Back to TTM ResultsPsychological and physical aggression in dating and married couples is not uncommon. Prevalence rates of intimate partner violence among married couples range anywhere from 7 - 18% for men’s self-report of perpetration and 7 - 25% for women’s self-report of perpetration in the past year (e.g., Brinkerhoff & Lupri, 1988; Grandin & Lupri, 1997; Sommer, 1994; Straus & Gelles, 1986). In engaged couples assessed one month before marriage, as many as 31% of males and 44% of females report being physically abusive towards their partners within the past year (O'Leary et al., 1989). Psychological aggression is even more common; as many as 75 to 98% of spouses report the occurrence of at least one act of psychological aggression within the past year (Lupri, Grandin, & Brinkerhoff, 1994; Testa & Leonard, 2001). Although the experience of at least one act of physical aggression is common, the frequency and severity of physical and psychological aggression are relatively low in most newlywed samples.
At the beginning of the study (just prior to marriage), 32 couples (16%) had experienced at least one act of physical aggression (e.g., pushing, shoving, or slapping their partner) in the previous 6 months. More than half (75.5%) of the couples reported the occurrence of at least one act of psychological aggression (e.g., yelling at, insulting, or threatening to hit their partner) in the previous 6 months. Regarding individual reports, 13.5% of husbands and 19.5% of wives had perpetrated at least one act of physical aggression against their partner, and 69.5% of husbands and 75.5% of wives had perpetrated at least one act of psychological aggression against their partner. However, the average number of acts of aggression in the previous six months was relatively low in this sample (Mean = 0.20 for physical and Mean = 1.25 for psychological aggression).