How bad is bad? Perceptual differences in the communication of severity in intimate partner violence

This study investigates discrepancies in how the severity of intimate partner violence (IPV) is communicated in texts written by offenders, victims, and bystanders. Using a two-phase design, the study quantifies perceptual differences in severity ratings between narrators (those who experienced or witnessed the violence) and recipients (those who read the narratives). Key findings include a calibration effect (recipients rating violence more severely than narrators), particularly for victims and bystanders in sexual and physical, but not psychological, violence. Accuracy was lower for psychological violence. The study replicates prior findings on role and gender differences in severity ratings.

Sverker Sikström, Mats Dahl