The couples represented a cross-section of socioeconomic groups. Information was collected through a questionnaire administered upon intake, a psychological self-rating measure of 60 personality traits, and through treatment session interviews. Low socioeconomic level, frequent verbal arguments, backgrounds of family violence, alcohol abuse, and the women's tendency to adhere to rigid sex-role stereotypes were found to be related to conjugal violence. These form a complex picture of the eruption of violence. On one hand, the frequency of verbal arguments supports an interactional view of marital violence. On the other, the women's conformity to sex roles and the couples' experiences of violence as children support the notion that some individuals are disposed by their family backgrounds either to tolerate or instigate violent behavior. Family stress caused by low income and low educational levels contributes to the occurrence of violence; families who may never achieve some of the valued goals of society may become frustrated and react aggressively both in and outside of family boundaries. Any model for the eruption of violence must integrate societal, familial, and psychological factors. Two tables and 36 references are provided.