The effects of perpetrator sex, victim-committed infidelity, and personal identification with victim/perpetrator on perceptions of dating violence

Men and women often experience violence within dating relationships. The present study seeks to determine specific factors that affect perceptions of dating violence: (i) the sex of the perpetrator; (ii) whether a partner has committed infidelity; and (iii) whether judgments are affected by identification with either the perpetrator or victim. Results showed that participants rated male perpetrators more harshly than female perpetrators on variables of aggressiveness, justifiableness, and punishment. Furthermore, infidelity was shown to be an effective mitigating factor in participants' judgments of dating violence on all observed variables, especially for female perpetrators. However, the strength of this mitigating factor showed mixed results as to whether participants empathized with either the perpetrator or victim of violence. Nonetheless, this factor was strengthened for those participants who highly identified with the perpetrator of violence. Limitations of the study are investigated and directions for future research are provided.