Subjects
Marital violence -- United States, Intimate partner violence -- United States, Violence -- Social aspects, Firearms and crime
Abstract
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a social problem and public health issue in the United States that various states and the federal government have taken special precautions to alleviate. Two studies were conducted to address the problem. Study 1 examined archival data from a study that administered the Revised Conflict Tactic Scale to students taking psychology courses at Portland State University. The majority of students within the sample perpetrated psychological aggression but not physical assault. It was inconclusive whether more male than female college students perpetrated in physical assault against their partners. Lastly, less than 1% of students had ever physically assaulted their partner using a weapon. In study 2, using research from scientific literature databases, I conducted a review of studies that examined whether there is a difference in the prevalence of IPV perpetration between people who possess a firearm and those who do not, as well as whether gun repossession laws have proven to be effective in reducing IPV. The review yielded mixed findings for both questions. There is a consensus that gun confiscation laws are effective at preventing IPV among people with restraining orders, but not those with domestic violence misdemeanor convictions. Implications for both studies of social policy and future research on use of guns in perpetrating IPV are discussed.
DOI
10.15760/mcnair.2016.4
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/17451
Recommended Citation
Cummings, Caroline D.
(2016)
"Prevalence and Use of Guns in Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence,"
PSU McNair Scholars Online Journal:
Vol. 10:
Iss.
1, Article 5.
https://doi.org/10.15760/mcnair.2016.4