Couple‐Level Economic and Career Concerns and Intimate Partner Violence in Young Adulthood

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12282
• Author: Peggy C. Giordano,Jennifer E. Copp,Monica A. Longmore,Wendy D. Manning
• Date: 01 June 2016
• Published date: 01 June 2016

J E. C Florida State University

P C. G, W D. M,  M A. L Bowling Green State

University∗

Couple-Level Economic and Career Concerns and

Intimate Partner Violence in Young Adulthood

Family scholars have demonstrated that eco-

nomic conditions inuence marital quality and

relationship instability. Similarly, researchers

have identied low income and poverty as

important risk factors for intimate partner vio-

lence (IPV). Yet limited work has examined how

economic factors inuence the use of violence in

the romantic context, particularly during young

adulthood. Using the Toledo Adolescent Rela-

tionships Study (n=928), the authors examined

the inuence of economic and career concerns

as specic sources of conict on IPV among a

sample of young adults. Findings suggest that

these areas of disagreement within romantic

relationships are associated with IPV risk, net of

traditional predictors. The implications of our

ndings for intervention and prevention efforts

are discussed.

Although the economic recession and ongo-

ing economic crisis have affected millions of

Americans, it has been particularly devastat-

ing for young adults. As businesses began to

close their doors, the young adult population

College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Florida State

University,112 S. Copeland St., Tallahassee, FL 32306

(jcopp@fsu.edu).

∗Department of Sociology, BowlingGreen State University,

Bowling Green, OH 43403.

Key Words: economic well-being, family stress, intimate

partner violence, young adulthood.

was among the last hired and rst red. Accord-

ing to a recent report, only about 41% of 18-

to 29-year-olds were employed full-time, and of

those employed, less than a third were satised

with their current income (Pew Research Cen-

ter, 2010). In the family literature, there is a long

line of research underscoring the inuence of

economic conditions (e.g., poverty, unemploy-

ment, economic hardship) on marital quality and

relationship instability (see Conger, Conger, &

Martin, 2010, for a review), providing evidence

of a link between socioeconomic status and the

stability of both marital and cohabiting relation-

ships (Amato, Booth, Johnson, & Rogers, 2007).

Moreover, economic conditions may play an

especially important role in the development and

maintenance of healthy romantic relationships in

young adulthood (Hardie & Lucas, 2010).

A key and consequential indicator of poor

relationship quality is intimate partner violence

(IPV), which constitutes physical, psychologi-

cal, and sexual harm toward one’s partner in

the context of an intimate relationship (Breiding,

Basile, Smith, Black, & Mahendra, 2015). Our

use of IPV in the current investigation, however,

refers specically to the use of physical force.

Researchers consistently found IPV to be more

prevalent among lower-income individuals and

those experiencing employment instability (e.g.,

Fox & Benson, 2006; Golden, Perreira, & Dur-

rance, 2013; Rennison & Welchans, 2000). IPV

is also particularly common during the young

adult period; approximately 30% of individuals

744 Journal of Marriage and Family 78 (June 2016): 744–758

DOI:10.1111/jomf.12282