article first examines the often unstated theoretical perspective on gender that underlies the research on sex-symmetry in intimate partner violence. This perspective treats gender as an individual characteristic of persons. Next, I describe challenges to the individualist model of gender from two emerging theoretical perspectives—interactionist and structuralist gender theories. The article concludes with suggestions for research on intimate partner violence that are informed by these new gender theories.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alway, J. (1995). The trouble with gender: Tales of a still missing feminist revolution in sociological theory. Sociological Theory, 13(3), 209–228.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, K. L. (1997). Gender, status, and domestic violence: An integration of feminist and family violence approaches. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 59, 655–669.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, K. L. (2002). Perpetrator or victim?: Relationships between intimate partner violence and well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64, 851–863.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, K. L., & Umberson, D. (2001). Gendering violence: Masculinity and power in men’s accounts of domestic violence. Gender and Society, 15, 358–380.

    Google Scholar 

  • Archer, J. (2000). Sex differences in aggression between heterosexual partners: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 126, 651–680.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Babcock, J. C., Miller, S. A., & Siard, C. (2003). Toward a typology of abusive women: Differences between partner-only and generally violent women in the use of violence. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 27, 153–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bachman, R., & Saltzman, L. E. (1995). Violence against women: Estimates from the redesigned survey August 1995 (NCJ-154348 Special Report). Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics.

  • Bem, S. L. (1974). The measurement of psychological androgyny. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 42, 155–162.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bernard, J. L., Bernard, S. L., & Bernard, M. L. (1985). Courtship violence and sex-typing. Family Relations, 34, 573–576.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brush, L. D. (1993). Violent acts and injurious outcomes in married couples: Methodological issues in the National Survey of Families and Households. In P. B. Bart & E. G. Moran (Eds.), Violence against women: The bloody footprints (pp. 240–251). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burke, P. J., Stets, J. E., & Pirog-Good, M. A. (1988). Gender identity, self-esteem, and physical and sexual abuse in dating relationships. Social Psychology Quarterly, 51(3), 272–285.

    Google Scholar 

  • Butler, J. (1990). Gender trouble: Feminism and the subversion of identity. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buzawa, E., & Hotaling, G. (2000). The police response to domestic violence calls for assistance in three Massachusetts towns: Final report. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.

    Google Scholar 

  • Connell, R. W. (1995). Masculinities. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Currie, D. H. (1998). Violent men or violent women: Whose definition counts? In R. K. Bergen (Ed.), Issues in intimate violence (pp. 97–111). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dasgupta, S. D. (2002). A framework for understanding women’s use of nonlethal violence in intimate heterosexual relationships. Violence Against Women, 8, 1364–1389.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, K. E., & Frieze, I. H. (2000). Research on stalking: What do we know and where do we go? Violence and Victims, 15, 473–487.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Deaux, K., & Major, B. (1990). A social-psychological model of gender. In D. L. Rhode (Ed.), Theoretical Perspectives on Sexual Difference (pp. 89–99). London: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dobash, R. E., & Dobash, R. P. (1998). Violent men and violent contexts. In R. E. Dobash & R. P. Dobash (Eds.), Rethinking violence against women (pp. 141–168). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dobash, R. P., Dobash, R. E., Wilson, M., & Daly, M. (1992). The myth of sexual symmetry in marital violence. Social Problems, 39, 71–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, D. G. (1994). Patriarchy and wife assault: The ecological fallacy. Violence and Victims, 9, 167–182.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, D. G., & Golant, S. K. (1995). The batterer: A psychological profile. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fagot, B., Hagan, R., Leinbach, M. B., & Kronsberg, S. (1985). Differential reactions to assertive and communicative acts of toddler boys and girls. Child Development, 56, 1499–1505.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Felson, R. B. (2002). Violence and gender reexamined. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, M., Weis, L., Addelston, J., & Marusza, J. (1997). (In)secure times: Constructing White working-class masculinities in the late 20th century. Gender and Society, 11, 52–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferree, M. M. (1990). Beyond separate spheres: Feminism and family research. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 866–884.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frieze, I. H. (2000). Violence in close relationships—Development of a Research area: Comment on Archer (2000). Psychological Bulletin, 126, 681–684.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frieze, I. H., Hymer, S., & Greenberg, M. S. (1987). Describing the crime victim: Psychological reactions to victimization. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 18, 299–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goffman, E. (1977). The arrangement between the sexes. Theory and Society, 4, 301–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenwood, G. L., Relf, M. V., Huang, B., Pollack, L. M., Canchola, J. A., & Catania, J. A. (2002). Battering victimization among a probability-based sample of men who have sex with men. American Journal of Public Health, 92(12), 1964–1969.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hearn, J. (1998). The violences of men: How men talk about and how agencies respond to men’s violence against women. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hochschild, A., & Machung, A. (1989). The second shift. New York: Avon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobsen, N. S., Gottman, J. M., Waltz, J., Rushe, R., Babcock, J., & Holzworth-Munroe, A. (1994). Affect, verbal content, and psychophysiology in the arguments of couples with a violent husband. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 62, 982–988.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, M. P. (1995). Patriarchal terrorism and common couple violence: Two forms of violence against women. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 283–295.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, M. P., & Ferraro, K. J. (2000). Research on domestic violence in the 1990s: Making distinctions. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62, 948–963.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalmuss, D. S., & Straus, M. A. (1990). Wife’s marital dependency and wife abuse. In M. A. Straus & R. J. Gelles (Eds.), Physical violence in American families: Risk factors and adaptations to violence in 8,145 families (pp. 369–382). New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction.

