Donald Dutton
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Donald G. Dutton | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 9, 1943 |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of Toronto (PhD, 1970) |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Psychology |
| Sub-discipline | Social psychology, Intimate partner violence |
| Institutions | University of British Columbia |
Donald George Dutton (born October 9, 1943)[1] is a Canadian psychologist who is known for his work on traumatic bonding and misattribution of arousal.[2][3] He is an expert on forensic psychology who has served as an expert witness in legal cases, including in the prosecution of O. J. Simpson.[4][5][6]
He received his Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Toronto in 1970, and is currently Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia.[7][8]
Dutton's research interests include the psychology of violence, social science epistemology, criminal justice, social psychological explanations for clinical syndromes, and personality disorders.[8]
In a famous experiment on misattribution of arousal, Dutton and Arthur Aron found that subjects were more sexually attracted to an experimenter when crossing a rickety bridge.[3][9]
Along with his co-author Susan Painter, Dutton coined the term "traumatic bonding",[2][10] referring to emotional attachments which "develop from two specific features of abusive relationships: power imbalances and intermittent good-bad treatment".[11][12]
Dutton is known for his research on intimate partner violence and the psychology of abusive behavior.[5] In 1979, he co-founded the Assaultive Husbands Project, a court-mandated treatment program for men convicted of spousal assault in Vancouver.[5] Dutton has been outspoken about the reality of domestic violence, that despite stereotypes it is actually perpetrated by both men and women.[4]
