Testing a social learning theory model of wife abuse among Air Force active-duty service members: Does abuse in the family of origin predict spouse abuse later in life

The intergenerational theory of abuse states that individuals abused as children are likely to become abusive spouses or parents. Although being abused as a child puts one at risk for becoming abusive later in life, the path between the two points is far from direct or inevitable (Kaufman & Zigler, 1987). The current study tested a multifactor social learning theory model of wife abuse with a large, non-clinical sample of both abusive and non-abusive married male service members in the United States Air Force. The study identified risk factors that distinguish abusive service members from non-abusive service members and aimed to identify the mediating factors that affect the likelihood of abuse being transmitted across generations. The results showed that several of the predictor variables included in the model were significantly associated with the presence of wife abuse. These included: education level, race, years married, military rank, use of inappropriate coping strategies, and most important, abuse in the family of origin. Furthermore, the type of abuse experienced in childhood (i.e., only witnessed parental abuse, only received abuse, both witnessed and received abuse) was important in predicting the level of wife abuse. Although the social learning model tested in this study was not supported by structural equation modeling (i.e., a poor model fit was found), an examination of the regression analyses revealed promising findings. Abuse in the family of origin and use of inappropriate coping strategies were significantly related to incidents of wife abuse. In addition, some of the measures of life stress (i.e., difficulty paying bills and family responsibilities impacting job) were linked to incidents of wife abuse. The results of the present study suggest that demographic and social learning factors are important determinants of abuse. However, in order for us to fully understand the complex problem of domestic violence, future research needs to explore the relationship among biological, psychological, social, and contextual factors and their impact on subsequent abuse.