Intimate partner violence and cognitive aspects of the perpetrator

Introduction Violence against women, committed by an intimate partner, is a serious public health problem. On an international scope it has been researched the relation between intimate partner violence and cognitive aspects of aggressors. Objective To investigate if couples use violence to resolve conflicts and if there are differences in cognitive aspects of men in couples where there is intimate partner violence when compared to couples who have a harmonious relationship. Method The Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2) was used. The cognitive aspects of male partners was investigated by Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III), certain factors such as verbal and executive functions, to compare the testing results of men who have committed violence against their partners with those who did not. Results Thirty-one couples with intimate partner violence police reports and 31 couples who, according to their own perceptions, said to maintain harmonious marital relationship. The comparisons between groups allowed observing that even among couples who judge to be in a peaceful relationship, violent behaviors were detected. These behaviors tend to be naturalized and not considered as violence by partners. In regard to men's cognitive aspects, especially those related to WAIS-III verbal skills and impulse control, they possibly exert some influence to intimate partner violence. Conclusion The possible influence of cognitive aspects of the perpetrator on violence against women could be reduced through long-term actions, especially those concerned to early education, since this is the appropriate way to culturally change and to develop satisfactory social and cognitive skills of the individual.