Parental Models of Family Violence and Associations with Partner Violence for College Women from Three Countries

Abstract

The present study provides a cross-national comparison of parental models of family violence as predictors of romantic partner violence reported by college women. Participants included college women from the United States (n = 319), Spain (n = 95), and Turkey (n = 207) to report violence in five relationships: father-to-mother, mother-to-father, father-to-participant, mother-to-participant, and romantic-partner-to-participant. Multiple regression revealed that partner violence received by college women was best explained by mother-to-father violence for the United States sample, but by father-to-mother violence for the Spanish and Turkish samples. Results may be useful for college women to identify family and cultural risk factors for romantic partner violence so that they may work to protect themselves and their educational opportunities.