Individual treatment Due to the high prevalence and devastating consequences of<unk> , approaches to decrease and prevent violence from re-occurring is of utmost importance. Initial police response and arrest is not always enough to protect victims from recurrence of abuse; thus, many states have mandated participation in batterer intervention programs (BIPs) for men who have been charged with assault against an<unk><unk> . Most of these BIPs are based on the Duluth model and incorporate some cognitive behavioral techniques. The Duluth model is one of the most common current interventions for<unk> . It represents a psycho-educational approach that was developed by paraprofessionals from information gathered from interviewing battered women in shelters and using principles from feminist and sociological frameworks. One of the main components used in the Duluth model is the 'power and control wheel', which conceptualizes<unk>  as one form of abuse to maintain male privilege. Using the 'power and control wheel', the goal of treatment is to achieve behaviors that fall on the 'equality wheel' by re-educate men and by replacing maladaptive attitudes held by men. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques focus on modifying faulty or problematic cognitions, beliefs, and emotions to prevent future violent behavior and include skills training such as anger management, assertiveness, and relaxation techniques. Overall, the addition of Duluth and CBT approaches results in a 5% reduction in<unk> . This low reduction rate might be explained, at least in part, by the high prevalence of bidirectional violence as well as client-treatment matching versus “one-size-fits-all” approaches. Achieving change through values-based behavior (ACTV) is a newly developed Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)-based program. Developed by domestic violence researcher Amie Zarling and colleagues at Iowa State University, the aim of ACTV is teach abusers "situational awareness"—to recognize and tolerate uncomfortable feelings – so that they can stop themselves from exploding into rage. Initial evidence of the ACTV program has shown high promise: Using a sample 3,474 men who were arrested for domestic assault and court-mandated to a BIP (either ACTV or Duluth/CBT), Zarling and colleagues showed that compared with Duluth/CBT participants, significantly fewer ACTV participants acquired any new charges, domestic assault charges, or violent charges. ACTV participants also acquired significantly fewer charges on average in the one year after treatment than Duluth/CBT participants. Psychological therapies for women probably reduce the resulting depression and anxiety, however it is unclear if these approaches properly address recovery from complex trauma and the need for safety planning. Conjoint treatment Some estimates show that as many as 50% of couples who experience<unk>  engage in some form of reciprocal violence. Nevertheless, most services address offenders and survivors separately. In addition, many couples who have experienced<unk>  decide to stay together. These couples may present to couples or family therapy. In fact, 37-58% of couples who seek regular outpatient treatment have experienced physical assault in the past year. In these cases, clinicians are faced with the decision as to whether they should accept or refuse to treat these couples. Although the use of conjoint treatment for<unk>  is controversial as it may present a danger to victims and potentially escalate abuse, it may be useful to others, such as couples experiencing situational couple violence. Scholars and practitioners in the field call for tailoring of interventions to various sub-types of violence and individuals served. Behavioral couple's therapy (BCT) is a cognitive-behavioral approach, typically delivered to outpatients in 15-20 sessions over several months. Research suggests that BCT can be effective in reducing<unk>  when used to treat co-occurring addictions, which is important work because<unk>  and substance abuse and misuse frequently co-occur. Domestic conflict containment program (DCCP) is a highly structured skills-based program whose goal is to teach couples conflict containment skills. Physical aggression couples treatment (PACT) is a modification of DCCP, which includes additional psychoeducational components designed to improve relationship quality, including such things as communication skills, fair fighting tactics, and dealing with gender differences, sex, and jealousy. The primary goal of domestic violence focused couples treatment (DVFCT) is to end violence with the additional goal of helping couples improve the quality of their relationships. It is designed to be conducted over 18 weeks and can be delivered in either individual or multi-couple group format. Advocacy Advocacy interventions have also been shown to have some benefits under specific circumstances. Brief advocacy may provide short-term mental health benefits and reduce abuse, particularly in pregnant women.
Intimate partner violence
Sexual violence
Domestic violence
Sexual assault
Childhood trauma
Anti-abortion violence
Marital rape
Botanical sexism