NIJ's first significant research on intimate partner violence was launched in 1980 with a study on spousal assault in Minneapolis and later similar studies in other cities. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994, and dedicated research funding since 1998, have provided resources to advance understanding, policies, and practices relating to intimate partner violence.
During the past decade, NIJ research and evaluation has been guided by broad agenda-setting studies that looked at the nature and scope of intimate partner violence, its causes and consequences, and evaluations of intimate partner violence interventions.
Current research initiatives include:
- Evaluations of batterer intervention programs.
- Examination of the consequences of childhood exposure to intimate partner violence.
- Determination of risk factors for revictimization and the antecedents of violent interactions between partners.
- Examination of Family Violence Coordinating Councils as part of a coordinated community response to intimate partner violence.
- Determination of factors that promote or hinder effective interventions against intimate partner violence within Asian communities, including the role of criminal justice response.
- Assessment of investigative strategies that lead to successful prosecution of intimate partner violence cases, to provide a guide for law enforcement.