Family Interventions In Domestic Violence

In this exciting new book John Hamel, author of the ground-breaking Gender-Inclusive Treatment of Intimate Partner Abuse, and Tonia Nicholls go beyond the traditional intervention theories of domestic violence practiced today. Offering alternative, unbiased and sometimes controversial views, theories, and current research, they, along with renowned contributors in the field, provide new treatment options that encompass a wide range of gender dynamics. Here are just some of the key principles covered: Interventions Should Be Based on a Thorough Unbiased Assessment Victim/Perpetrator Distinctions are Overstated, and Much Partner Abuse is Mutual Regardless of Perpetrator Gender, Child Witnesses to Partner Abuse are Adversely Affected, and are at Risk for Perpetrating Partner Abuse as Adults This new gender-inclusive approach to assessment and intervention provides a significant departure from traditional paradigms of domestic violence, and offers a much-needed awareness to effectively prevent violence in our communities today and for future generations.

With a foreword by Barbara W. White, PhD, University of Texas at Austin The definitive work on battered women is now in a timely third edition. Considered the complete, in-depth guide to effective interventions for this pervasive social disease, Battered Women and Their Families has been updated to include new case studies, cultural perspectives, and assessment protocols. In an area of counseling that cannot receive enough attention, Dr. Robert's work stands out as an essential treatment tool for all clinical social workers, nurses, physicians, and graduate students who work with battered women on a daily basis. New chapters on same-sex violence, working with children in shelters, immigrant women affected by domestic violence, and elder mistreatment round out this unbiased, multicultural look at treatment programs for battered women.

"The collected case examples are noteworthy in their diversity of presenting issue, treatment format, and outcome. As a whole, they underline our continued need to conduct assessments with clients prior to initiating treatment, to direct treatment toward identified client-related problems (in essence, meeting clients where they are), and to collect data that speaks to the effectiveness of our interventions in many settings and with many types of clients." -Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rohling, PhD, Professor of Psychology, University of South Alabama Shows how to successfully conduct family interventions using case studies Includes male-perpetrated, female-perpetrated, and mutual violence scenarios Presents a variety of theoretical orientations Includes discussion questions after each case study This casebook showcases a wide variety of couples and families whose domestic violence cases vary in their composition, ethnic and socioeconomic status, and mental health issues. The case authors outline different therapeutic approaches for each case, including cognitive-behavioral, family systems, feminist, problem-solving, and many others. Each account includes a thorough description of the assessment procedure, treatment goals and reasons for selecting a particular approach and an account of the course of treatment. The book is primarily intended for mental health professionals and graduate students in the fields of family therapy, counseling, and family violence; but will also be of value to anyone in the field of family violence and those concerned with domestic violence public policy, prevention, and intervention.

Up to 65% of couples who seek therapy for marital problems have had at least one prior violent episode. Unfortunately, therapists often miss this critical information because they do not effectively assess for it. This book presents a safety-focused approach to assessment and treatment of couples who choose to remain together after one or both partners have been violent. Treatment options for intimate partner violence have evolved alongside the growing awareness and broader definitions of domestic violence. Since 1997 the authors have conducted Domestic Violence Focused Couples Treatment (DVFCT), collected data, and refined their program. The authors outline their assessment and screening process and share case illustrations to demonstrate when conjoint treatment can be a safe and viable option. Readers get an overview of the 18-session course of DVFCT and tips for adapting it for multi-couple groups or for a single couple. The major tenets of solution-focused therapy, such as underscoring even the smallest of successes, are emphasized throughout, as are the following special features: -safety planning -mindfulness techniques for anger awareness and reduction -negotiated time-out procedures -drug and alcohol use modules -psychoeducational tools and materials on violence Therapists will learn how to assess intimate partner violence and help couples eliminate all forms of violence and begin on a positive path toward their vision of a healthy relationship.