  • Kaukinen, C. (2004). Status compatibility, physical violence, and emotional abuse in intimate relationships. Journal of Marriage and Family, 66, 452–471.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirkwood, C. (1993). Leaving abusive partners. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurz, D. (1993). Physical assaults by husbands: A major social problem. In R. J. Gelles & D. R. Loseke (Eds.), Current controversies on family violence (pp. 88–103). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurz, D. (1995). For richer, for poorer: Mothers confront divorce. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Langhinrichsen-Rohling, J., Neidig, P., & Thorn, G. (1995). Violent marriages: Gender differences in levels of current violence and past abuse. Journal of Family Violence, 10, 159–176.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCaughey, M. (1997). Real knockouts: The physical feminism of women’s self-defense. New York: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrill, G. S. (1998). Understanding domestic violence among gay and bisexual men. In R. Bergen (Ed.), Issues in intimate violence (pp. 129–141). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Messerschmidt, J. (1993). Masculinities and crime: A critique and reconceptualization of theory. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Messner, M. A. (1998). The limits of the “male sex role”: An analysis of men’s liberation and men’s rights movements’ discourse. Gender and Society, 12, 255–276.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, S. L., & Simpson, S. S. (1991). Courtship violence and social control: Does gender matter? Law and Society Review, 25, 335–365.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ptacek, J. (1988). Why do men batter their wives? In K. Yllo & M. Bograd (Eds.), Feminist perspectives on wife abuse (pp. 133–157). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Renzetti, C. M. (1998). Violence and abuse in lesbian relationships: Theoretical and empirical issues. In R. Bergen (Ed.), Issues in intimate violence (pp. 117–127). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Risman, B. (1998). Gender vertigo: American families in transition. London: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salari, S. M., & Baldwin, B. (2002). Verbal, physical, and injurious aggression among intimate couples over time. Journal of Family Issues, 23, 523–550.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stacey, J., & Thorne, B. (1985). The missing feminist revolution in sociology. Social Problems, 32(4), 301–316.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stark, E., & Flitcraft, A. (1996). Women at risk: Domestic violence and women’s health. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinmetz, S. K. (1977–78). The battered husband syndrome. Victimology, 2, 499–509.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stets, J. E., & Straus. M. A. (1990). Gender differences in reporting marital violence and its medical and psychological consequences. In M. A. Straus & R. J. Gelles (Eds.), Physical violence in American families: Risk factors and adaptations to violence in 8,145 families (pp. 151–165). NJ: Transaction.

  • Straus, M. A. (1992). The conflict tactics scales and its critics: An evaluation and new data on validity and reliability. In M. A. Straus & R. J. Gelles (Eds.), Physical violence in American families: Risk factors and adaptations to violence in 8,145 families (pp. 49–73). NJ: Transaction.

  • Straus, M. A. (1993). Physical assaults by wives: A major social problem. In R. J. Gelles & D. R. Loseke (Eds.), Current controversies on family violence(pp. 67–87). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stuart, G. L., Moore, T. M., Ramsey, S. E., & Kahler, C. W. (2004). Hazardous drinking and relationship perpetration and victimization in women arrested for domestic violence. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 65, 46–57.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sugerman, D. B., & Frankel, S. L. (1996). Patriarchal ideology and wife-assault: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Family Violence, 11, 13–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. (2000). Extent, nature, and consequences of intimate partner violence: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

  • Totten, M. (2003). Girlfriend abuse as a form of masculinity construction among violent, marginal male youth. Men and Masculinities, 6, 70–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker, L. (1984). The battered woman syndrome. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender and Society, 1, 125–151.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, C. L. (1991). Case studies and the sociology of gender. In J. R. Feagin, A. M. Orum, & G. Sjoberg (Eds.), The case for the case study (pp. 224–243). Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Worcester, N. (2002). Women’s use of force: Complexities and challenges of taking the issue seriously. Violence Against Women, 8, 1390–1415.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yllo, K. (1993). Through a feminist lens: Gender, power, and violence. In R. Gelles & D. L. Loseke (Eds), Current controversies on family violence (pp. 47–62). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kristin L. Anderson.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Anderson, K.L. Theorizing Gender in Intimate Partner Violence Research. Sex Roles 52, 853–865 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-4204-x

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-4204-x

Keywords

Navigation