Abstract

This study examined intimate partner violence as a form of violence that occurs within an intimate relationship. The main objective was to examine the extent to which women are involved in violence, both psychological and physical, against their male partners. It used data collected as part of the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development, a longitudinal study of men from age 8 to age 61. The sample included 212 women who were in close relationships with 212 men who participated in the study. The women completed the Conflict Tactics Scale and took place in an interview about their lifestyle and intimate relationships, when their partners were aged 48. Results show a significant correlation between perpetration and victimization of physical and psychological violence and suggest the critical role of relationship climate and quality of interaction between partners in exacerbating a gender symmetry of violence in which men and women end up perpetrating the same acts of violence against each other. Interventions should implement programs aimed at developing healthy relationships