Contact: Tom Ryan Humanities and Social Sciences Writer Office of Public Affairs University of Illinois at Chicago (312) 996-8279 (phone) (312) 996-3754 (fax) [email protected] http://www.uic.edu/depts/paff
Men who commit acts of violence on their wives or girlfriends are working-class "drunken bums" who do it because alcohol makes them lose control of themselves. And if they'd just get treatment for their substance abuse, chances are the domestic violence would stop. True?
False, says an expert at the University of Illinois at Chicago who studies what he calls the "real relationships" between domestic violence and substance abuse.
Larry Bennett, a clinical social worker and assistant professor at UIC's Jane Addams College of Social Work, says the above statements represent common misconceptions that place women at risk and don't address the real causes of either problem.
"Over 50 percent of all male substance abusers who have wives or girlfriends are violent toward them," Bennett says. "And many battered women are substance abusers themselves."
In his clinical work and his research, Bennett says he tries "to educate people on the realities of abuse and violence." He says part of his job is dispelling myths about the causes of domestic violence.
One myth, Bennett says, is that men who beat their partners come from the middle or lower end of the economic ladder.
"In fact, men who batter cover all socioeconomic groups, and they're usually not drunk when they batter. In 75 percent of all battering incidents, neither party had been drinking."
Another myth, he says, is that alcohol lowers inhibitions, resulting in violent acts that wouldn't have happened if the batterer had been sober.
"This is probably the most common misconception. But it's an error -- an often fatal error. There's little evidence that substance abuse directly causes domestic abuse. They're equivalent behaviors.
"Batterers and sex offenders frequently say they lost control because of alcohol," Bennett says. "It's a way for them to control other people, using alcohol as an excuse."
Unfortunately, he says, many courts believe the "disinhibition" defense, permitting batterers to seek treatment for substance abuse without getting help for their more serious tendencies toward violence.
Part of Bennett's clinical work and research involves trying to increase collaborations between programs that address substance abuse and domestic violence, enabling more women to seek help for both at the same time.
And he's trying to learn more about how substance abuse and domestic violence are related.
"In the brain? In our culture? Is there a psychological mechanism like a need for power? No one model explains everything."
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