@article {1975, title = {Why I Hit Him: Women{\textquoteright}s Reasons for Intimate Partner Violence.}, journal = {Journal of aggression, maltreatment \& trauma}, volume = {18}, year = {2009}, month = {2009 Oct}, pages = {672-697}, abstract = {This study examines motives for intimate partner violence (IPV) among a community sample of 412 women who used IPV against male partners. A "Motives and Reasons for IPV scale" is proposed, and exploratory factor analyses identified five factors: expression of negative emotions, self-defense, control, jealousy, and tough guise. To our knowledge, the study is the first to investigate the relationship between women{\textquoteright}s motives for IPV and their perpetration of physical, psychological, and sexual aggression, as well as coercive control, toward partners. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed participants{\textquoteright} aggression was driven by complex, multiple motives. All five motives were related to a greater frequency of perpetrating IPV. Treatment programs focusing on women{\textquoteright}s IPV perpetration should address both defensive and proactive motives.}, issn = {1545-083X}, doi = {10.1080/10926770903231783}, author = {Caldwell, Jennifer E and Swan, Suzanne C and Allen, Christopher T and Sullivan, Tami P and Snow, David L} }