Characteristics of Intimate Partner Homicide in China: Compared With Previous Studies in Other Countries

Abstract

Advancing towards modernization and urbanization, China is currently witnessing a soaring increase in intimate partner homicide (IPH). The present study sought to explore the characteristics of IPHs in China. Data from 979 judgments of this lethal serious crime were analyzed. In comparison with studies from other parts of the world, this study determined the characteristics of IPHs in China in terms of perpetrators, victims, incidents, and types of intimate relationships. Although the previous theoretical research has given reasonable explanations for IPHs, the relationship between perpetrator and victim is actually a neglected area in the study of IPHs. In this study, we found that the relationship between them played a leading role in understanding IPHs in China.