Cinquegrana, Vincenza (2017) Risk Recognition and Risk Perception in female victims of Intimate Partner Violence. [Tesi di dottorato]

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Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV), which includes any form of physical, psychological, or sexual violence, is a well-known problem with great consequences. Beyond the risk factors known in the literature, a number of studies focused on situational risk recognition (e.g. a violent behaviour in intimate relationship), on risk perception for future victimization and on factors that may impair these abilities. In terms of primary prevention, this thesis aimed to investigate the recognition of early signals of abuse in intimate relationships and its psycho-physiological correlates. Situational risk recognition has received considerable attention in the sexual assault literature, but has yet to be studied in interpersonal violence literature. So, in the first study of this thesis, situational risk recognition was examined in relation to the psychological and physical victimization in a representative sample of Italian female students. A total of 232 female students read a series of written scenarios depicting mostly psychologically aggressive encounters between heterosexual dating partners and made repeated judgments about the interactions. So, the first objective of this study was to determine retrospectively whether female victims of psychological and physical forms of intimate partner violence (IPV) displayed deficits in situational risk recognition compared to those who did not have. Results suggested that the history of psychological forms of IPV was associated with a deficient risk recognition ability, such that victims of psychological IPV were less likely to recognize the violent behaviours involved in the scenario vignette compared to no victims. The second objective of this study was to determine which factors, within an ecological approach to the study of IPV, may predict deficits in situational risk recognition in violent dating encounters. Results from this study suggested that the previous violence (physical and psychological) in intimate relationships, the supportive attitudes toward IPV and stereotypical beliefs about domestic violence predicted deficits in risk recognition. The second study mainly aimed to examine the physiological correlates of situational risk recognition in dating violent situations in young women. Victims and non-victims of psychological abuse read to a hypothetical date interaction and were asked to indicate their judgments about the interactions. Subjective and objective (physiological) measures of responding as well as a measure of risk recognition in reaction to the interactions were analyzed in a sample of 30 participants to evaluate both between and within-subjects’ differences. Results showed that, relative to non-victims, victims of psychological abuse displayed significant differences in objective measures of physiological reactivity that is victims displayed a decreased heart rate activity to a portion of the hypothetical interaction. This was the first attempt to study the relationship between the recognition of the risk in intimate partner violence and the physiological responses. Overall, the results indicated that altered physiological responding to relevant threat cues, as for non-victims, may be related to individuals’ ability to identify and react to threatening situations of psychological violence. In terms of secondary prevention of Intimate Partner violence, widely studied by psychologist and social workers are risk perceptions of recurrence of women battered. These perceptions represent components of most theories of health behaviour, but the relationship between these perceptions and protective behaviour over time such as leaving the abusive partner is unclear. In addition, limited research has investigated factors that are associated with perceived risk within an ecological approach. So, a longitudinal study on women battered was conducted (N=83) in order to understand firstly the factors that are associated with women battered’ risk perceptions and secondly which factors may be predictive of the stay/leave decision of the women after 12 months. Results indicated that among all factors considered at individual, interpersonal and system levels, depression, time of relationship and victim’s employment were greater predictors of a high risk perception more than previous history of abuse as well as of a formal and informal support. Further, high level of perceived personal risk predicted the women’s behaviour to leave their abusive partner after 12 months. Gratitude toward (ex) partner, instead, was found to be a risk factor toward stay/leave decision. Results are discussed as they may inform interventions preventing revictimization in IPV.

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