Male victims of intimate partner violence: a mixed methods exploration

Introduction: Forty-five years of research points to gender symmetry in the experience of Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse (IPVA). Despite this, there is a recognised paucity of research exploring the male experience of surviving abuse within a heterosexual relationship. This study sought to address this by exploring the male experience of IPVA from preconceptions through to help-seeking and future plans. Methodology: Fifty-eight men who self-identified as survivors of IPVA completed a mixedmethods survey comprising open-ended and closed questions. A convergent mixed-methods design was used to quantify, describe, and interpret the data. Template analysis formed the basis of the qualitative analysis. Quantitative and qualitative data were integrated at the point of analysis. Results: The ages of the participants were normally distributed between 18 and 61+. Most participants were Irish, followed closely by English residents. Themes identified were preconceptions about IPVA; Experience of abuse; Partner/ relationship; Perceptions; Helpseeking; The future; and Last words. Numerous subthemes were identified within those superthemes. Discussion: The results were discussed in light of existing research in the field. Ramifications were discussed in terms of their wide-ranging clinical, policy, and research implications. Conclusion: This study found that male survivors of IPVA report systematic patterns of physical, psychological, sexual, and legal/ administrative abuse. This abuse has wide-ranging and long-lasting impacts, including mental health difficulties and parental alienation. Male survivors of abuse report feeling negatively stereotyped and feel abandoned and betrayed by the legal system as well as generic IPVA support services.