Rethinking Domestic Violence

Rethinking Domestic Violence reviews research in the area of intimate partner violence. The research crosses disciplinary lines, including social and clinical psychology, sociology, psychiatry, criminology, and criminal justice research. Since the area of intimate partner violence is so heavily politicized, Dutton tries to steer through conflicting claims by assessing the best research methodology. As a result, he comes to some new conclusions about intimate partner violence. After 20 years of viewing intimate partner violence as generated by gender and focusing on a punitive "law and order" approach, Dutton now argues that this approach must be more varied and flexible. Treatment providers, criminal justice systems personnel, lawyers, and researchers have indicated the need for a new view of the problem--one less invested in gender politics and more open to collaborative views and interdisciplinary insights.

Donald G. Dutton teaches in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia