Psychodynamics of Partner, Stranger, and Generally Violent Male College Students

Understanding the dynamics of partner violence has been complicated by the fact that “partner violence” may include both partner and generally violent men. The authors hypothesized that partner violence may involve intimacy-related threats to masculinity, violence toward strangers may relate to alcohol abuse, and both partner and stranger violence may relate to object relations pathology. College men were nonviolent or violent toward partners, strangers, or partners and strangers (n = 10 men in each group). Partner violence was related to higher Schwartz Castration Anxiety Scale scores (B. Schwartz, 1991), from Thematic Apperception Test responses. Stranger violence was related to higher Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2) and MacAndrew Alcoholism

Rosemary Cogan, PhD, Department of Psychology. Texas Tech University; John H. Porcerelli, PhD, Department of Family Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine; Kristy Dromgoole, PhD, Federal Medical Center, Carswell. Texas.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Rosemary Cogan, PhD, Department of Psychology, Texas Tech University, Box 42051, Lubbock. Texas 79409-2051. Electronic mail may be sent to .

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Scale—Revised scores. Neither partner nor stranger violence was related to MMPI-2 anxiety or Westen’s Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale (D. Westen, A. Barends, J. Leigh. M. Mendel, & D. Silbert, 1990) The authors discussed implications for understanding the dynamics of partner violence and treatment.

Psychoanalysis has contributed immensely to understanding the intrapsychic vicissitudes of aggression and rage. However, far less is known about the intrapsychic dynanmic of people who actually commit acts of violence. Fonagy (2000), for example, has commented that people are more comfortable considering the destruction of internal objects (self and object representat