PHYSICAL AGGRESSION IN EARLY MARRIAGE - PRERELATIONSHIP AND RELATIONSHIP EFFECTS

Spousal physical aggression at 30 months after marriage was predicted for 393 young couples who were interviewed for a longitudinal study. T he prerelationship predictor variables were history of violence in the family of origin, aggression against others during childhood and adol escence, and personality characteristics. Relationship predictor varia bles were marital discord and spouse-specific psychological aggression , both measured at 18 months after marriage. The findings suggest that predictive models are different for husbands and wives. For both sexe s, there were direct paths to marital violence that were not mediated by characteristics of the relationship, as well as paths that originat ed in or flowed through indicators of the marital relationship. Implic ations for intervention through marital therapy, individual therapy, o r both are discussed.