Remaining in an Abusive Relationship: An Investment Model Analysis of Nonvoluntary Dependence

@article{citeulike:2144074, abstract = {Rusbult's investment model is used to understand the conditions under which individuals are likely to remain in abusive relationships. Analyses of data from intake interviews at a shelter for battered women provided good support for model predictions. Consistent with hypotheses, feelings of commitment were greater among women who had poorer-quality economic alternatives, were more heavily invested in their relationships (e.g., were married), and experienced lesser dissatisfaction (e.g., reported less severe abuse). Also consistent with hypotheses, commitment was strongly linked to stay/leave behavior, significantly distinguishing between women who returned to their partners immediately on leaving the shelter and women who did not. Causal modeling analyses suggested that commitment may mediate the effects of alternatives, investments, and satisfaction on stay/leave decisions. Implications for our knowledge of nonvoluntary dependence, as well as for social policy regarding family violence, are discussed. 10.1177/0146167295216002}, author = {Rusbult, Caryl E. and Martz, John M. }, citeulike-article-id = {2144074}, doi = {10.1177/0146167295216002}, journal = {Pers Soc Psychol Bull}, keywords = {investment, model}, month = {June}, number = {6}, pages = {558--571}, posted-at = {2007-12-19 04:54:06}, priority = {2}, title = {Remaining in an Abusive Relationship: An Investment Model Analysis of Nonvoluntary Dependence}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0146167295216002}, volume = {21}, year = {1995} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:2144074 L3 - citeulike-article-id:2144074 TI - Remaining in an Abusive Relationship: An Investment Model Analysis of Nonvoluntary Dependence JF - Pers Soc Psychol Bull VL - 21 IS - 6 SP - 558 EP - 571 N2 - Rusbult's investment model is used to understand the conditions under which individuals are likely to remain in abusive relationships. Analyses of data from intake interviews at a shelter for battered women provided good support for model predictions. Consistent with hypotheses, feelings of commitment were greater among women who had poorer-quality economic alternatives, were more heavily invested in their relationships (e.g., were married), and experienced lesser dissatisfaction (e.g., reported less severe abuse). Also consistent with hypotheses, commitment was strongly linked to stay/leave behavior, significantly distinguishing between women who returned to their partners immediately on leaving the shelter and women who did not. Causal modeling analyses suggested that commitment may mediate the effects of alternatives, investments, and satisfaction on stay/leave decisions. Implications for our knowledge of nonvoluntary dependence, as well as for social policy regarding family violence, are discussed. 10.1177/0146167295216002 KW - investment KW - model AU - Rusbult, Caryl AU - Martz, John PY - 1995/06/01/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0146167295216002 ER -