Risk Factors for Male-Perpetrated Domestic Violence in Vietnam Veteran Families in the United States, 1988

The goal of this project was to gain a better
understanding of risk factors associated with male-perpetrated
domestic violence, partner's mental distress, and child behavior
problems. The researchers sought to demonstrate that two important
social and health problems, domestic violence and trauma-related
psychological distress, were connected. The project was organized
into four studies, each of which addressed a specific objective: (1)
Variables characterizing the perpetrator's family of procreation were
used to determine the pattern of relationships among marital and
family functioning, perpetrator-to-partner violence, partner's mental
distress, and child behavior problems. (2) The perpetrator's early
background and trauma history were studied to establish the degree to
which the perpetrator's family of origin characteristics and
experiences, childhood antisocial behavior, exposure to stressors in
the Vietnam war zone, and subsequent post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) symptomatology related to perpetrator-to-partner family
violence. (3) The perpetrator's degree of mental distress was
examined to ascertain the ways in which the current mental distress
of the perpetrator was associated with marital and family
functioning, violence, and current mental distress of the
partner. (4) Developmental and intergenerational perspectives on
violence were used to model a network of relationships explaining the
potential transmission of violence across generations, commencing
with the perpetrator's accounts of violence within the family of
origin and terminating with reports of child behavior problems within
the family of procreation. Data for this study came from the
congressionally-mandated National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study
(NVVRS) (Kulka et al., 1990), which sought to document the current
and long-term psychological status of those who served one or more
tours of duty in the Vietnam theater of operations sometime between
August 5, 1964, and May 7, 1975, compared to their peers who served
elsewhere in the military during that era and to a comparable group
who never experienced military service. This study relied upon data
from the National Survey and Family Interview components of the
larger NVVRS. Data were collected through face-to-face structured
interviews, with some supplementary self-report paper-and-pencil
measures. The interview protocol was organized into 16 parts,
including portions requesting information on childhood experiences
and early delinquent behaviors, military service history, legal
problems in the family of origin and postwar period, stressful life
events, social support systems, marital and family discord and
abusive behaviors, and physical and mental health. This study
emphasized four categories of explanatory variables: (1) the
perpetrator's accounts of family of origin characteristics and
experiences, (2) the perpetrator's conduct and behavior problems
prior to age 15, (3) the perpetrator's exposure to war-zone
stressors, and (4) mental distress of the perpetrator, with attention
to PTSD symptomatology and alcohol abuse. Additionally, the project
incorporated four clusters of family of procreation criterion
variables: (1) marital and family functioning, (2) perpetrator-to-
partner violence, (3) partner mental distress, and (4) child behavior
problems. Variables include child abuse, family histories of
substance abuse, criminal activity, or mental health problems,
relationship as a child with parents, misbehavior as a child, combat
experience, fear for personal safety during combat, alcohol use and
abuse, emotional well-being including stress, guilt, relationships
with others, panic, and loneliness, acts of physical and verbal
violence toward partner, children's emotional and behavioral
problems, problem-solving, decision-making, and communication in
family, and family support.

本项目旨在更深入地理解与男性施暴的家庭暴力、伴侣心理困扰及儿童行为问题相关的风险因素。研究人员试图证明家庭暴力与创伤相关心理困扰这两个重要的社会及健康问题之间存在关联。该项目分为四项研究，每项研究针对特定目标展开：（1）利用描述施暴者生育家庭（family of procreation）特征的变量，分析婚姻与家庭功能、施暴者对伴侣的暴力行为、伴侣心理困扰及儿童行为问题之间的关系模式；（2）研究施暴者的早期背景与创伤史，以明确其原生家庭（family of origin）特征与经历、童年反社会行为、越南战区压力源暴露及后续创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）症状与施暴者对伴侣的家庭暴力之间的关联程度；（3）分析施暴者的心理困扰程度，以确定其当前心理困扰与婚姻家庭功能、暴力行为及伴侣当前心理困扰之间的关联方式；（4）从暴力的发展与代际视角出发，构建关系网络模型以解释暴力的潜在代际传递机制——该模型始于施暴者对原生家庭内暴力的描述，终于生育家庭中儿童行为问题的报告。

本研究数据来源于美国国会授权的《全国越南退伍军人适应研究》（National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study, NVVRS）（Kulka等，1990）。该研究旨在记录1964年8月5日至1975年5月7日期间在越南战区服役一次或多次的人员的当前及长期心理状态，并将其与同期在其他地区服役的军人同伴及未服兵役的可比群体进行对比。本研究使用了NVVRS中全国调查与家庭访谈部分的数据，通过面对面结构化访谈收集，并辅以部分自填式纸笔测量工具。访谈方案分为16个部分，涵盖童年经历与早期不良行为、服役史、原生家庭及战后时期的法律问题、应激性生活事件、社会支持系统、婚姻家庭冲突与虐待行为，以及身心健康等信息。

本研究重点关注四类解释变量：（1）施暴者对原生家庭特征与经历的描述；（2）施暴者15岁前的行为问题；（3）施暴者暴露于战区压力源的情况；（4）施暴者的心理困扰（尤其关注PTSD症状与酒精滥用）。此外，项目纳入了生育家庭的四类效标变量：（1）婚姻与家庭功能；（2）施暴者对伴侣的暴力行为；（3）伴侣心理困扰；（4）儿童行为问题。变量包括儿童虐待、物质滥用/犯罪活动/心理健康问题的家族史、童年与父母的关系、童年不良行为、战斗经历、战斗中对个人安全的恐惧、酒精使用与滥用、包含压力/内疚/人际关系/恐慌/孤独在内的情绪健康状况、对伴侣的身体及言语暴力行为、儿童情绪与行为问题、家庭中的问题解决/决策/沟通能力，以及家庭支持等。