Factors Contributing to a Military Commander's Decision Making Process in Spouse Abuse Cases

摘要

Anecdotal evidence suggests that inconsistencies exist among military commanders when making disciplinary decisions on substantiated spouse abuse offenders. This may be due to inadequate training, unclear role expectations, conflicting policy statements, or personal biases. Such a situation may consequently lead to inappropriate decisions, potentially further endangering the short- and long-term safety of victims. It may also have a deleterious impact on offenders and the readiness posture of the military mission itself. Therefore, decision-making among commanders when disciplining spouse abuse offenders was identified as warranting empirical examination. This study sought to address the problem by asking four research questions: (1) To what extent do individual and organizational factors explain commanders' decision outcomes when making disciplinary decisions on cases with varying degrees of spouse abuse seventy.; (2) To what extent do individual and organizational factors explain commanders' decision-making style.; (3) Do commanders' level of seniority and attitudes toward sex-role egalitarianism determine how they perceive their role when responding to spouse abuse offenders.; and (4) As a group, will commanders' decision outcomes differ across cases with varying degrees of spouse abuse severity. The study's conceptual framework was grounded in role, feminist, and decision theories.