Legal factors associated with change in alcohol use and partner violence among offenders.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive social concern that may be exacerbated by high rates of alcohol dependence among perpetrators. Society has attempted to combat IPV through various legal interventions, but the effects of specific legal factors on behavioral change and treatment compliance remain largely unexamined. The primary focus of the current study was to comprehensively evaluate the impact of various legal factors (i.e., judicial mandate, judicial monitoring, stage of change, and stake in conformity) on mandatory treatment compliance and behavioral change over a 12 week post-adjudication period among a high-risk sample of alcohol dependent IPV offenders (N = 60). Growth curve analyses revealed effects of judicial monitoring and stage of change such that participants reporting low perceived judicial monitoring and early stages of change reported higher initial levels and a more rapid reduction in IPV than those reporting high perceived judicial monitoring and late stages of change, who reported consistently low IPV. Although we found that legal factors were poor predictors of treatment compliance and alcohol use during treatment, the association between alcohol and IPV was moderated by the legal factors. Stake in conformity was negatively associated with IPV among low alcohol users and positively associated among high alcohol users whereas stage of change was negatively associated with IPV among high alcohol users. The current results suggest that pretreatment legal factors may represent an important consideration in reducing IPV among alcohol dependent offenders. Further research is required to determine the efficacy of legal factors in isolation of treatment as well as methods of manipulating these factors to optimally compliment a prescribed course of treatment.

The occurrence of female-to-male partner violence among male intimate partner violence offenders mandated to treatment: a brief research report.

Little is known about the perceived perpetration of female-to-male intimate partner violence by victims of male offenders mandated to treatment. Sixty-eight male perpetrators of partner violence completed measures of dyadic violent and aggressive responding at intake and at a 12-week follow-up. Approximately 20% of male offenders reported partner violence perpetration and 30% reported victimization with bidirectional violence as the most common configuration of couple violence. Maladaptive responses to conflict were prevalent across partners. Significant and highly correlated reductions in aversive behaviors were detected across the assessment period for both males and their female partners. Results are interpreted within the context of motivational models of female-to-male partner violence and current treatment approaches.

Treatment of co-occurring alcohol dependence and perpetration of intimate partner violence: the role of anger expression.

The purpose of the current study was to examine the role of high self-reported anger on violence and substance use across treatment. Seventy-three, alcohol-dependent males, with a domestic violence arrest within the past year, completed baseline anger measures and engaged in a 12 week cognitive behavioral therapy or 12 step facilitation group. Monthly assessments of substance use and violence were completed. At baseline, participants high on anger expression reported more physical violence in the prior month and more violent arrests. Participants high on anger expression had a greater proportion of positive breathalyzers across treatment, higher frequency of reported drug use across treatment, and higher reported frequency of verbal violence at discharge. These findings suggests that participants who are high on anger expression may need longer-term or more intensive treatments to maintain gains made during treatment because of the increased risk of relapse to both substance use and violence.

A cognitive behavioral therapy for alcohol-dependent domestic violence offenders: an integrated substance abuse-domestic violence treatment approach (SADV).

This pilot study evaluated the efficacy of a twelve-session cognitive behavioral group therapy for alcohol-dependent males with co-occurring interpersonal violence (IPV). Participants were 85 alcohol-dependent males who were arrested for domestic violence within the past year. Seventy-eight male adults were randomized to either a cognitive behavioral Substance Abuse Domestic Violence (SADV) group (N = 40) or a Twelve-Step Facilitation (TSF) Group (N = 38). There was no significant difference between SADV versus TSF in the number of sessions attended. Regarding substance use, the group assigned to SADV reported using alcohol significantly fewer days (eg, 90 days of abstinence across the 12 weeks of treatment) as compared to the TSF group. Regarding physical violence, there was a trend for participants in the SADV condition to achieve a greater reduction in the frequency of violent episodes across time compared to individuals in the TSF group. These data suggest the promise of the SADV group therapy approach for alcohol-dependent males with a history of IPV who present for substance abuse treatment.