Intimate Partner Violence: A Dyadic Examination of Self-Differentiation and Responsive Caregiving

Objective: The focus of the current research was on the mutual contribution of spouses to intimate partner violence (IPV). Based on Bowen's family systems theory, which has received little attention in the field of domestic violence, we examined the associations between self-differentiation and IPV while considering the mediating role of responsive spousal caregiving in these associations. Background: This study addresses a gap in the literature by applying Bowen's theory to examine the interplay between individual self-differentiation and responsive caregiving in the context of IPV perpetration. Method: Participants comprised married couples who were drawn from both the general population (N = 84) and from agency services (N = 56) throughout Israel. Husbands and wives completed self-report measures of self-differentiation, responsive caregiving, physical assault, and psychological aggression. Variables were tested using the actor–partner interdependence model (APIM). Results: Dyadic mediation analysis revealed mediation routes affecting both husbands' and wives' perpetration of physical assault and psychological aggression: The higher the husbands' self-differentiation, the higher their responsive caregiving which, in turn, was negatively linked to their wives' psychological aggression toward them. The analysis also revealed a mediating role for the wives' responsive caregiving: The higher the husbands' self-differentiation, the higher their wives' responsive caregiving which, in turn, was negatively linked to their own and their husbands' perpetration of physical assault and psychological aggression toward their spouses. Conclusions: The study's findings show both spouses' interdependent contributions and each individual's level of self-differentiation in understanding the occurrence of IPV. They also point to the impact of sampling considerations and inclusion criteria in the context of IPV research. Finally, on the basis of the findings, interventions targeting IPV might benefit from addressing partners' relational patterns and the degree to which each partner can maintain a sense of self within the relationship.