Legal and Administrative Intimate Partner Violence
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Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a multidimensional construct that includes physical violence, sexual violence and psychological violence, especially coercive and controlling behaviors. In this article I will address a type of intimate partner violence that has not been studied as much although - because of its frequency and consequences - it deserves it. This is legal and administrative violence which is the manipulation of legal and administrative resources as an attempt to control or inflict emotional and financial harm on one’s partner.
Legal and administrative aggression or violence (LAV) occurs when one partner uses the legal and administrative system (courts, law enforcement, the police, child protection services) either during or after the termination of a relationship in an abusive manner that often includes false allegations against the victims. Hines et al. have developed an instrument to measure this, which includes both threats to use the legal and administrative system and its actual use.
“Victims of LAV are more likely to be male, though this may not be recognized because the professional and legal systems responsible for intervening in cases of IPV often hold stereotypes that men cannot be victims of IPV”
LAV can be perpetrated by both men and women, and can include frivolous lawsuits, false accusations of child abuse and other manipulations of the legal system. However, victims of LAV are more likely to be male, though this may not be recognized because the professional and legal systems responsible for intervening in cases of IPV often hold stereotypes that men cannot be victims of IPV, and that only men are capable of perpetrating serious IPV. Furthermore, most IPV services have traditionally been set up to serve women, and the legal system has a bias in most Western countries that favors the interests of women. Specifically, One study found that 12.9% of men reported that their partner threatened them with LAV, and 3.9% reported that their partner actually carried out a form of LAV against them. In contrast, 5.3% of the men reported threatening their partners with LAV and 1.1% reported actually perpetrating at least one form of LAV against their partner.
The consequences of LAV are significant on many levels. Many men have to spend money, time and other resources to prove their innocence. Some spend time in prison or with restraining orders against their children based on false allegations. Cook provides data that some male victims of intimate partner violence have unjustly lost their homes, possessions, and contact with their children and feel powerless in the face of a judicial system that they believe is rigged against them. A study that assessed the concerns of men who called a hotline for battered men, found that nearly half of them reported that their partner had perpetrated LAV by demanding restraining orders with false allegations and manipulating the court system to gain custody of children. In another study, when male victims of intimate partner violence were asked about their reasons for not leaving an abusive relationship, one of the most commonly cited reasons was fear of never seeing their children again. The men also reported having suffered threats from their partner that they would ruin their reputation at work and in the community, as well as threats to make false claims accusing them of violence against themselves and the children. In fact, two-thirds of men report having been victims of such false allegations. In male victims of physical partner violence, one study found that 91.4% report that their partner has threatened some form of LAV and 78.9% say that their partner carried it out. All of these data suggest that a large proportion of male victims of intimate partner violence are victims of LAV.
Apart from the previously cited effect of constraining the victim within an abusive relationship, LAV has been shown to be a direct predictor of poor outcomes in the physical health (including poor general health, poor sleep, fatigue, aches and pains) and mental health (depression, PTSD). One study found that VLA (both threats and actually exerted) were associated with symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and depression in male sufferers as well as increased anxious, affective and somatic symptoms in school-aged children. In summary, LAV is associated with poorer mental health in male sufferers as well as in children who live or have lived in homes where LAV was experienced by their fathers. Therefore, it is important that men who experience LAV have access to mental health services to treat these symptoms of depression and PTSD. In the next section, I discuss the possible repercussions that the negative mental health consequences of LAV may have on suicide and homicide.
“Recognition of the link between intimate partner conflicts and homicide-suicide incidents and strategies involving collaboration among the court/legal and mental health systems might prevent these incidents”
Implications for suicide and homicide-suicide
One area that would merit further study is the contribution of this legal and administrative aggression to men's suicide and homicide followed by suicide. We know that divorce is a risk factor for suicide in men and various researchers have found that relationship problems are an important risk factor not only for men's suicide (e.g. Brown and Seals, 2019; Logan, 2011; Stone, 2018) but also for homicide followed by suicide (Logan et al., 2008; Logan et al. 2019). It stands to reason that all legal and administrative circumstances that complicate already traumatic divorce processes may negatively influence the psychology and mental health of those involved.
According to Logan et al (2008): “Over 55% of male homicide-suicide perpetrators versus 26.4% of other male suicide decedents had prior intimate partner conflicts. In fact, having a history of intimate partner conflicts was even common among homicide-suicide perpetrators who did not victimize their intimate partners. Recognition of the link between intimate partner conflicts and homicide-suicide incidents and strategies involving collaboration among the court/legal and mental health systems might prevent these incidents”.
A later study by Logan et al found that homicide-suicide perpetration was more prevalent among suicides who had civil legal problems versus those who did not. Feelings of having been unfairly treated (whether real or imagined) may be a risk factor for suicide and for homicide-suicide, so greater sensitivity of the judicial system to men’s circumstances would be beneficial to all concerned. Better coordination between the judicial and health systems could help prevent both suicides and homicides followed by suicide.
In short, LAV is a type of intimate partner violence that has received little attention but has important repercussions for the people who suffer it (both men and women) and for their family members. More attention and research would be desirable.
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Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and is not a substitute for therapy, legal advice, or other professional opinion. Never disregard such advice because of this article or anything else you have read from the Centre for Male Psychology. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of, or are endorsed by, The Centre for Male Psychology, and we cannot be held responsible for these views. Read our full disclaimer here.
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Pablo Malo
Pablo Malo is a psychiatrist whose main interests are psychology and evolutionary biology. He is a member of the Txori-Herri Medical Association in Spain, and the psychiatric rock group The Beautiful Brains. His work is published in journals including the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry and the British Medical Journal (BMJ).