Research Article Critical Race Theory, Parenting, and Intimate Partner Violence: Analyzing Race and Gender Clare Cannon 1,2 , Regardt J. Ferreira 2,3 , and Fred Buttell 2,3 Abstract Purpose: This study sought to investigate similarities and differences among race, gender, parenting attitudes, and conflict negotiation tactics of perpetrators of intimate partner violence in a batterer intervention program. Method: This research utilized a nonequivalent, control group secondary analysis of 238 women and men. Results: Logistic regression indicated (1) an increased likelihood for scoring higher on the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS-2) physical assault subscale and Adult-Adolescent Parenting Inventory-2 (AAPI-2) high-risk parenting group for those in the African American category compared to the White category; (2) African American women are more likely to be unemployed, score higher on the CTS-2 Physical Assault subscale, and in the high-risk AAPI-2 parenting group than African American men; and (3) White women are more likely to experience injury and score in the high-risk AAPI-2 group compared to White men. Conclusions: Critical race theory provides a necessary understanding of these findings within structural inequality in the United States. Further results and implications are discussed. Keywords critical race theory, intimate partner violence, parenting attitudes, domestic violence perpetrators, batterer intervention pro- grams, CTS-2 The causes and consequences of intimate partner violence (IPV), a pernicious and pervasive social problem, have been widely documented for male perpetrators (Archer, 2000; Bab- cock et al., 2016; Ferreira, Lauve-Moon, & Cannon, 2017; for meta-analytic review, Norlander & Eckhardt, 2005; Pence & Paymar, 1993). The negative consequences of such violence are well-established with many studies describing its effect on families, intimate partners, and children, exacerbating co- occurring social burdens, and including both poverty and racial and gender discrimination (see Breiding et al., 2014). Only recently, a growing body of literature is beginning to investi- gate the motivations, experiences, and treatment of female perpetrators of IPV (e.g., Archer, 2000; Desmarais, Reeves, Nichools, Telford, & Fiebert, 2012; Williams, Ghandour, & Kub, 2008; White & Dutton, 2013). Currently, many scholars argue that the majority of IPV is bidirectional (for meta- analysis, see Langhinrichsen-Rohling, Selwyn, & Rohling, 2012). In treating perpetrators of domestic violence, batterer intervention programs (BIPs) have become the most prevalent option after a criminal domestic violence plea or conviction (Carney & Buttell, 2006; B. J. Price & Rosenbaum, 2009). Although recent studies have investigated relationships between parenting attitudes and IPV (e.g., Burnette, Ferreira, & Buttell, 2017; Cannon & Ferreira, 2017; Ferreira et al., 2017; Valentino, Nuttall, Comas, Borkowski, & Akai, 2012), more research is necessary to understand differences between perpetrators along lines of race and gender. For instance, sev- eral studies show that African American women use violence in their intimate relationships differently than White women (Pot- ter, 2008; West, 2007, 2016) and understand violence differ- ently from White women in their parenting attitudes (Dorsey, Forehand, & Brody, 2007). For instance, a few studies have shown that African American mothers may use corporal pun- ishment to prepare their children for institutional structures that disproportionately target their children (e.g., Simmons, Lehmann, & Dia, 2010; Taylor, Manganello, Lee, & Rice, 2010). To further explicate key dynamics among race, gender, parenting attitudes, and IPV, this study applies insights from critical race theory (CRT; e.g., Abrams & Moio, 2009; Bakan & Dua, 2014; Bell, 1995; Crenshaw, 1991, 2011; Delgado & Stefancic, 2012; P. L. Price, 2010; Washington, Cannon, & Buttell, 2017). To this end, this research adds to the field in 1 Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA, USA 2 Department of Social Work, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa 3 Tulane University School of Social Work, New Orleans, LA, USA Corresponding Author: Clare Cannon, Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, 1 Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616, USA. Email: cebcannon@ucdavis.edu Research on Social Work Practice 1-13 ª The Author(s) 2018 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1049731518784181 journals.sagepub.com/home/rsw