A Group-Centered Approach to Exploring Sexual Respect in Batterer Intervention Programs

Partner Abuse ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 373-387
Author(s):  
Kevin Fall ◽  
Paulina Flasch

Intimate partner violence is a serious social and public health issue often treated via psychoeducational groups in batterer intervention programs. The topic of sexual respect is a universal component in these groups, but traditional approaches may be too structured to address its complexity. This article outlines examples of how to select and process issues related to sexual violence and sexual respect in a way that honors group dynamics and process and accounts for various stages of offender accountability. We offer a curriculum that uses a careful selection of topics that is related to the skills deficit of the members, while utilizing the power of the group to facilitate the discussion. Specifically, we outline how sexual respect can be addressed in the low-accountability forming stage, the medium-to-high accountability norming/storming stage, and the high accountability performing stage in batterer intervention programs.

Author(s):  
Adam M. Messinger

Intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention education, batterer intervention programs, and victim treatment services are often designed in part to help participants identify and undermine the causes of IPV so as to facilitate rehabilitation and limit future perpetration. Thus, understanding the causes of transgender IPV (T-IPV) is of vital importance to ending it. By drawing on both the T-IPV and the broader cisgender IPV research literatures, this chapter reviews emerging theories of the causes of T-IPV. These theorized causes include many that also have been identified in the cisgender IPV literature—including rationalizing abuse, socialization into IPV-condoning attitudes, and power imbalances—in addition to several causes unique to T-IPV, including transphobia-related perpetration theories and transphobia-related victimization vulnerability theories. Supporting evidence for and gaps in our knowledge about these causes also are reviewed.


Partner Abuse ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 359-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
JoAnna Elmquist ◽  
John Hamel ◽  
Ryan C. Shorey ◽  
Lindsay Labrecque ◽  
Andrew Ninnemann ◽  
...  

Research has attempted to elucidate men and women’s proximal motivations for perpetrating intimate partner violence (IPV). However, previous research has yet to clarify and resolve contention regarding whether motives for IPV are gender-neutral or gender-specific. Thus, the purpose of this study was to compare motives for physical IPV perpetration among a sample of men (n = 90) and women (n = 87) arrested for domestic violence and court referred to batterer intervention programs. Results demonstrated that the most frequently endorsed motives for IPV by both men and women were self-defense, expression of negative emotions, and communication difficulties. With the exception of expression of negative emotions and retaliation, with women endorsing these motives more often than men, there were no significant differences between men and women’s self-reported reasons for perpetrating physical aggression. The implications of these findings for future research and intervention programs are discussed.


Partner Abuse ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 409-428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shelly M. Wagers ◽  
Margaret Pate ◽  
Anne Brinkley

Throughout the United States, individuals are being court-ordered to attend batterer intervention programs (BIPs). BIPs were developed as an option to punish offenders for intimate partner violence (IPV) at the misdemeanor level. The purpose of BIPs is to hold batterers accountable and reduce the likelihood of recurring battery. However, determining the effectiveness of such programs has proven difficult because of the differences across programs and the uniqueness of individual batterers. In any case, there are best practices identified in the literature for particular components of BIPs such as practitioner education and training, proper intake and assessment, and offender oversight. In this article, we review the literature on the history of BIPs as well as the best practices identified earlier. Furthermore, the article describes an exploratory study that surveyed 7 local BIP practitioners. The questionnaire assessed practitioners’ practices and their compliance with current state standards as well as evidence-based practices recommended in the literature. The responses provided insight into the difficulties that practitioners face in meeting current state standards as well as practices outlined in empirical research. We conclude with a discussion on the issue of treating all batterers the same as well as areas for future study in the field of batterer intervention.


Partner Abuse ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. PA-D-20-00005

In this study, we explain the importance of treatment integrity by listing and exploring state standards for service providers of intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrator programs across the United States. The overall expectations of batterer intervention programs (BIPs) will be discussed as we compare and contrast the Duluth Model with evidence-based practice. Expectations of treatment efficacy will be explored from the stance of the professional code of ethics and ethical practice. The context for this article is inspired by the following issues: (a) mental health professionals’ ethical obligations to clients and to standards of practice; (b) the value of treatment integrity; (c) expectations regarding program efficacy; (d) the nature of court-mandated batterer intervention programs. Potential ethical concerns that are explored include: failure to consider and utilize research evidence, failure to ensure treatment integrity, inadequate assessment/diagnosis, failure to connect assessment to treatment, using a diagnosis on a client not identified in the DSM–V, giving a diagnosis without proper credentials or evaluation of the client, and imploring a homogeneous approach to a complex behavior.


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