Police Utilization and Victim-Police Interactions in Intimate Partner Violence

• In Event: Examination of Contextual Factors in Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

This study is an examination of partner-abused women’s ongoing decisions to seek help from the police. Existing research on intimate partner violence has often found that the police are the most widely and frequently used formal source of help by women. To date, few studies have linked women’s prior interactions and perceptions toward police officers to their subsequent decisions to contact the police for help. The present study tests this link with a sample of 928 women who have been physically, sexually, or psychologically abused by an intimate partner and have sought help from the police. Using data obtained from the National Impact Evaluation of Victim Programs Through the S.T.O.P. Violence Against Women Formula Program, the results have implications for broadening the contexts of women’s decision-making about utilizing police services for intimate partner violence, and may also better inform efforts to address the police response to intimate partner violence.

Author

• Jina Lee, Grand Valley State University