Julia C. Babcock

Affect, Verbal Content, and Psychophysiology in the Arguments of Couples with a Violent Husband.

The purpose of this investigation was to study the affect, psychophysiology, and violent content of arguments in couples with a violent husband. On the basis of self-reports of violent arguments, there were no wife behaviors that successfully suppressed husband violence once it began; moreover, husband violence escalated in response to nonviolent as well as violent wife behaviors, whereas wife violence escalated only in reaction to husband violence or emotional abuse. Only wives were fearful during violent and nonviolent arguments. The observational coding of nonviolent arguments in the laboratory revealed that both battering husbands and their wives (DV) were angrier than their maritally distressed but nonviolent (DNV) counterparts. As predicted, on the more provocative anger codes, only DV men differed from their DNV counterparts. However, DV wives were as verbally aggressive toward their husbands as DV husbands were toward their wives. Language: en

What Situations Induce Intimate Partner Violence? A Reliability and Validity Study of the Proximal Antecedents to Violent Episodes (PAVE) Scale

The current study investigated the reliability of a new self-report questionnaire assessing stimuli that would likely elicit intimate partner violence. The Proximal Antecedents to Violent Episodes (PAVE) scale is a 30-item, Likert-type measure designed to assess situations that would reportedly precede the use of violence. In Study 1, an exploratory factor analysis on a clinical sample revealed 3 factors: Violence to Control, Violence Out of Jealousy, and Violence Following Verbal Abuse. In Study 2, the factor structure was replicated on a community sample using confirmatory factor analysis. In both studies, different types of batterers, on the basis of A. Holtzworth-Munroe and G. L. Stuarts (1994) typology, scored differently on the 3 factors in ways consistent with theory. Therefore, the PAVE shows promise as a reliable and valid tool to help to understand the context and function of intimate partner violence.

Proactive and Reactive Violence among Intimate Partner Violent Men Diagnosed with Antisocial and Borderline Personality Disorder

Personality disorder features have been an important basis of many batterer typologies (Babcock et al. J Fam Violence 15:391–409, 2000; Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart Psychol Bull 116:476–497, 1994), most notably Antisocial and Borderline Personality Disorders. Aggression that partner violent men commit has also been found to be heterogeneous, motivated by the need to control (proactive) or enacted out of emotion (reactive). In the present study, men who were physically abusive towards their female partner (N = 124 couples) were administered the SCID-II diagnostic interview for Antisocial (ASPD) and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). It was hypothesized that partner violent men diagnosed with ASPD would show highest levels of proactive violence whereas men diagnosed with BPD (alone or comorbidly with ASPD) were expected to be reactively violent. Results suggest that violence perpetrated by men with different personality disorders differs in its function. Within the context of intimate relationships, BPD/comorbid men appear to use violence more reactively, while ASPD men tend to use violence both proactively and reactively. Implications for treatment are discussed.

Partner Assaultive Men and the Stages and Processes of Change

Researchers have recently suggested that the Transtheoretical Model of behavior change (TTM; Prochaska, J. O. DiClemente, C. C., and Norcross, J. C., 1992, Am. Psychol. 47: 1102–1114) might help in understanding the mechanisms through which partner assaultive men attempt to change their abusive behavior. In the present study, we present data from 2 psychometrically sound scales designed to assess the stages and processes of change in a cross-sectional sample of 250 men attending 2 batterers intervention and prevention programs: the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment Scale for Domestic Violence (URICA-DV; Levesque, D. A., Gelles, R. J., and Velicer, W. F., 2000, Cog. Therapy Res. 24: 175–200), which assesses movement through the stages of change, and the Processes of Change Scale (POC), developed by the authors to assess self-reported usage of behavior change processes. Cross-validated cluster analyses indicated a three-cluster solution based upon URICA-DV scores: Immotive, Unprepared Action, and Preparticipation. Results indicated that individuals in more advanced stages of change reported using more behavior change processes, although this did not appear to result from being in treatment for a longer period of time. These data are interpreted in light of recent data indicating relatively small effect sizes for batterers treatment programs and how assessment of the stages and processes of change might assist in matching men to different levels of treatment.

