Domestic Violence Treatment Programs - Thesis Proposal Example

? Domestic Violence Treatment Programs: Effective or Not Effective Natalie Brownell New England College Domestic violence is a problem in the United States. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) (2011) more than 70,000 people in the United States were victims of domestic violence in 2010. This means that at any given time, most people will know someone who is abusing someone else or they may be a victim of abuse themselves. There are domestic violence treatment programs for those who abuse, but the question is whether these programs are effective in preventing continued violence. Also, it is important to understand what aspects of a program make it successful. The purpose of this project is to find out the aspects of a domestic violence treatment program that will make sure that people do not repeat the violence. I intend to read several books and professional journal articles that provide information about domestic violence and the psychological aspects of the problem. I will interview people who work with domestic violence treatment programs to understand the extent of the problem and what works well. The interest is to show those aspects of a program that will stop domestic violence perpetrators from continuing the violence. Table of Contents Introduction 4 Literature Review 6 Approach and Methodology 7 Implications of Research 8 Limitations of the Project 8 Project Timeline 9 Preliminary Results and Discussion 10 Annotated Bibliography 11 Introduction Domestic violence is a problem in most communities that does not always have a cure. Many men and women suffer from domestic violence and the numbers for this problem are increasing. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) (2011) more than 70,000 people in the United States were victims of domestic violence in 2010. This statistic included men, women and children and was a survey that provided one day of information for this problem (National Domestic Violence Hotline, 2010). The Domestic Violence Resource Center reports that one in four women will be victims of domestic violence within their lifetime and between 600,000 and six million women are victims of domestic violence each year; 100,000 to six million men are also victims. These startling statistics show that this violence does not seem to be stopping or slowing down. Most men and women who perpetrate domestic violence will go unchallenged unless they are in violation of the law. In rare cases the spouse that is being abused will press charges against the abuser but they may not follow through after the abuser has served jail time. Often, in order for an individual to receive treatment for domestic violence, they must be ordered by the courts to seek help. Rules and regulations for domestic violence treatment programs vary with states. In each case, there are mandates for these programs that may or may not work for those who are incarcerated or being treated outside the courts. (Domestic Violence Resource Center) Many men and women who engage in domestic violence also abuse alcohol and other drugs. (Women's Rural Advocacy Programs, 2007) When they are under the influence of one of these substances, they tend to be their most violent. Unfortunately, many of these violent men and women will eventually kill their spouse or their significant other. They are not aware that this is what may happen, but when it does, and the individual is caught, they will go to jail. The challenge for many is that jail does not always help them improve their demeanor nor does it help them stop from committing violence. In order to stop the violence from progressing, many communities have domestic violence programs that may or may not help the individual. There are many that work well, but they are under the direction of county and state programs where funding may become a consideration. In most cases, men and women who commit such violence will need to have a complete paradigm shift in their attitude in order for them to understand why they must change and how they must change. For some, this is a well thought out process. For others, this will be the beginning of many trips to a treatment program before they eventually are incarcerated. This paper will explore treatment programs from the point of view of the men and women who are successful in moving through them. Specifically, this researcher will explore what makes a successful treatment program and how they stop recidivism. The belief is that a treatment program that incorporates the community as well as the specific program will be more successful than those that only involved a private treatment program. Thesis Statement Domestic violence treatment programs are not always successful in helping an individual stop committing violence. This is a problem for society as well as for the victims of the abuse. The solution would be to create a program that is successful, based on best practices for those treatment programs that work. Literature Review The reading that has been done so far has come from domestic violence websites and professional journals. The keywords that have been used for the search include: Domestic violence treatment programs, domestic violence and men, domestic violence and women and domestic violence. The professional journals that have been used are Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, CINAHL, MEDLINE, PsycARTICLES, and PsycINFO. In the first part of the literature review, I will explain the problem of domestic violence. This will be a statistical section that gives the amount of money that is spent in treatment for the average individual as well as what it costs tax payers. It will also explore the amount of money it takes to keep someone incarcerated for this abuse. Also, this first section will give a general overview of domestic violence. The next section will discuss