Theories of Family Violence

The Psychiatric Model of Family Violence
1. The psychiatric model tries to understand family violence by analyzing the offender’s personality traits and mental status. Some professionals also include individual characteristics of the victim in this approach. This model characterizes personality disorders, mental illness, and substance abuse as the primary causes of family violence.
2. The Psychopathology Theory
  1. The psychopathology theory is grounded on the concept that certain individuals suffer from mental illness, personality disorders, and other dysfunctions that cause them to engage in aggressive acts within the family. This mental disorder, or illness, causes the individual to react violently within the family.20 It is not surprising that this theory was first proposed by those in the medical profession.
  2. The problem with the psychopathology model is its failure to explain which personality traits are associated with family violence. In addition, focusing on mental illness as a cause of violence ignores the fact that many violent individuals are not considered mentally ill.
3. The Substance Abuse Theory
  1. The substance abuse theory accepts the proposition that drugs or alcohol cause or contribute to family violence. This theory is based on the concept that these substances impair judgment and lessen inhibitions and thereby allow violent acts to occur. Some authorities believe that these substances do not cause family violence. Rather, they are used as an excuse for violent acts
    1. no concrete evidence establishes that these substances directly cause family violence. In addition, this theory fails to explain why not everyone who uses alcohol or drugs engages in violent acts
The Social-Psychological Model of Family Violence
1. The social-psychological model analyzes external environmental factors that affect the family unit. Factors such as stress, family structure, the intergenerational transmission of violence, and family interactions are all considered as primary causes of family violence.
2. The Social Learning Theory
  1. The social learning theory is an integration of differential associations with differential reinforcements so that the people with whom one interacts are the reinforcers of behavior that results in learning both deviant and nondeviant behavior. The social learning process is accomplished by two important mechanisms: modeling and reinforcement. Modeling is an important tool in learning behavior. Children learn by watching and imitating others. This role-model situation results in children adopting the behavior they observe in adults, including aggressive acts. Reinforcement occurs when certain behavior is rewarded and other behavior is punished.
    1. The social learning theory has been criticized as failing to explain certain kinds of spontaneous acts of aggression within the family, such as a frustrated parent who suddenly slaps a crying child.
3. The Exchange Theory
  1. The exchange theory is based on the premise that persons act according to a system of rewards or punishments. The exchange theory argues that family violence is based on a determination of costs and rewards. Gelles accepted the basic premise of the exchange theory and modified it to apply to family violence situations. He entitled this approach the exchange/social control theory.
    1. As Gelles has stated, “To put it simply, people hit family members because they can.” Interaction within the family is based on a pursuit of rewards and an avoidance of costs or punishments. Family members resort to violence to obtain goals as long as what they achieve is outweighed by the cost of aggression. The absence of social controls over family relations increases the likelihood that family members will engage in violence. The privacy of the family unit and the subsequent low risk of intervention decrease the cost of violence, thereby allowing it to occur.
4. The Frustration-Aggression Theory
  1. The frustration-aggression theory is based on the premise that human beings display aggression toward objects that impede their achievement of certain goals.28 In a family situation, there are many instances in which parties attempt to obtain certain goals or objectives. Frustration may result when the attainment of those goals is blocked. Failure to attain desired goals can lead to aggression within the family by the frustrated party.
    1. This theory does not explain the complexities of modern society. All of us at one time or another become frustrated. However, we do not automatically react with aggressive actions. The socialization process teaches people how to react to frustration. This process varies from culture to culture and group to group, so that what is accepted as an appropriate response to frustration by one culture may not be condoned by another group.
5. The Ecological Theory
  1. The ecological theory is based on an analysis of the organism and the environment, the interacting systems in which family development occurs, and the environment in which the family resides. Garbarino established two conditions that must be present under this theory for child abuse to occur: The environment in which the family lives must accept the use of force against children, and the family must be isolated from supporting community services or systems.
    1. The ecological theory assumes that family violence occurs when the parent, child, and family are mismatched with the neighborhood and community. According to this theory, children who are disabled or otherwise below the expected norm in a society face the highest risk of abuse. The interaction between spouses having to deal with the stress of parenting a disabled child increases the tension within the family. The final aspect of this theory views the total environment and suggests that if no agencies are available to support or assist the family, then the risk of abuse is greatly increased.
