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Responding to Men Who Perpetrate Domestic Violence: Controversies, Interventions and Challenges

NCJ Number
213269
Author(s)
Dr. Lesley Laing
Date Published
2002
Length
31 pages
Annotation
After reviewing theories and interventions associated with domestic violence, this study used recent international research to examine evidence of the effectiveness of programs for men who commit domestic violence.
Abstract
Evaluations of perpetrator treatment programs that have used an experimental design have led to varying conclusions by different researchers, and there are still questions about the integrity of these experiments and whether the outcomes can be achieved in other jurisdictions. Given the varied findings of evaluations of individual programs, one study persuasively argues that refining therapeutic/educational techniques for treating perpetrators is not as important to outcomes as system development, i.e., the creation and implementation of integrated, multidisciplinary responses that encompass both victim and perpetrator interventions as well as communitywide prevention and support strategies. Thus, programs for perpetrators are but one component of a coordinated response to domestic violence that holds perpetrators accountable while enhancing the safety of victims and their children. One section of this paper describes three perspectives on the causes of male violence in intimate relationships and the types of interventions that stem from these perspectives. Approaches to understanding and responding to perpetrators of domestic violence have thus far tended to be polarized, either emphasizing an individual/psychological or a sociopolitical perspective. This has led to the development of programs that either emphasizes therapeutic treatment to overcome a psychological problem, directive re-education to change attitudes toward women and how men relate to them, or punishment that interrupts criminal behavior. The implications of these findings are drawn for Australia, with a focus on developing responses to violence within Aborigines families. 147 references and 24 notes