the psychological aspects of domestic violence and how it affects children as well as the adult victims. This section is important to the paper because it identifies the social aspects of the problem. The fourth section will include a look at treatment programs in general and will show some of the challenges that are already happening with these programs. The third section will discuss those programs that are successful in the professional literature. The literature spotlights several programs and critiques them. these will be essential to understanding what types of information is needed for a successful program. I will rely heavily on this information because most of it has been done by researchers who have done specific studies on this issue. Problems with Domestic Violence Treatment Programs Domestic violence presents many problems for both the perpetrator and the victim. Domestic violence has many definitions, but essentially it is a pattern of behavior by one person who uses it to establish power and control over someone else. Usually, this is done with an intimate partner and the partner who is battered experiences fear, intimidation, and the threat of violent behavior from the batterer (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2009). Often, domestic violence is the result of society's oppression of women and other marginalized groups. This allows the perpetrator to feel that they have a right to control someone else and therefore to do it in anyway they feel necessary (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2009). When an individual enters into a treatment program, according to the literature, there is no real understanding as to whether it will work effectively. According to Price and Rosenbaum (2009) one of the reason why the treatment programs may not be working is because there are few treatment models to follow. Most of the batterer programs prefer groups where men who batter can mentor each other. As Price and Rosenbaum researched the challenges for these programs, they found that many of the men were mandated to be in their programs as long as the program was helping them stop battering. They also found that many of the programs do not collect data about outcomes because they are not required to do so. In fact, only 28% of those in their survey were mandated to collect this information by their states. Thomas and Bennett (2009) studied 133 men in a treatment program and found that men in battered programs and in substance abuse programs often had challenges with mental illness that needed to be screened in both programs. Universal screening would assist social workers and facilitators in making a more complete observation of the batterer and it would show how their substance abuse behavior may be impacting their domestic violence behavior. The researchers also supported providing intervention for these duo-problem men because their challenges may be different than those who do not abuse drugs and alcohol. El-Bassel, Gilbert, Wu E, Chang, and Fontdevila (2007) add to this discussion in their study of 356 men in a treatment facility in New York. These men were in a methadone treatment program. Their study found that there should be some form of treatment screening in substance abuse programs for domestic violence. Methodology I would like to gather local information about domestic violence treatment programs in Honolulu, Hawaii. I am not sure this information is available some of it will be confidential. I would think that I could talk to someone in the court system that would be knowledgeable about the issue and they could steer me in the direction of those programs they refer to regularly. I would also think that there would be counselors involved through the courts that could provide information about programs. I would like to interview two or three successful people who had been through the system and are getting their lives together. I am not sure this is possible, but I am going to look to find out. I would like to choose a Case Study approach once I gather information through the court system and the local programs. I would also like to use observation. I would like to observe a class that men must take in order to go through a domestic violence program. It would like to see what is involved in the process and how it works. I would think that part of the problem for some of the programs is funding so I would want to explore where funding comes from and how it affects whether the program continues. I would talk to people within the court system to see how many people actually do turn their lives around from these programs. The major aspect of my project will be interviews with professionals who deal with domestic violence cases ad observations if possible. Implications of Research The surveys that I conduct will be voluntary and they will be anonymous. I will receive permission from anyone who will participate in an observation. I will not have names on any of the documents to insure their confidentiality, but I will include demographic information as to age, the number of times they have participated in domestic violence treatment programs and how they feel it has helped or not helped them. Project Limitations I would think that the project could be replicated anywhere. But you need to choose a specific location first, be it a city, town, a State. One limitation will be that each state has a different mandate for treatment programs so individuals reading the proposal will need to adjust information for their state. Another limitation will be the small size of the survey since I will limit the observation to no more than two classes. Some of the issues that are beyond the scope of my program would be how funding will be maintained in the better programs, how many times a person can go through the program, whether they can come back to the same program if the keep committing domestic violence. Why