Partner accounts of intimate violence: Towards a theoretical model

The purpose of this study is to provide a structural and contextual analysis of accounts of intimate violence given by cohabiting partners and to identify the dynamics of the interrelationships among the various categories of accounts. The purposive sample consisted of forty respondents (twenty couples) from Northern Israel who had reported at least one incident of violence during the year prior to the study. All respondents were interviewed using an in-depth semi-structured interview format. Thematic content analysis yielded three broad content categories of accounts: (1) what happened in the violent event; (2) why did it happen; and (3) what are the meanings attributed to such violent events. The dynamic interaction among these content categories was examined along personal, interpersonal and social dimensions. A theoretical model summarizing and illustrating the content categories and the dynamic interaction among them is suggested. Finally, some implications for hypothesizing and providing differential interventions are proposed. .