When Gender Roles Turn Into Violence: Perspectives of Women and Men Perpetrators in Türkiye

ABSTRACT Gender equality, which is a fundamental human right, is quite low in Türkiye. Considering this situation, the study aimed to reveal the perceptions of adult women and men who perpetrate violence against their partners regarding violence and their gender perceptions. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyze the data collected through semi‐structured interviews. The study group consisted of 13 adult men and 7 women who had perpetrated violence against their partners. The findings were clustered under two main themes: Perceptions of Violence and Gender Roles. The results reveal that unequal gender roles determine participants' expectations from their partners and play a major role in the emergence of violence. Violence by men against women is characterized by a patriarchal structure in which men have the final say and women are compliant, while violence by women against their partners is characterized by men's lack of economic contribution. Therefore, unequal gender roles lead to unhealthy relationships for both men and women as components of society and it is important to develop effective and fair policies and interventions to address this.