Caroline M. Clements

Coping with domestic violence: Control attributions, dysphoria, and hopelessness

We investigated the influence of control judgments and coping style on emotional reactions to domestic violence utilizing the framework of hopelessness theory. We assessed abuse severity, control attributions, coping, dysphoric symptoms, and hopelessness in 70 battered women recruited from 12 domestic violence agencies. Respondents reported dysphoria but not hopelessness. Increased reports of dysphoria were associated with higher levels of self-blame and avoidance coping and lower levels of problem-focused coping. Increased problem-focused coping was associated with decreased hopelessness. Perceived control over current abuse was not related to dysphoria. High expectations for control over future events were associated with decreased dysphoria. We discuss our results in terms of their application to attributional accounts of emotional reactions to battering.

Dysphoria and Hopelessness Following Battering: The Role of Perceived Control, Coping, and Self-Esteem

Coping, perceived control, dysphoria, hopelessness, and self-esteem in a sample of 100 battered women were assessed. Participants reported dysphoria and low self-esteem, but not hopelessness. High perceived control over current abuse and greater use of drugs, behavioral disengagement, denial, and self-blame as coping mechanisms were associated with increased dysphoria and low self-esteem. High expectations for control over future abuse were associated with decreased dysphoria and hopelessness and increased self-esteem. After controlling for the effects of abuse severity and low self-esteem, self-blame was a unique contributor to dysphoria and high expectations for control of future abuse were unique contributors to hopelessness. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for clinical intervention with battered women.

Methodological issues in assessing psychological adjustment in child witnesses of intimate partner violence

This review summarizes a growing number of methodological concerns emerging from research on child witnesses of intimate partner violence (IPV). A brief summary of various psychological, biological, and cognitive impairments associated with witnessing IPV is presented. Directions for future research in this area are explored with particular attention paid to experimental design. Advantages and disadvantages of retrospective, cross-sectional, and longitudinal designs are evaluated. Suggested improvements include the use of multiple informants, behavioral observations, and prospective, longitudinal assessment.

Perceived Control and Emotional Status in Abusive College Student Relationships An Exploration of Gender Differences

The authors assessed perceived control, dysphoria, hopelessness, self-esteem, and optimism in 280 college students involved in abusive and nonabusive relationships. Women reported higher levels of dysphoria and lower levels of self-esteem and optimism than men. Women in abusive relationships reported more psychological symptoms than men in abusive relationships. After controlling for gender differences in emotional status, participants in abusive relationships showed more psychological symptoms than those in nonabusive relationships. Women showed lower perceived control of relationship conflicts than men. Men experiencing high levels of abuse reported higher perceived control of relationship conflict than females experiencing low levels of abuse. Perceived control was affected more by gender than emotional status, abuse level, and gender-affected emotional status. The authors discuss the results in terms of their implications for future investigations of emotional reactions to abuse.

Deliberate Self‐Harm and Alcohol Involvement in College‐Aged Females: A Controlled Comparison in a Nonclinical Sample

Individuals who engage in deliberate self-harm (DSH) report using other problematic coping mechanisms. One potential problematic coping mechanism is alcohol consumption. Research on alcohol involvement and deliberate self-harm is conflicting. This study compared individuals who have engaged in deliberate self-harm to controls on a range of alcohol measures. Five hundred females completed questionnaires assessing deliberate self-harm and alcohol involvement. Controlling for differences in psychopathology and impulsivity, the DSH group did not differ from the controls relative to quantity and frequency of alcohol use but did differ relative to negative consequences, risky behaviors, and alcohol expectancies. The authors discuss mechanisms that account for increased negative consequences and expectancies of alcohol consumption in the absence of differences in quantity and frequency, as well as the clinical importance of assessing a broad spectrum of alcohol involvement in the DSH population.

