Violence Against Women, Ahead of Print.
Research on the effectiveness of protective orders indicates that they have only marginal protective value for the victim. The current research This exploratory study investigated how the physical distance and temporal distance between the victim and offender corresponds to the rate of protective order violations. Results indicated that the rate of protective order violations was reduced to virtually zero when the victim and offender lived 25 miles or more apart. Surprisingly, this condition held for all types of relationships examined (physical, telephone, and cyber). The study concludes with a discussion of the policy implications of the findings and suggestions for future research.