An overview of research on couple violence: What do we know about male batterers, their partners, and their children?

In this article, we review research findings on the problem of couple violence. We draw several conclusions based on a review of sociodemographic findings and research comparing violent and nonviolent men, violent and nonviolent couples, battered and nonbattered women, and children growing up in maritally violent homes and nonviolent homes. Specifically, risk factors for couple violence include young age, low socioeconomic status, minority group membership, and cohabitation. Relative to nonviolent men, batterers evidence more psychopathology, alcohol use, and anger, but poorer communication and problem-solving skills. Battered women are at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder and depression, and children of violent marriages are at risk for a range of negative psychological and behavioral outcomes. However, batterers, battered women, violent couples, and their children are not homogeneous groups. Rather, they vary along important dimensions (e.g., severity of violence, consequences of violence, psychopathology) that may have important clinical implications, such as designing treatment for different types of clients. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.