Psychophysiological profiles of batterers: Autonomic emotional reactivity as it predicts the antisocial spectrum of behavior among intimate partner abusers

On the basis of studies finding heart rate deceleration among severely violent (SV) batterers (J. M. Gottman et al., 1995) and unsuccessful psychopaths (S. S. Ishikawa, A. Raine, T. Lencz, S. Bihrle, & L. Lacasse, 2001), this study compares the physiological reactivity of SV batterers (n=35) with low-level violent (LLV) batterers (n=37) and nonviolent men (n=21) during 2 laboratory tasks. Mens heart rate and skin conductance level were recorded during baseline, a conflict discussion, and a standardized anger induction. Results suggest that autonomic hyporeactivity is a risk marker for antisocial features among SV men, whereas autonomic hyperreactivity is a risk marker among LLV men. Psychophysiological responding appears to be a stronger correlate of general antisocial behavior than of intimate partner abuse.

The Effects of Hormonal Gender Affirmation Treatment on Mental Health in Female-to-Male Transsexuals

Hormonal interventions are an often-sought option for transgender individuals seeking to medically transition to an authentic gender. Current literature stresses that the effects and associated risks of hormone regimens should be monitored and well understood by health care providers (Feldman & Bockting, 2003). However, the positive psychological effects following hormone replacement therapy as a gender affirming treatment have not been adequately researched. This study examined the relationship of hormone replacement therapy, specifically testosterone, with various mental health outcomes in an Internet sample of more than 400 self-identified female-to-male transsexuals. Results of the study indicate that female-to-male transsexuals who receive testosterone have lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, and higher levels of social support and health related quality of life. Testosterone use was not related to problems with drugs, alcohol, or suicidality. Overall findings provide clear evidence that HRT is associated with improved mental health outcomes in female-to-male transsexuals.

Battering and the Male Rejection of Influence from Women

The propensity of men to reject influence from women and individual differences in this tendency were examined in the present report as potentially related to two types of domestically violent men. We operationalized rejection of influence in sequential analyses of emotional behavior during a 15 min marital interaction. In our previous research, we identified two types of batterers: Type-1, whose heart rates decelerated below baseline during the marital interaction; and Type-2, whose heart rates accelerated. We found that only Type-1 husbands reject any and all influence from their wives. We postulate that Type-1 batterers reject influence as a means of maintaining power and control. Aggr. Behav. 23:375–388, 1997.

Intimate partner abuse and PTSD symptomatology: Examining mediators and moderators of the abuse-trauma link

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked to intimate partner abuse, physiological reactivity, and social support. The authors used structural equation modeling to test social support as a moderator and psychophysiological reactivity and anger as mediators of the relation between abuse and traumatic symptoms among a sample of women reporting psychological abuse, including women reporting both physical violence and no physical violence. Both physical and psychological abuse were related to PTSD symptoms. Whereas physical and psychological abuse were highly correlated, psychological abuse did not predict PTSD symptomatology over and above the effect due to physical assault. Psychophysiological reactivity and anger and fear displayed during an argument with the partner did not mediate the abuse?trauma link. Social support moderated the relation between psychological abuse and PTSD symptomatology.

Articulated Thoughts of Intimate Partner Abusive Men during Anger Arousal: Correlates with Personality Disorder Features

This study extends Eckhardt et al. (Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66:259–269, 1998) research on cognitive correlates of anger arousal among intimate partner abusers (IPA; n = 130), distressed/nonviolent (DNV; n = 27), and satisfied/nonviolent men (SNV; n = 21) during a standardized anger induction task by examining variables thought to differentiate batterers. Variables pertinent to the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (Psychological Bulletin, 116:476–497, 1994) typology—borderline and antisocial personality, psychopathy, general violence, and partner violence—were correlated to articulated cognitive distortions. Since between group comparisons were not significant, articulated anger was correlated with antisocial, borderline, and psychopathic features. Borderline personality features correlated positively with articulations reflecting jealousy. Articulated themes were more consistently related to psychopathology than to violence, suggesting that tailoring treatments to personality features of clients may prove fruitful.

Attachment as a Moderator Between Intimate Partner Violence and PTSD Symptoms

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms have been linked to traumatic experiences, including intimate partner violence. However, not all battered women develop PTSD symptoms. The current study tests attachment style as a moderator in the abuse–trauma link among a community sample women in violent and non-violent relationships. Both attachment anxiety and dependency were found to moderate the relation between intimate partner violence and PTSD symptoms. However, attachment closeness did not function as a moderator. Differences in attachment may help to explain why certain victims of domestic abuse may be more susceptible to experiencing PTSD symptoms. Clinically, these findings may aid in the prediction and prevention of PTSD symptoms in women victimized by intimate partner abuse.