Restorative Approaches to Domestic Violence: The Cornerposts in Action

Abuse between intimate partners has reached epidemic proportions. Primarily, partner violence is viewed as violence precipitated by men against women. Generally, the data suggest that in situations of domestic abuse, men are significantly more abusive toward women than the reverse, male abuse results in more damage than that of female, and male victims generally experience less emotional fear than female victims. Moreover, women’s violence against men often involves actions initiated in self-defense (Mattaini, 1999). With that said, it should be recognized that violence can and does occur in intimate relationships of various characteristics.