Therapists’ Prototypical Assessment of Domestic Violence Situations

Prototypical perceptions by therapists have the potential to influence the therapeutic process of assessment. The purpose of this study is to begin to develop an understanding of how prototypes might affect marriage and family therapists’ assessments of domestic violence situations. Participants evaluated one of three domestic violence scenarios that were identical in dynamics but different in terms of sexual orientation of the couple (i.e., heterosexual, gay, or lesbian). The most significant finding was that initial assessments of victim and perpetrator identification and power attribution differed depending on the sexual orientation of the couple. The “man as perpetrator, woman as victim” prototypical paradigm for heterosexual domestic violence emerged. In the same-sex scenarios, often “both” partners were perceived to be indicated both as victim and perpetrator.