6. The Sociobiology or Evolutionary Theory
  1. The sociobiology or evolutionary theory is based on the concept that parents display aggressive acts toward children who are not their own or do not have the potential to reproduce. This concept postulates that individuals behave in certain ways so as to increase their chances of reproducing
    1. The sociobiology or evolutionary theory assumes that parents will not emotionally attach or invest themselves to children with low reproductive potential.33 Under this theory, stepchildren or children with low reproductive potential, such as children with disabilities, are at a higher risk of abuse than normal, healthy children. Thus, the risk of abuse is higher where there is a lack of bonding between the child and the parent.
The Sociocultural Model of Family Violence
1. The Culture of Violence Theory
  1. Wolfgang and Ferracuti argue that certain subcultures within the United States accept values that justify the use of force.34 The culture of violence theory is based on the premise that violence is unevenly distributed within our society, and that violence is more prevalent in the lower socioeconomic sectors of society.35 These subcultures use force as a response more often than the general population. This theory assumes that violence is a learned response and reflects a socialization or acceptance of violence as appropriate behavior.
    1. One of the main limitations of this theory is that it does not explain how subcultural values originate or are modified. Furthermore, this theory limits the learning of violence to certain socioeconomic subcultures. However, violence portrayed in the media is received by all classes within our society.
      1. This approval of violence and aggression is primarily a male perspective. Males believe it is macho to be strong, assertive, and aggressive.36 As is discussed in later chapters, this view of violence and masculinity contributes to aggression toward women. Violence is an everyday part of our existence. Sporting events, children’s toys, cartoons, video games, movies, television, and the media’s graphic depiction of violence all contribute to our desensitization to the effects of violence and contribute to an attitude that aggressive behavior is rewarded and condoned by society.
      2. We as a society accept violence as part of our culture. It is nearly impossible to avoid. We would have to live in the mountains, refuse to purchase certain toys for our children, never read the local paper, and refrain from watching television to escape being inundated with our society’s violent and aggressive acts.
2. The Patriarchy Theory
  1. Dobash and Dobash have advanced the patriarchy theory to explain violence toward women. The patriarchy theory views society as dominated by males, with women in subordinate positions, treated by men as possessions and things.42 According to the feminist perspective, social and economic norms directly and indirectly support a patriarchal structure within our society. The patriarchy theory holds that laws and customs combine to uphold this difference in power between men and women and legitimize their different status. This approach views male domination as explaining the historical pattern of violence toward women throughout the ages
3. The General Systems Theory
  1. The general systems theory views the maintenance of violence as a result of the social system in which families live. It assumes that violence within the family is a result of a system rather than individual pathology of the family member.43 This family system operates to maintain, increase, or decrease levels of violence within the family. Straus proposes that a general system of family violence contain three elements: alternative courses of action, a method of feedback, and system goals.44 Under Straus’s approach, violence within the family has many causes. Whenever a family member engages in violence, there is or may be positive feedback because the violence produced the desired results. Finally, Straus points out that whenever violence occurs, family members who engage in these acts fulfill their own self-concept of being violent.
4. The Resource Theory
  1. The resource theory is based on the proposition that the one who controls resources, such as money, property, or prestige, is in the dominant position in a relationship.46 It holds that the use of violence within a relationship depends on the resources a family member controls. The more resources one commands, the more force or power he can muster. Because men have traditionally held higher-paying jobs with more prestige, they will have more power in relationships than women. Some authorities argue that the more resources available to the male, the more force he can use. With this abundance of power, however, there is less likelihood of his employing force. Those males who have no resources such as high-paying jobs or status tend to resort to violence more often as a way of controlling the spouse
5. The Social Conflict Theory
  1. The social conflict theory analyzes large-scale conflicts, marriages, and the communication process.45 It proposes that unacknowledged alienation and shame generate violence within the family. A theory of escalation is central to this concept and holds that escalation of conflict or violence occurs when anger and shame within a relationship are not acknowledged.
6. The sociocultural model of family violence focuses on the roles of men and women in our society as well as on the cultural attitudes toward women and the acceptance of violence as a cause of family violence. This is a macrolevel of analysis that focuses on the variables that cause violence.
Intergenerational Transmission of Violence
1. “Physical punishment of children is perhaps the most effective means of teaching violence, and eliminating it would be an important step in violence prevention.”
  1. The intergenerational transmission of violence theory asserts that violent behavior is learned within the family and bequeathed from one generation to the next. This theory holds that children who are victims of child abuse or who witness violent aggression by one spouse against the other will grow up and react to their children or spouses in the same manner. The childhood survivor of a violent family thus develops a predisposition toward violence in his or her own family. Therefore, so this theory holds, we have a never-ending chain of violence that is passed from one generation to the next.

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	Created by Belicia Mejia over 3 years ago