Which statement best reflects a common misconception about violence from women?

• A. Women are never violent.
• B. Men are always the perpetrators.
• C. Violence from women towards men receives no attention.
• D. Violence from women towards men receives minimal attention despite its occurrence.

Answer: (D)

Violence by women toward men does occur, but it is often overlooked or underreported because of gender norms and biases in how violence is discussed and studied. The best choice acknowledges that this violence happens yet receives minimal attention compared with male-perpetrated violence, reflecting how society and research tend to focus more on men as aggressors and women as victims. This explains why it’s easy to miss or downplay female-perpetrated violence against men.

It’s not accurate to say women are never violent, since there are documented cases. It’s also not true that men are always the perpetrators, as women can be perpetrators as well. And while violence by women toward men is not ignored entirely, it does not receive no attention at all; the attention it does get is typically far less than that given to violence against women or to male-perpetrated violence.