Domestic Abuse: How Abusers Regain Control
- Many people know someone affected by intimate partner abuse.
- (2011) investigated real-life cases where suspects attempted to persuade their victims to recant their accounts of abuse.
- examined conversational data ranging from 30 to 192 minutes per couple.
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Why Domestic Violence Victims Recant: A Prosecutor’s Viewpoint
The Insidious Tactic of Recantation
Many people know someone affected by intimate partner abuse. Even suspecting abuse in family, friends, neighbors, or co-workers raises concerns for safety. As a prosecutor, I have previously written about why domestic violence victims return to abusers, how to spot domestic violence in the workplace, and how some abusers make dangerous traits look desirable. Yet, one of the most damaging ways perpetrators thwart justice and evade accountability is by coercing victims to recant their initial statements.
Understanding the Coercive Dynamic: The Bonomi Study
Amy E. Bonomi et al. (2011) investigated real-life cases where suspects attempted to persuade their victims to recant their accounts of abuse. [iv] The research team analyzed live telephone conversations between perpetrators and victims, focusing on the dynamics at play when victims considered or agreed to recant. The sample consisted of 25 heterosexual couples. In each case, the male perpetrator was detained for felony-level domestic violence and contacted the female victim during incarceration, prior to prosecution.
Bonomi et al. examined conversational data ranging from 30 to 192 minutes per couple. Their goal was to identify the interpersonal processes linked to the victim’s intention to recant and how the couple collaboratively planned the recantation.
Key Findings from the Research
- Coercive Control: The study highlighted the underlying coercive interpersonal dynamic as a central factor. Perpetrators didn’t simply ask victims to recant; they employed manipulative tactics to control and influence their decisions.
- Emotional Manipulation: Perpetrators frequently used emotional appeals, guilt-tripping, and threats to pressure victims.
- Minimization and Denial: abusers frequently enough minimized the severity of the violence or denied it altogether, attempting to distort the victim’s perception of events.
- Promises and Bargaining: Perpetrators might promise to change their behavior, seek treatment, or provide financial support in exchange for recantation.
- Isolation and Dependence: The study reinforced the importance of the victim’s level of isolation and dependence on the abuser. Victims with limited social support or financial independence were more vulnerable to coercion.