The authors examined the extent to which survey respondents are willing to report marital violence in a context that focuses on criminal behaviors as opposed to a family-violence context. In a basic way, this answers a question as to whether individuals are willing to define acts of marital violence as criminal. Methodologically, it is a measurement issue that seriously affects the ability to compare findings across samples. National Youth Survey data were used to compare rates of generalized spousal assault and victimization reported in a crime context, with rates of marital assault and victimization reported in a family violence context. Results show that 40 percent to 83 percent of all marital assaults and victimizations reported in the marital violence section are not reported in a format that focuses on criminal assault and victimization. 5 tables and 30 references