Study of the psychodynamic profile of aggressors against the partner in inmates of a prison complex in Córdoba, Argentina

Abstract

Intimate partner violence is a public health problem that occurs in marriages, cohabiting or non-cohabiting couples, and ex-partners, and can result in death or severe harm to the victim. This phenomenon has gained maximum interest due to the increase of cases globally and even more so in Latin America, in the context of the global health, economic and social crises triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. The discovery of personality characteristics, personality alteration, and/or the presence of psychopathology in aggressors and victims, in association with the severity of the violence perpetrated, is relevant. The study of the differential profile of aggressors against intimate partners in prison can provide psychological criteria for the decision of more appropriate therapeutic strategies. The aim of this study was to identify a psychodynamic profile (personality characteristics and psychopathological diagnoses) and to relate it to the assessment of the risk of serious violence against partners in prison offenders in the prison service of the Province of Cordoba. An ex post facto descriptive research design was chosen. The population studied comprised inmates detained in Prison Complex Nº 1 Reverend Father Luchesse, homicide offenders, and perpetrators of serious and very serious injuries against their partners or ex-partners. The instruments applied to the participants in the psychiatric interview were: the Five-Factor Reduced Personality Inventory (NEO FFI) and the modified Risk Prediction Scale for Serious Intimate Partner Violence (EPV-R). In the study of the presence of psychopathological diagnoses in the subjects investigated, it was determined that the majority did not present them, and in the group that did register them, it was alcohol/drug abuse in most cases. From the evaluation of the personality dimensions, it was observed that the level of Neuroticism of those evaluated was predominantly medium (followed by a high level), low level of Extraversion, and a medium level of Openness to experience in most cases. Regarding the Agreeableness dimension, the majority scored a medium level, followed by a high level. A medium-level was detected in the Responsibility dimension in half of the sample. It remains difficult to determine a homogeneous psychodynamic profile and its association with a predictable risk of violence for serious intimate partner offenders. Among the psychodynamic factors, emotional instability, the tendency to introversion and moderate to high paradoxical empathy stand out. They are impulsive and rigid in their beliefs and behavior, which indicates a high vulnerability in their mental health.