To establish the annual prevalence of violence perpetrated by male partners in Québec couples, a telephone survey was conducted with 2,120 women. Validated instruments measured physically and sexually violent behaviors as well as controlling behaviors and verbal aggression. Victimization rates were 6.1% for physical violence and 6.8% for sexual violence. Sexual and physical violence were significantly higher in the presence of controlling and humiliating behaviors than they were in the absence of such behaviors. The results confirm the association of individual and social variables with violence in other studies and illustrate the importance of understanding the sociocultural context for the family status variables.
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