Examining Partner and Child Abuse: Are We Ready for a More Integrated Approach to Family Violence?

A framework for describing the large number of similar predictors of partner and child abuse is provided, some potentially interesting dyadic differences are identified, and some directions for future research and treatment are suggested.

Abstract

Research and treatment for partner abuse and child abuse are relatively distinct enterprises, yet when the theoretical and research literatures related to these two forms of family violence are examined together, the likelihood of meaningful associations is strikingly apparent. Partner abuse and child abuse co-occur more often than one might expect by chance, and in the context of overlapping theories and risk factors, this suggests that a more integrated conceptualization might be fruitful. We summarize and provide a framework for describing the large number of similar predictors of partner and child abuse, identify some potentially interesting dyadic differences, comment on how our research methodologies could address an integrated area of family violence, and suggest some directions for future research and treatment.