Centrality of Traumatic Events and Men's Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration

Objective: The event centrality model indicates that the development and maintenance of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSSs) occurs when a traumatic event becomes central to one's identity, marking a key turning point in one's life narrative and influencing the meaning assigned to subsequent posttrauma events. Previous research has shown that event centrality is associated with PTSSs among survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). However, research has not yet determined whether event centrality may explain associations between trauma exposure and IPV among perpetrators of IPV. Trauma and PTSSs are key risk factors for IPV perpetration, but many questions remain about the mechanisms that explain these associations. Method: Study participants came from a sample of 134 men presenting for treatment at a community-based relationship violence intervention program in the Baltimore-Washington. DC metro area between July 2013 and July 2015 during routine program intake. In the hypothesized serial model, exposure to potentially traumatic events predicted event centrality, which predicted PTSSs, which predicted IPV perpetration and relationship problems. Results: The serial mediation model was significant for physical assault, psychological aggression, emotional abuse, and relationship problems, but not for sexual coercion. Conclusions: The results indicate that the extent to which a trauma becomes central to one's identity is important in understanding the links between trauma exposure, PTSSs, and IPV perpetration. These findings support the development and application of trauma-informed interventions to reduce IPV perpetration and reduce event centrality in this population.