This article analyzes the motivation behind domestic violence based on the testimonies of men and women registered in police investigations by the Sixth Police Station for Women, Children and Adolescents in Florianópolis in the state of Santa Catarina in 2010. It is the result of a quantitative and qualitative survey conducted between August and November 2011. The information obtained in the investigation into domestic violence perpetrated by partners or ex-partners and containing the testimony of the couple in 172 police investigations was analyzed. The issues selected for analysis were the profile of the couple and the reports of violence according to the women and the men. The results showed that most of the couples were separated or divorced, aged between 31 and 40, gainfully employed and had lived together between one and eleven years. The assaults occurred due to drug use and/or jealousy. The men blamed the women for being responsible for their acts or played down the situation and claimed to be victims of violence committed by the partners. The study concludes that cultural issues of gender and socio-economic characteristics are linked to this type of violence, and showed that men do not acknowledge their actions as being violent, most often downplaying the consequences of such violence.
Domestic violence; Violence against women; Spousal abuse
