Abstract

Involvement by formal and informal social agents plays a major role in coping with the problem of partner vio-lence (PV). The factors promoting this involvement may indicate how the problem is perceived, therefore it is crucial to identify them in order to understand and efficiently address PV. It is reasonable to assume that social involvement in PV is based on risk assessment performed by formal social agents (police officers, med-ical doctors, social workers, etc.) and informal ones (relatives, neighbors, and friends). Risk assessment is a process of evaluating the probability of injury in PV (Kropp, 2008). The higher the risk of injury, the higher is the probability of social involvement. Risk of injury can be determined by two parameters: the severity of violence used by the aggressor and the resiliency of the victim to this aggression. The main question in this study is whether the sex of the aggressor and the sever-ity of his or her aggression affect formal and informal social agents ’ involvement. Informal involvement and support in PV is most often provided by relatives and friends (Gondolf & Fisher, 1988; Horton & Johnson, 1993), and it includes advice, encouragement, financial assistance, accommodation, and child care (Goodkind, Gillum, Bybee, & Sullivan, 2003). Formal involvement and support are provided by a plethora of organizations and agencies, including law enforcement, welfare, health, women’s associations, and other bodies, specifically dedicated to helping battered