Alcohol and intimate partner violence - what do longitudinal studies tell us? a systematic literature review

Background: While there is a strong association between alcohol and intimate partner violence, the majority of studies demonstrating this relationship are cross-sectional. There remains a vigorous debate as to whether there is a causal relationship between alcohol and IPV perpetration. Many argue that the apparent association may be moderated, or even confounded by other factors such as alcohol expectancies, male attitudes towards females, attitudes that aggression is acceptable, and personality characteristics such as antisocial personality disorder. Longitudinal studies may offer more information about a possible causal relationship.

Methods: A systematic search was conducted using the databases PubMed, Embase, PsycInfo, ASSIA and Sociologic Abstracts for studies published between between the dates of January of 1997 and June of 2012 , using a detailed search-strategy and cross-checking of reference lists. All studies focused on the relationship between alcohol and IPV and were longitudinal in design. The search resulted in 27 studies which met the inclusion criteria and were felt to be of sufficient quality.

Results/Discussion: A narrative synthesis of the findings of the 27 studies is presented with a discussion of the evidence for and against a causal relationship between alcohol and intimate partner violence.