A clinical typology of interparental violence in disputed-custody divorces

From two studies of high-conflict divorcing families in child custody disputes, four characteristic profiles of interparental violence were identified: ongoing or episodic battering by males, female-initiated violence, interactive violence controlled by males, and violence engendered by separation or postdivorce trauma. A fifth profile, culled from a subsample of members of the first two groups, was characterized by psychotic and paranoid reactions.