Who is Helpful?: Examining the Relationship between Personality Factors and Supportive Responses and Attitudes toward Domestic Violence Victims

• Main Author: Riley, Christina Elisabeth
• Format: Others
• Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 2016
• Subjects: domestic violence; secondary victimization; personality factors; Psychology
• Online Access: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/6219; https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7219&context=etd

Domestic violence perpetrated by men against women persists as a major human rights issue in the United States and around the world with some estimates showing that one in four women will be victimized in their lifetimes. Victims face many obstacles when they try to leave their abusive partners. A major barrier faced by victims is secondary victimization. Secondary victimization is the process in which informal (e.g., family, friends, etc.) and formal (e.g., police officer, judges, etc.) supporters re-victimize the victim by questioning the validity of the abuse, excusing the perpetrator, and blaming the victim. Because most victims seek help from informal supporters first, predictive personality factors of supportive attitudes towards DV victims from informal supporters was the main focus of this study and a measure, the Support for the Victim scale, was developed for the current study based on a review of the literature and a consultation with a licensed psychologist. Using a sample of college students from Brigham Young University, an online survey was conducted to examine which factors are predictive of supportive attitudes towards DV victims.