Most research on intimate partner violence (IPV) looks at either IPV experience (victimization) or IPV use (perpetration), but rarely both in the same study.
However, when examining both couples' experience and use of violence concurrently, researchers often find that bidirectional (mutual) violence emerges as the most common pattern.
In a study in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, researchers examined patterns of IPV, associated risk factors, and potential gender differences in a sample of 1,150 veterans.
The research team, led by lead author Galina A. Portnoy, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry, found that bidirectional IPV was the most common relationship violence pattern, with no differences in gender between who experienced and used violence in the relationship.
The researchers also found that posttraumatic stress symptoms were associated with bidirectional IPV, underscoring the importance of examining the experience and use of relationship violence concurrently within research and clinical samples and developing comprehensive screening and trauma-informed treatment strategies that incorporate bidirectional IPV in work to advance relationship health and safety among veterans.