Preventing family violence: Investigating the theoretical orientations and techniques of New Zealand migrant communities

<p>While New Zealand legal and cultural sanctions against family violence are strong, representative surveys suggest that approximately 1 in 3 women has experienced physical violence from a partner in her lifetime, and every year approximately 14 women, 6 men, and 10 children die in New Zealand due to family violence. Evidence shows that family violence impacts members of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and migrant victims may suffer in silence more often than others due to social isolation and language or cultural barriers. Limited research is available on how the Duluth model, a popular feminist theoretical understanding of violence, is relevant to the experiences of migrants. This theory posits that patriarchal culture and men’s psychological desire for power and control facilitate violence toward women. As government agencies and community organizations act to prevent family violence, research is needed on how this model is relevant to understandings of violence that are prevalent in migrant communities. We must also increase our limited knowledge about how prevention efforts can be more inclusive of these groups. Two qualitative studies were conducted to explore these questions. In Study 1, I investigated the theoretical relevance of the Duluth model to New Zealand migrant communities, collecting data in partnership with two community groups that have organized informal family violence prevention initiatives. I conducted semi-structured interviews with community leaders and focus groups with community members. The findings suggest that participants viewed violence as caused either by desire for control (compatible with the Duluth model) or anger (incompatible). Participants articulated the need to balance rights (compatible) with responsibilities in interdependent, role-based family relationships (incompatible). Based on these findings, I suggest a two-pronged approach, where pre-violence prevention targets potential perpetrators by focusing on the responsibility to treat others well and post-violence intervention emphasizes victims’ rights. In Study 2, I analyzed the processes and strategies that community groups use to prevent violence. Data collection occurred during the same interviews and focus groups as the previous study, using a different set of questions and stimuli. My analysis indicated that participants used prevention strategies that validated and reduced ambivalence about the harmful nature of non-physical violence. Particularly in religious communities, leaders invoked aspirational cultural ideals that were intended to motivate positive behaviors and encourage healthy relationships. At the community level, participants identified opportunities to improve multilevel communication in order to enhance the benefits of cultural community engagement. I suggest that in addition to thoroughly evaluating these approaches for efficacy in migrant communities, we should consider how these approaches might be beneficially employed in mainstream initiatives. These findings suggest that nuanced understandings of family interdependence and responsibility can increase the relevance of family violence prevention campaigns to migrant communities. The findings and recommendations were synthesized into a framework for migrant community groups and their government partners. While research is needed to examine the effects of these strategies, they may increase the applicability of prevention initiatives to migrant communities and may also be explored as appropriate strategies for mainstream prevention campaigns.</p>

Preventing family violence: Investigating the theoretical orientations and techniques of New Zealand migrant communities

<p>While New Zealand legal and cultural sanctions against family violence are strong, representative surveys suggest that approximately 1 in 3 women has experienced physical violence from a partner in her lifetime, and every year approximately 14 women, 6 men, and 10 children die in New Zealand due to family violence. Evidence shows that family violence impacts members of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and migrant victims may suffer in silence more often than others due to social isolation and language or cultural barriers. Limited research is available on how the Duluth model, a popular feminist theoretical understanding of violence, is relevant to the experiences of migrants. This theory posits that patriarchal culture and men’s psychological desire for power and control facilitate violence toward women. As government agencies and community organizations act to prevent family violence, research is needed on how this model is relevant to understandings of violence that are prevalent in migrant communities. We must also increase our limited knowledge about how prevention efforts can be more inclusive of these groups. Two qualitative studies were conducted to explore these questions. In Study 1, I investigated the theoretical relevance of the Duluth model to New Zealand migrant communities, collecting data in partnership with two community groups that have organized informal family violence prevention initiatives. I conducted semi-structured interviews with community leaders and focus groups with community members. The findings suggest that participants viewed violence as caused either by desire for control (compatible with the Duluth model) or anger (incompatible). Participants articulated the need to balance rights (compatible) with responsibilities in interdependent, role-based family relationships (incompatible). Based on these findings, I suggest a two-pronged approach, where pre-violence prevention targets potential perpetrators by focusing on the responsibility to treat others well and post-violence intervention emphasizes victims’ rights. In Study 2, I analyzed the processes and strategies that community groups use to prevent violence. Data collection occurred during the same interviews and focus groups as the previous study, using a different set of questions and stimuli. My analysis indicated that participants used prevention strategies that validated and reduced ambivalence about the harmful nature of non-physical violence. Particularly in religious communities, leaders invoked aspirational cultural ideals that were intended to motivate positive behaviors and encourage healthy relationships. At the community level, participants identified opportunities to improve multilevel communication in order to enhance the benefits of cultural community engagement. I suggest that in addition to thoroughly evaluating these approaches for efficacy in migrant communities, we should consider how these approaches might be beneficially employed in mainstream initiatives. These findings suggest that nuanced understandings of family interdependence and responsibility can increase the relevance of family violence prevention campaigns to migrant communities. The findings and recommendations were synthesized into a framework for migrant community groups and their government partners. While research is needed to examine the effects of these strategies, they may increase the applicability of prevention initiatives to migrant communities and may also be explored as appropriate strategies for mainstream prevention campaigns.</p>

Effectiveness of the Prison-Based Duluth Programme for Perpetrators of Domestic Violence in Light if Return to Crime – Polish Experience

Domestic violence is a phenomenon on which, for many years, there have been turbulent discussions in Poland – not only in the media and political forums, but also in the scientific community. The article presents analyses on the effectiveness of one of the key programmes addressed to perpetrators of domestic violence who are serving their sentences in prison. The Duluth programme, also known as the Duluth model, is essentially aimed at perpetrators of violence against female partners, however, it has seen many modifications and is widely used in the case of both custodial and non-custodial sentences. The results obtained indicate statistically significant differences in return to crime depending on whether the convicted person participated in the programme for perpetrators of violence or not. Among the convicts in the experimental group, i.e. those who had completed the program, the return-to-crime rate was 37%, whereas in the control group it was 55% – that is, it was significantly higher among those who had not completed the programme. As already mentioned, these differences were statistically significant.

