Criminal statistics show that disproportionately few violent offenders in the public domain are women, but there is almost no gender difference in the private/domestic domain. The clue to understanding this discrepancy lies in the relative importance of the domestic domain in the woman¦s value structure. Violent behavior by women requires the existence of: 1) suitable psychological instigations; 2) habits or behavioral repertory of violent responses to the particular instigations; and 3) suitable situational aspects. These influences are present in the private domain, but mostly absent in the public domain. Data show that cohabitors are almost five times more likely than married persons to experience a severe violent incident; when such violence is nonreciprocal, the woman is more than twice as likely than the man to have been the aggressor. Some have suggested that cohabitor violence results from anxiety about the relationship, and therefore serves as a symbol of closeness and ownership in the absence of legal acknowledgment. Also, cohabitors tend to be more isolated from kin than do married persons. 1 figure, 54 references