Does Acknowledgment as an Assault Victim Impact Postassault Psychological Symptoms and Coping

Psychological symptoms, abuse characteristics, abuse disability, and coping were assessed in college women who either did or did not acknowledge victim status relative to rape or intimate partner violence. Women were asked directly whether they had experienced intimate partner violence or rape. They also completed the Conflicts Tactic Scale (CTS) and the Sexual Experience Survey (SES). Participants were then classified into groups depending upon whether their answer, when directly asked, was consistent with their self-report on the CTS or SES. Overall, women who met the experiential criteria for either assault, but who did not acknowledge victimization, reported greater disability, more psychological symptoms, and impaired coping. This effect was particularly strong for the rape groups, where those who did not acknowledge victimization reported far more psychological distress, disability, and impaired coping than controls and other victim groups. The authors discuss the results in terms of their methodological implications for studies of assault victims and in terms of the clinical implications for victim identification and treatment.

Children’s exposure to intimate partner violence: Relations between parent-child concordance and children’s adjustment

The current study examined the extent to which seventy-five 5- to 13-year-old children and their mothers agreed about whether children had been exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) and the association between parent–child agreement and children’s psychological adjustment. One type of disagreement (i.e., parents failed to report IPV exposure that children reported) was associated with children’s perceptions of less positive family relationships. Parents of these children, however, reported fewer child adjustment problems than did parents who agreed with their children about children’s IPV exposure. The findings suggest the importance of obtaining children’s reports of their own exposure to IPV in addition to parental reports. Moreover, parent–child concordance with respect to children’s IPV exposure may be an important variable to examine in understanding variations in children’s adjustment.

Dating violence among high school students in southeastern North Carolina.

Adolescents are a high-risk group for dating violence. Using the Youth Risk Behavior Survey data, this study examined the associations among dating violence (including physical dating violence [PDV] and sexual dating violence [SDV]) and selected health risk behaviors among 375 and 372 high school students, in 2005 and 2007, respectively, in southeastern North Carolina. The findings indicate PDV increased slightly from 2005 (11.6%) to 2007 (12.5%), while SDV remained approximately the same (10.4% in 2005 and 10.3% in 2007). PDV was strongly associated with SDV among high school students in 2005 and 2007. Significant associations also exist among dating violence and sexual behavior, substance use, violence, psychological health, and unhealthy weight control. School nurses should be actively involved in promoting healthy lifestyles and healthy choices among high school students through interdisciplinary efforts with parents, teachers, school districts, and communities.

Racial Tensions and School Crime

This article uses data on school crime and other characteristics from a study of U.S. public schools to contribute to our knowledge about the extent and correlates of school violence and property crime. Following a brief review of the literature, the authors describe their efforts to examine the link between racial tensions and school crime. Relying on the macro version of general strain theory (GST) developed by Agnew and racial contact/threat perspectives on school race relations, a more specific purpose for their article is to determine the extent to which school-based crime is at least a partial function of extant racial tensions in schools. Analyses of violent and property-related incidents across a weighted sample of 1,936 middle and high schools indicate that racial tensions is a significant, positive correlate of both types of school crime, net of other school climate, organizational, and demographic characteristics. They discuss these findings and describe directions for future research with these data.

Sexual behaviors and drinking patterns among middle school and high school students in southeastern North Carolina

Considering that current trends in sexual behavior and alcohol use among adolescents pose a significant public health risk, more research is needed in this area. Using a cross-sectional design, this study examined sex and alcohol behaviors among middle school and high school students in southeastern North Carolina. The findings suggested that there were strong associations between overall drinking patterns and sexual behaviors. Further analyses examined the effect of several demographic and behavioral factors on sexual experience and condom use for both middle and high school students. Alcohol, race, and age were significant determinants of sexual experience for all students while gender was significant for middle school students. None of the measured factors, including AIDS education, significantly increased condom use among sexually active students. The results suggested that sexuality and alcohol education methods and content should be reevaluated and should begin in or before middle school.