Gender and types of intimate partner violence: A response to an anti-feminist literature review

This article presents a feminist perspective on domestic violence that is rooted in an explication of the differences among three major types of intimate partner violence (Johnson, 2008). Theory and research from this perspective is then reviewed to rebut recent attacks on feminist scholarship and policy regarding intimate partner violence.

Research highlights► IT, VR, and SCV differ dramatically in almost all respects. ► Dutton, Hamel, and Aaronson (2010) seriously misrepresent this feminist perspective. ► Dutton et al.’s literature review distorts the implications of IPV research. ► The empirical literature in fact strongly supports a feminist perspective.