April

A briefing paper prepared for the Council on Contemporary Families Online Symposium on Intimate Partner Violence by Elizabeth Armstrong, Professor of Sociology and Organizational Studies, University of Michigan, elarmstr@umich.edu, and Jamie Budnick, Sociology Doctoral Candidate, University of Michigan, jalobu@umich.edu. 

Drowned out by the shocking stories in the popular media about brutal domestic violence cases, rape, spouse murders, and child abuse is a startling and well-documented trend in American life – violence among intimates is down. And the decline is not small. Between 1993 and 2010, “Intimate partner violence” fell by 64 percent.

This year, we have seen a marked increase in attention to rape and sexual assault, especially on college campuses, by the media, local authorities, and the White House. The new focus on this problem is beneficial, but its persistence is troubling.

A briefing paper prepared for the Council on Contemporary Families Online Symposium on Intimate Partner Violence by Jennifer Barber, Professor of Sociology, University of Michigan, jebarber@umich.edu, 723/764-8633, and Yasamin Kusunoki, Assistant Research Scientist, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, and Jamie Budnick Sociology Doctoral Candidate, University of Michigan, jalobu@umich.edu.