(Gondolf pg. 45).
The psychology of women is different from men, but not inferior to it, as many recent feminist reassessments of female development have shown. Gillian documents the different frame of reference between men and women. Women interpret moral dilemmas, for instance, based on relationships and care, rather moral dilemmas, for instance, based on relationships and care, rather than achievement and fairness as men more often do. (Gondolf pg. 45).
The repression of emotion, the denial and suppression of vulnerability, the compulsive competitiveness, the fear of losing, the anxiety over touching or any other form of sensual display, the controlled intellectualizing and the general lack of spontaneity and unselfconscious playfulness serve to make the companionship of most men unsatisfying and highly limited. Men are at their best when a task is to be completed, a problem solved, or an enemy battled. Without such a structure, however, anxiety and self-consciousness accelerate too rapidly to allow for a sustained pleasurable experience. (Gondolf pg. 46).
Alcohol abuse causes domestic violence.
Substance abuse, alcohol abuse in particular, frequently emerges as the prominent risk factor contributing to myriad family problems. Despite media attention, alcoholism (alcohol dependency and abuse) continues to account for the overwhelming majority of the substance abuse problems in the United States and, not surprisingly, remains the most frequently mentioned form of substance abuse contributing no family problems in general and family violence specifically. The link is becoming clear, whether one refers to the actual occurrence of violence in the home or to the intergenerational and developmental consequences of living in the home with a family culture of alcoholism and violence. (Roleff pg. 55).
Dynamics of the abusive relationship.
Social scientist and others studying domestic abuse have discovered certain risk factors that help predict which homes are more likely to be violent, and which individuals have greater tendencies to become abusers or victims.
