NCJ Number
115870
Journal
Criminology Volume: 27 Issue: 1 Dated: (February 1989) Pages: 163-181
Date Published
1989
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This study examines how wife assaulters perceive the consequences of arrest for assault on their life circumstances by analysis of data collected during the summer and early fall of 1987 through telephone interviews of 494 married or cohabiting male adults (18 years or over) in the United States.
Abstract
Respondents indicated that arrest for wife assault is perceived as bringing humiliation to one's self and family as well as damaging one's relations with friends and family. Respondents did not think that losing their jobs or going to jail would result from wife assault. The study, an initial exploration of deterrence and the relationship between legal sanctions and crime, points out that researchers must continue to explore how legal sanctions influence self-image, attachments to others, and commitment to conventional behavior. 28 footnotes.