When is violence honorable? Honor attitudes and aggression

Abstract

Men who adhere to an honor code are more likely to view aggression as an appropriate response to provocations. Previous research typically examines aggression in general, but not all adversaries are the same. This research examines whether honor attitudes have as strong of a role in aggression against women and family members as it does in aggression between unrelated men. Our analyses use original survey data from male inmates and community members (N = 723) who reported about their aggression towards female partners, acquaintances, and strangers. Respondents described their recent verbal and violent disputes, including their adversary's gender and social relationship. Results suggest that men with stronger honor attitudes are more likely to engage in violence and verbal aggression against strangers and familiar (but non-intimate) adversaries, and more likely to use verbal aggression against female partners but are no more likely to use violence against them. Our incident analysis disentangles the effects of adversary gender and social relationship, and it suggests that honor attitudes have a weaker relationship with aggression against women and family members than with aggression against unrelated men. Our research clarifies the scope of honor attitudes by identifying the types of aggression they best explain.