Understanding intimate partner violence in context : social and community correlates of special and general victimization

Peer reviewe

Social correlates of specialized versus versatile offending patterns in intimate partner violence : A register-based study in Finland

Purpose: The purpose of the current study was to examine the tendencies toward specialization and generalist offending among intimate partner violence (IPV) offenders and to assess whether some well-known correlates of criminal offending are differentially associated with various offending patterns. Method: We use large-scale register-based data from Finland including all offenders in police-recorded cases of IPV between 2015 and 2019 (N = 19,030). Two different analytic approaches suggested for research on offense specialization are used: the multilevel item response theory (IRT) approach and latent class analysis (LCA). Results: Significant tendencies toward both specialization and generalist offending were found in the data using both analysis methods. In addition, the correlates were differentially associated with specialized versus versatile offending patterns. Specialization in IPV was associated with, for example, female gender, older age, higher socioeconomic status, and having an immigrant background. The findings also show IPV specialization and generalist offending to be differentially associated with different victimization types. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the idea of IPV offenders as specialists who do not engage in violence and crime in other contexts is not empirically fully accurate. Implications for future research, theory, and prevention policies are discussed.Peer reviewe

Crime News Consumption and Fear of Violence : The Role of Traditional Media, Social Media, and Alternative Information Sources

In this article, we examine the correlates of fear of violence in the cross-media landscape. The study draws on the Finnish National Crime Victim Survey (n = 6,141, respondents aged 15-74 years). First, we examine from what information and media sources respondents receive information on violent crime. We then examine how consumption of different types of media and information sources on violent crime associates with the contemporary experience of fear of street violence, avoidance behavior due to threat of violence, and perceived threat of terrorism to oneself. We also examine whether this association remains when age, gender, education, past victimization, and economic strain are adjusted for.Peer reviewe