Partner Violence

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiii

   PDF

2. Gender Differences in Aggressive Tendencies

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 1-33

3. Dominance and Control

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 35-46

4. Partner Violence as a Rational Choice

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 47-60

5. Partner Violence as Planned Behavior

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 61-67

6. The Process Leading to Partner Violence

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 69-96

7. Partner Conflict Dynamics Throughout Relationship Periods

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 97-110

8. Partner Conflict Dynamics

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 111-136

9. Observation Units of Partner Violence

   • Zeev Winstok

   Pages 137-152

10. Gender Differences in Escalatory Intentions

    • Zeev Winstok

    Pages 153-159

11. Observations About the Third Paradigm

    • Zeev Winstok

    Pages 161-164

12. Back Matter

    Pages 165-179

    PDF

As domestic violence continues to be a focus of social and psychological concern, two basic contradictory viewpoints endure: one rooted in male power dynamics, the other maintaining that both genders use and are victimized by violence. Although both sides have their merits, neither has adequately answered the crucial question: What causes conflict to escalate into violence?

Partner Violence: A New Paradigm for Understanding Conflict Escalation adds a third, escalation-focused paradigm to the debate, addressing the limitations of the two dominant perspectives in a comprehensive scholarly approach. This concise yet comprehensive volume examines key gender- and non-gender-related violence issues and sets out a compelling behavioral argument that using violence to control others is a rational choice. Its theoretical and empirical foundations support an in-depth study of escalating aggression in violent relationships, both throughout periods of chronic conflict and in single violent episodes. This analysis promotes a broader and deeper understanding of partner violence, suitable to developing more finely targeted, effective, and lasting interventions.

Among the key topics featured are:  Gender differences in aggressive tendencies. Dominance, control, and violence. Partner violence as planned behavior. The process leading to partner violence. Partner conflict dynamics throughout relationship periods and within conflicts. Gender differences in escalatory intentions.

Partner Violence is an important volume for researchers, graduate students, and clinicians/professionals across various disciplines, including personality and social psychology, criminology, public health, clinical psychology, sociology, and social work.

• Conflict escalation
• Domestic violence
• Dominance and control
• Dynamics of partner conflicts
• Family violence
• Gender differences in perpetration and victimization
• Gender paradigm anomaly
• Gender symmetry
• Hostile attribution
• Intended violence
• Interpersonal conflict
• Partner aggression
• Partner violence
• Partner violence observation units
• Physical violence
• Planned behavior
• Psychological violence
• Relationship duration and partner violence
• Relationship stages and partner violence
• Social information processing
• Violence against women
• Violence as a rational choice

From the reviews:

“This book examines partner violence, especially in terms of escalatory partner conflict, a new paradigm that covers both gender-related and non gender-related violence issues. … The book successfully presents a new paradigm to help understand domestic violence, adding to the traditional paradigms citing male power dynamics and that both genders can use violence and be victims. This will be an invaluable addition to the library of those who address domestic violence, for clinicians, researchers, and those involved in public policy.” (Gary B. Kaniuk, Doody's Book Reviews, March, 2013)

• University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

  Zeev Winstok

Zeev Winstok, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Social Welfare & Health Sciences and a Research Fellow at the Center for the Study of Society, at the University of Haifa, Israel. His research focuses on a wide range of family violence, including partner violence, children’s exposure to interparental violence and parents’ use of violence against their children. During the past decade, Professor Winstok won prestigious research grants, including a grant for a longitudinal study of the escalation of conflicts to violence among partners from the Israel Scientific Foundation, published dozens of articles in refereed journals in his field, such as Interpersonal Violence, Violence Against Women, and Aggressive Behavior and presented his work at numerous international conferences in his field.

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