Comparing Intimately Violent to Non-Violent Veterans in Treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Differences between Veterans in treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who are violent and those who are non-violent towards their partners were examined. More specifically, the relationship between PTSD severity and Veterans' perpetrating intimate partner violence (IPV) and those who were not, childhood witnessing of parental IPV, substance use or abuse, mutuality (the degree to which couples are mutually engaged in the relationship), and demographic variables was examined. Overall, among the variables identified, only the level of relationship mutuality significantly differentiated the intimately violent from non-violent.