In some studies, researchers have found approximately equal rates of violence, both severe and nonsevere, committed by both husbands and wives. However, husbands had the higher rates of the most dangerous behavior; husbands repeated their violence more often; husbands were likely to do more damage because of size differences; women are economically trapped in marriage more often than husbands; and many women may use violence to defend themselves. The study reported in this chapter suggests that although women use violence as frequently as men, they usually employ it in self-defense. The content of feminist research, notably the assumption of women's oppression, the need for a gender analysis, and the use of complex explanatory variables were used while relying on the tools of more traditional, quantitative methods. 57 references.