Intimate Partner Violence Theory

Unfortunately, the military is a society that does not encourage the reporting of mental health issues, reducing the chance of returning soldiers receiving treatment. Also, when a spouse attempts to report a case of intimate partner violence the call is received by the military police, not the civilian police force. This is an issue because, just as a soldier fears reporting mental health issues for fear of recourse, the spouse may have the same fear. A report of intimate partner violence may not result in jail time or discharge from the military, but it may result in decrease of rank and pay, as well as additional details; both resulting in additional stress and increased possibility of additional incidents; and not addressing the underlying

issue.
Theoretical Framework
Feminist Theory.

As can been seen when looking at the issue of intimate partner violence, both historically and more recent, much of intimate partner violence is gendered, meaning that men are normally the perpetrators of violence (Hattery and Smith 2017). For this reason, the feminist theory is one of the few middle range theories used to examine intimate partner violence (Hattery and Smith 2017). The assumption of the feminist theory is that patriarchy undergirds everything in human society and allows for the abuse and oppression of women through inequality of power and privilege (Hattery and Smith 2017). Patriarchy shapes individual power within the household, playing on culturally gendered norms and expectations, and institutional power, such as the criminal justice system; the main structures of society (Hattery and Smith 2017). For this reason, this theory focuses on the structural nature of the issue rather than the individual nature of intimate partner violence (Hattery and Smith 2017). Distribution of power allows male partners to abuse their partners and “get away” with it if the injury is not physically visible, or life threatening, it is not considered criminal. Most times the perpetrator of violence does is not prosecuted, whether it be underreporting or lack of follow-through by either the victim or the court system (Hattery and Smith 2017). Feminist theory proposes dismantling patriarchy, or at least the reform the way that intimate partner violence is handled by the court system through accountability (Hattery and Smith 2017). The largest flaw in the feminist theory is that it is said to not address “exceptions to the rule” which are cases where the female partner is the perpetrator; and fails to address violence seen in the LBGTQ community (Hattery and Smith 2017). The assertion that the feminist theory does not adequately explain violence in the LBGTQ community is short sighted. As with any heterosexual relationship, a homosexual relationship,

would experience the same distribution of power. Though this power is not derived through the sex of the individual, it is delegated by acquisition of gendered roles, and norms. This delegation of power can be applied to the military because it is a very gendered community, holding in highest regard gendered traits that are typically hyper-masculine. This hypermasculinity underlies the entire military culture, as the use of force or violence to attain a goal or solve a problem is not only expected but glorified. Cultured gender roles easily permeate all aspects of society, leaving the spouse vulnerable to force or violence when they are perceived as an enemy.
Does military service and the diagnosis, or probability, of posttraumatic stress disorder increase the instances of intimate partner violence. The following literature reviews reveal conflicting findings. Though most studies reveal that posttraumatic stress disorder attributed to military service strongly correlates to higher instances of intimate partner violence, others do not. Intimate partner violence as well as posttraumatic stress disorder are complex issues which cannot be predicted accurately in every situation.
Literature Review
Recent Studies Overview. Christopher Bradly conducted a study in 2007 with hopes of proving three hypothesizes: 1. Veterans will be more likely than non-veterans to use violence as conflict resolution tactic in their marriage, 2. Veterans who were involved in combat will be more likely to engage in acts of domestic violence than both non-combat veterans and non-veterans, 3. The presence of stress in a relationship will increase the likelihood of a couple to engage in domestic violence (2007). Bradly reviewed the data from the National Survey of Families and Households, a broad base survey, the data set was restricted to 5,418 veteran status heterosexual couples which had cohabitated for at least one year (Bradly 2007). The theoretical framework for this study was the Cultural Spillover Theory. This theory is a branch of the Feminist Theory and proposes that the more that a given culture endorses the use of violence to attain socially approved ends, the more likely it is that the use of violence will spill-over into other aspects of life where violence is less socially approved (Bradley 2007). The military is perfect for the application of this theory because it is a unique subculture that praises the use of violence to attain socially acceptable outcomes. Unfortunately, this study did not highlight the occurrence of posttraumatic stress disorder, though statistics state that more than half of all veterans suffer from it. Posttraumatic stress disorder affects individuals differently depending on several factors ranging from treatment or lack thereof, marital status, even sex. In a 2012 study, researchers set out to evaluate the affect that exposure to combat had on mental health and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Second phase data from a cohort study of 4986 UK Armed forces personnel (n =432 women, n =4554 men), gathered through postal questionnaire, was used to examine gender differences in response to combat exposure between service members. The measures analyzed were: “risk to self”, “trauma to others”, and “appraisal of deployment”. Researchers aimed to evaluate the severity of these measures on symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, common mental disorder, and hazardous alcohol abuse (Woodhead et al. Hatch 2012). Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder have stronger associations with anger, hostility, and intimate partner violence than civilians suffering with posttraumatic stress disorder (Miles et al. 2016). Aggression is a common element of posttraumatic stress disorder. Emotion dysregulation and impulsive aggression often present in individuals suffering with posttraumatic stress disorder; and is the primary type of aggression seen disorder (Miles et al. 2016).