Dyadic Patterns of Intimate Partner Violence in Early Marriage

Research examining dyadic patterns of intimate partner violence (IPV) often focuses on static conceptions based on whether either the husband or wife has exhibited any violence. This study examined the dyadic patterns of IPV empirically and traced how these groups change over time.

Couples (N=634) were assessed with respect to IPV and relationship satisfaction at the time of marriage, and at their first and second anniversaries. Cluster analysis was conducted on Total Aggression, Differential Aggression, and the Aggression Ratio prior to marriage for couples with any violence.

This analysis revealed 5 clusters; Very High-Husband to Wife, (High:H>W); Very High-Wife to Husband (High-W>H); Low to Moderate, Husband to Wife (Low:H>W); Low to Moderate, Wife to Husband (Low-W>H); Low to Moderate, Both Aggressive (Low:H=W). The majority (57%) of the aggressive couples were classified in the gender asymmetric groups. Most asymmetric clusters became symmetric over time, but the High:H>W cluster became more asymmetric. By the 2^nd anniversary, all clusters were characterized by higher injuries experienced by wives than by husbands.

These results demonstrate that a considerable amount of IPV that is typically classified as "bidirectional" is gender asymmetric and that these asymmetric patterns tend to converge into more symmetric patterns over time.