Prior research indicates that victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) are most likely to disclose their victimization experiences to an informal support (e.g., friend, family), and that IPV disclosures are often met with both positive (e.g., empathic support) and negative (e.g., victim blame) reactions. However, research on social reactions to disclosure largely has neglected the perspectives of disclosure recipients. Guided by the attribution framework, the current study extends prior research by assessing factors (i.e., situation-specific, individual, relational, attributional, and emotional response) related to positive and negative reactions from the perspective of disclosure recipients ( N = 743 college students). Linear regression analyses indicated that positive social reactions were related to the victim being a woman, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the victim, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the disclosure recipient, less accepting attitudes toward IPV, a closer relationship with the victim, a less close relationship with the perpetrator, lower perceptions of victim responsibility, more empathy for the victim, and more emotional distress experienced by the disclosure recipient during the disclosure. Negative social reactions were associated with more accepting attitudes toward IPV, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the disclosure recipient, a less close relationship with the victim, higher perceptions of victim responsibility, and more emotional distress experienced by the disclosure recipient. Results suggest that programs to improve responses to victim disclosure should focus on decreasing IPV-supportive attitudes, increasing empathy, and assisting disclosure recipients in managing difficult emotional responses effectively.
Relationship Context and Intimate Partner Violence From Adolescence to Young Adulthood
