Elucidating Intimate Partner Violence Rate Disparities Between Same- and Opposite-Sex Couples: A Demographic Approach

Area of Science:

• Criminology
• Sociology
• Public Health

Background:

• Intimate partner violence (IPV) rates are often higher in same-sex relationships compared to opposite-sex relationships.
• Young adults exhibit higher rates of IPV perpetration across all sexual orientations.
• Demographic shifts, including increased

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the extent to which population age structure differences contribute to observed IPV rate disparities between same-sex and opposite-sex couples.
• To apply demographic methods to explain group differences in offending rates.

Main Methods:

• Direct age standardization and decomposition techniques were applied.
• Data were analyzed from the National Incident-Based Reporting System and the American Community Survey.
• Analysis included 2,584 same-sex male, 4,029 same-sex female, and 284,614 opposite-sex physical IPV incidents.

Main Results:

• Direct standardization indicated that IPV rates for same-sex male and female households would be 11.8% and 27.3% lower, respectively, if they shared the age structure of opposite-sex households.
• Decomposition analysis revealed that age structure differences account for 48% of the elevated IPV rates in same-sex male households and 44% in same-sex female households compared to opposite-sex households.

Conclusions:

• Population age structure is a significant factor explaining higher IPV rates in same-sex relationships.
• Demographic methods effectively elucidate group differences in offending rates.
• Prevention and intervention strategies should target young adults, and future research should consider age structure in sexual and gender minority populations.