This practical text offers professional guidance on stopping domestic violence in couples and families and promoting healing and safety in its aftermath. Rich in theoretical diversity (attachment, trauma, feminist, narrative) and inclusive of family structures and forms of violence, the coverage takes an approach to understanding both complex circumstances and intervening with families. The tasks of healing, from reestablishing trust to fostering positive coping, are clearly linked to effects of abuse such as unresolved loss, blunted trauma responses, poor emotion regulation, and damaged relational esteem. And because sustained safety is crucial to well-being, the authors extend their concepts of safety to include professionals’ own experience, security, and self-care. Among the topics covered: · Living with violence in the family: retrospective recall of women’s childhood experiences. · How to help stop the violence: using a safety methodology across the life span. · Helping couples separate safely: working towards safe separations. · Healing and repair in relationships: working therapeutically with couples. · Working systemically with parents, children, and adult survivors when the abuse stops. · Supervision and consultation with practitioners who intervene with families and trauma. Intervening After Violence: Therapy for Couples and Families is an essential resource for social workers and mental health professionals engaged in clinical practice seeking strategies for working therapeutically and systematically with couples and families coping with physical and emotional violence.

Reports of mistreated children, domestic violence, and abuse of elderly persons continue to strain the capacity of police, courts, social services agencies, and medical centers. At the same time, myriad treatment and prevention programs are providing services to victims and offenders. Although limited research knowledge exists regarding the effectiveness of these programs, such information is often scattered, inaccessible, and difficult to obtain. Violence in Families takes the first hard look at the successes and failures of family violence interventions. It offers recommendations to guide services, programs, policy, and research on victim support and assistance, treatments and penalties for offenders, and law enforcement. Included is an analysis of more than 100 evaluation studies on the outcomes of different kinds of programs and services. Violence in Families provides the most comprehensive review on the topic to date. It explores the scope and complexity of family violence, including identification of the multiple types of victims and offenders, who require different approaches to intervention. The book outlines new strategies that offer promising approaches for service providers and researchers and for improving the evaluation of prevention and treatment services. Violence in Families discusses issues that underlie all types of family violence, such as the tension between family support and the protection of children, risk factors that contribute to violent behavior in families, and the balance between family privacy and community interventions. The core of the book is a research-based review of interventions used in three institutional sectors--social services, health, and law enforcement settings--and how to measure their effectiveness in combating maltreatment of children, domestic violence, and abuse of the elderly. Among the questions explored by the committee: Does the child protective services system work? Does the threat of arrest deter batterers? The volume discusses the strength of the evidence and highlights emerging links among interventions in different institutional settings. Thorough, readable, and well organized, Violence in Families synthesizes what is known and outlines what needs to be discovered. This volume will be of great interest to policymakers, social services providers, health care professionals, police and court officials, victim advocates, researchers, and concerned individuals.

A feminist psychological perspective on the treatment of battered women partners is taken by this volume, which offers a challenge to traditional family therapy intervention in family violence. Experts on legal, ethical and practical issues propose alternatives to the family systems approach and address key areas such as: the psychological state of women who remain in violent relationships; current laws governing family violence; training therapists to recognize family violence; multiethnic perspectives on the problem; and the impact of abusive parental relationships on children. Specific guidelines for individual work with victims are also presented.

The book aims to explore the exciting opportunities offered by a systemic approach for mental health professionals and psychotherapists when working with families and other systems where domestic violence in intimate relationships is of concern. The main purpose of the book lies in the application of systemic thinking to safety and to understanding the complexity of domestic violence on family relationships over time. The authors outline their approach to these complex issues based on their eight years of joint experience in the Reading Safer Families project. They draw from a broad field of family psychology and systemic psychotherapy to distil the theories, methods and techniques most helpful to practitioners working in modern public and voluntary agencies. Their systemic approach to issues of risk, responsibility and collaboration provides a coherent framework within which to integrate practice. The book also provides a practice orientated and detailed approach to risk assessment, risk management and family reunification. This book will be of interest to practitioners in clinical and educational psychology, social work, nursing, psychiatry, probation, health visiting, counselling and psychotherapy, who work with individuals living in intimate relationships where violence may be of concern, and also to practice supervisors, trainers, trainees and students in these disciplines.