Batterer Intervention Programs: The Past, and Future Prospects (From Coordinating Community Responses to Domestic Violence: Lessons From Duluth and Beyond, P 127-150, 1999, Melanie F. Shepard and Ellen L. Pence, eds. -- See NCJ-180760)

• NCJ Number: 180765
• Author(s): Fernando Mederos
• Date Published: 1999
• Length: 24 pages
• Sale Source: Sage Publications, Inc
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Intervention programs for abusing spouses are discussed with respect to the focus and purpose of batterer intervention programs, the basic tasks of these programs, the factors that distinguish the batterer intervention model in Duluth, Minn., from other intervention models, areas needing more attention in these programs, and future challenges.

Abstract

The focus of treatment for batterers has expanded beyond teaching men to stop violence to helping them end their ongoing pattern of coercive control. Pioneering programs in the mid-1970's focused on reframing violent acts as examples of controlling behaviors rather than impulsive or random eruptions of violence and developed a common framework for counseling physically abusive men. These voluntary programs had poor attendance and carried some of the same limitations of mental health approaches in that they focused only on the offender and the spouse. In contrast, the Duluth model established in 1980-81 situated battered intervention groups in a community-wide framework of institutions that held physically abusive men accountable and provided safety for victims of violence and their children. It also took a different approach to counseling battering men by launching a cultural offensive on domestic violence. The curriculum uses 13 videotapes illustrating typical abusive behaviors and includes 27 lesson plans that other groups can use. However, batterer intervention programs face restricted resources, other major challenges, and a narrow constituency. Overcoming these obstacles will require expansion of resources, probably by consolidating alliances with the battered women's movement, although the basis for such an alliance is currently not well defined. These efforts need a strong, flexible structure that emphasizes both women's safety and holding men accountable while opening as many routes as possible for offenders to reach these goals and should also consider further dissolving the boundaries between batterer intervention programs and the communities they serve. 32 references