Sample Solution

Sociological: Societal norms and expectations can play a significant role in the incidence or potential for domestic or workplace violence. For example, gender roles, hierarchies of power, traditional views on masculinity and femininity, tolerance of aggressive behavior in certain settings (e.g., sports) may all influence how people perceive and respond to violent relationships or situations. Similarly, economic disparities such as poverty promote inequality and competition which can lead to more aggressive behaviors being endorsed as acceptable forms of communication or negotiation. Finally community-level influences such as gang activity have been linked with increases in both types of violence.

Psychological: Individual psychological factors also contribute to the likelihood of DV/WPV occurring. Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, substance abuse are often present within relationships that involve violence—either perpetrating it or experiencing it firsthand—and research suggests that people with these individual tendencies may be more likely to become involved in an abusive relationship due to difficulty recognizing appropriate boundaries in their own interactions with others. Additionally there are particular personality traits associated with perpetrators and victims including impulsivity, lack of empathy, entitlement attitudes towards specific actions/outcomes etc., all of which can increase the propensity for one’s behavioral choices leading them into an abusive cycle even if they were not raised under conditions that would normally encourage this type of behavior patterns.