Summary
This article reviews the existing literature on differences in police response to IPV (intimate partner
violence) based on officer gender and suggests policy changes that could address common issues
identified in the research. Authors reviewed research on the effect of police officer gender on arrest rates
of abusers, the criteria officers consider when making the arrest decision, and whether officers and IPV
victims have a gender preference for the officers sent to IPV calls. Due to a lack of existing research, it
is unclear if officer gender has a significant effect on arrest rates in IPV cases. However, gender is
related to officers’ beliefs, stereotypes and reactions to IPV. There is evidence that a masculine police
culture affects men officers’ belief in negative stereotypes regarding women officers. These gender
differences are rooted in widely held beliefs in traditional gender roles and in the masculine police
culture that contends that IPV is not a serious crime. Based on a review of scholarly studies and
existing policies, we propose interventions to improve both the police response to IPV and the
elimination of the masculine police culture, including, but not limited to expansion of (and adherence
to) mandatory arrest, sensitivity training to the effects of police response on IPV victims, and
improved techniques of recruiting men officers. This is the first policy-oriented article to thoroughly
examine research on whether officer gender affects police response to IPV.