Rosenbaum and O'Leary (1981), marital discord proves to be the variable with which marital aggression shows the strongest correlation. Given the prevalence of marital aggression and its strong association with marital discord, a number of studies have examined the longitudinal impact of violence. Great attention is given to newlywed samples as these couples are characterized by greater levels of aggression (Suitor, Pillemer, & Straus, 1990) and they enable researchers to examine spousal aggression in its earliest phases. O'Leary et al (1989) reported that individuals in relationships with stable levels of aggression show significant decreases in marital satisfaction across a 30-month period. Quigley and Leonard (1996) examined the impact of aggression across three years and found that husband-to-wife aggression predicted decreases in wives' marital satisfaction. Given the strong association between marital quality and divorce risk (White & Booth, 1991), findings such as these lend support to the conclusion that marital aggression is a significant predictor of future divorce. Indeed, DeMaris (2000) found that male violence predicted separation/divorce; however, this effect was mediated by relationship quality. Studies that examine directly the relationship between aggression and divorce have found that physically aggressive couples were more likely to end their marriage in separation or divorce than non- aggressive couples (Lawrence & Bradbury, 2001) and premarital aggression was predictive of wives' future steps towards dissolution (Heyman, O'Leary, & Jouriles, 1995). Rogge and Bradury (1999) also confirmed the relation between aggression and marital dissolution with their finding that while dissatisfaction may be predicted by negative communication, the presence of marital violence foreshadows the occurrence of separation or divorce within the first four years of marriage. This finding suggests that the presence of aggression is associated with the rapid deterioration of the marital relationship. In short, the association between marital aggression and dissolution has received substantial support. Importantly, many individuals involved in abusive relationships fail to perceive themselves as martially discordant and are likely to downplay the aggression (O'Leary et al., 1989). These findings have critical practical implications as they suggest that partners at high risk of divorce as a result of aggression are likely to downplay the violence or make excuses, which may make them less likely to seek treatment for the