The Appropriateness of the Duluth Model for Intimate Partner Violence and Child-to-Parent Violence: A Conceptual Review

Research demonstrates that child-to-parent violence (CPV), an under researched form of family violence, is associated with intimate partner violence (IPV). The aim of this article is to critically explore the influence of the Duluth model of IPV on the overarching conceptual frameworks used to explain CPV. Although gender socialization could indeed be a factor implicated in CPV, the prefixed assumptions of the Duluth model about gender as the ultimate etiological factor, have shaped and dominated the discourses of CPV resulting in devaluation of a range of other factors pertinent for understanding this type of violence. It has been established that violence, and more specifically family violence, is a highly complex phenomenon that has history and continuity; as such contextual, multi-modal explanations are favored (Asen & Fonagy, 2017). This article discusses the tenets of the theory and consequently, its influence on discourses around etiology and maintenance of this narrative. Future recommendations include ecological, lifespan approaches based upon tailored, evidence-based interventions.

Extending the Duluth Model to Workplace Bullying: A Modification and Adaptation of the Workplace Power-Control Wheel

Workplace bullying (WB) is an increasingly prevalent topic in the nursing literature. Recently, a new concept has been introduced into WB research to explain the motivations of WB instigators using elements of the Power-Control Wheel (PCW). Initially, this wheel was designed to assist intimate partner violence (IPV) targets/victims identify patterns of abuse and intervene with male batterers/instigators. Research examining IPV and victims/survivors of WB demonstrate that targets often share common abusive experiences, including intimidation, coercion and threats, isolation, and economic and emotional abuse. This article demonstrates clear support for the Duluth Model and its application to WB target experiences. Applications of this model to identify WB and assist individuals to identify and describe experiences of abusive work environments are discussed.

A Qualitative Study of Intimate Partner Violence From a Cognitive-Behavioral Perspective

There is growing interest in the application of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to intimate partner violence (IPV) as a companion or possibly preferred approach to the Duluth model. The literature includes descriptions of adaptions of cognitive-behavioral (CB) treatment to IPV and even some treatment outcome studies. Yet, these adaptions are not typically grounded in the empirical examination of IPV focusing on phenomena specifically relevant to CB theory. The aim of this qualitative inquiry was to examine IPV from a CB perspective to lay the foundation for related treatment and research. Twelve heterosexual victims residing in shelters completed structured audiotaped interviews focusing on CB phenomena, that is, the cognitions, behaviors, feelings, interactions, and conditions victims experienced before, during, and after an IPV incident. Transcripts were coded and analyzed to develop a comprehensive categorized list of discrete IPV phenomena over time. Among the findings relating to violent incidents was indication that despite the progression of abuse that compel couples uncontrollably toward a violent episode, partners often engage in numerous preventive actions that turn out to be ineffective. The findings are ultimately intended to lay the groundwork for an instrument that can more accurately and comprehensively measure IPV phenomena emphasizing CB core concepts. Such a tool could be of benefit to CB therapists and researchers seeking to understand, identify, and target IPV behaviors.

Lessons from the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme, for the implementation of Building Better Relationships

This paper offers reflections on the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme (IDAP), and its implications for the Building Better Relationships programme (BBR), which has now replaced IDAP as the main criminal justice intervention for male domestic violence perpetrators in England and Wales. While the BBR programme should be regarded with optimism, many of the principles underpinning IDAP are of ongoing relevance for practice with abusive men. There has been a tendency to distort IDAP and the broader Duluth model in discussions of interventions for perpetrators of domestic abuse. Although the BBR programme constitutes some changes of direction, its successful implementation requires continuity in the application of facilitator judgement, knowledge of group dynamics, non-judgemental dialogue, willingness to ‘challenge’, and responsiveness to individual service users.

Pacific Peoples, Violence, and the Power and Control Wheel

This qualitative project was the first to study values and practices about sexual assault among migrant communities from the Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Samoa, Tokelau, Tonga, and Tuvalu in New Zealand. It aimed to identify customs, beliefs, and practices among these ethnic groups that were protective and preventive factors against sexual violence. Researchers were ethnically matched with 78 participants from the seven ethnic communities, and conducted individual interviews and one female focus group using protocols that were culturally appropriate for each ethnic group. Interviews were thematically analyzed. The study identified the brother–sister covenant and the sanctity of women as strong protective and preventive factors against sexual violence, expressed differently in each culture. Most participants viewed sexual violence as involving their extended families, village, and church communities, rather than solely the individuals concerned. However, the communal values and practices of these seven Pacific cultures raise questions about the individualistic assumptions and the meaning of violence underlying the Power and Control Wheel and the Duluth Model of domestic violence. It also raises questions about how such an individualized model can help services effectively support women in these collective societies who are experiencing violence, and how it can contribute to Pacific community prevention of violence. This study is therefore relevant to countries with significant populations of Pacific peoples and other collective cultures.