are you leaving these out? They seem to be important elements to consider in terms of the success of the programs. The limit of validity of the results would be that it is a small sample and therefore a larger study would have to be conducted in order to make sure that the results are consistent. Project Timeline Week Assignment Required March 12: Capstone Proposal Submission March 13-20: Capstone Approval/Capstone Registration March 21: Capstone Course Begins March 21-27: Proposal to Introduction Chapter March 28-April 3: Submit Literature Review and Bibliography April 4-10: Submit Research Design April 11-17: Submit Implementation Plan April 18-25: Submit Full Draft April 26-May 1: Feedback, Revisions, Power Point May 2-May 8 Review Partner’s Presentation, Final Draft May 14: Receive Degree The Preliminary Results and Discussion Section I have started my reading and I have begun thinking about the people that I want to interview. I am asking friends, family and colleagues if they know people within the court system that might talk to me about this topic. I have a couple of people who may be able to be interviewed. Generally, if judges are not too busy with court, I have heard they are open to talking with students. If I could not find the people to interview, I would have to change my plan a bit and just do research for the study, which would turn it into the case study concept. The most important aspect for people to "own" the problem would be that they would have to be open to finding continuous funding. At the present time, I do not know how these programs are funded, so I cannot say whether this would definitely be a problem, but it could be one that would prevent a program from creating a successful program. I will have to have more information to totally understand whether this is a factor. I would also think that most of the programs would be operating in the way that the court system has requested which could be another problem. I will not know for sure until I begin to interview program workers. You need to add a section on the implementation plan for the solution you are proposing. Annotated Bibliography Abrahams, H. (2010). Rebuilding lives after domestic violence : understanding long-term outcomes. London ; Philadelphia : Jessica Kingsley Publishers. This book is a study done by Abrahams that gives an understanding of how women have adjusted to life after they left an abusive relationship. This provides another aspect of information because it tells what happens to the ones who have survived the violence. Thomas, M.D. and Bennett, L. (2009). The co-occurrence of substance abuse and domestic violence: a comparison of dual-problem men in substance abuse treatment and in a court-ordered batterer Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions, 9 (3). 299-317. doi: 10.1080/15332560903084457 The article states that about half of the men who batter also have problems with substance abuse. The challenge is that they are not screened in alcohol abuse programs to see whether they are also batterers. They found that batterers who self-reported and those who were court ordered had similar problems if they were both batterers and alcohol abusers. This article is important to my study because it provides an understanding of another reason why programs may fail. Domestic Violence Resource Center. Domestic abuse statistics. Retrieved from http://www.dvrc-or.org/domestic/violence/resources/C61/ This center operates a hotline and provides information on domestic violence to the general public. This gives general statistics for the project. Edelson, M., Hokoda, A., and Ramos-Lira, L. (2007). Differences in effects of domestic violence between Latina and non-Latina women. Journal of Family Violence, 22 (1). 1-10. doi: 10.1007/s10896-006-9051-1 This article gives information about Latina women who are more at risk for domestic violence than non-Latina women. El-Basse, N., Gilbert, L., Wu, E., Chang, M., and Fontdevila, J. (2007). Perpetration of intimate partner violence among men in methadone treatment programs in New York. American Journal of Public Health, 97 (7).1230-2. Retrieved from CINAHL database. This article added to the discussion that men who batter also abuse drugs or alcohol. The study researched 356 men and found that there was battering when one or both partners used substances. The article adds to the problems with domestic violence programs and how ineffective they are when working with perpetrators who are using. Fernandez, M. (2010). Restorative justice for domestic violence victims : an integrated approach to their hunger for healing MD : Lexington Books This book is another one that will give the legal aspects of domestic violence. It will provide a background for why people are incarcerated for it. Hannah, M.T. and Goldstein, B. (2010). Domestic violence, abuse, and child custody : legal strategies and policy issues NJ : Civic Research Institute. A good reference for the legal issues that surround domestic violence. This is important to the paper because it provides specific legal information. Henderson, H. (2000). The domestic violence and child abuse sourcebook. MI: Omnigraphics. Provides information for the layperson about domestic violence and child abuse and what to do about them. Moylan, C.A., Herrenkohl R.C.., Sousa, C., Tajima, E.A., Russo, M.J. (2010). The effects of child abuse and exposure to domestic violence on adolescent internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. Journal of Family Violence, 25 (1), 53-63. doi: 10.1007/s10896-009-9269-9 The effects of child abuse on the family are an important discussion because the person who is in and out of treatment programs may cause more harm than good. This article will be part of the psychological issues. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. (2009). The problem. Retrieved from http://www.ncadv.org/learn/TheProblem_100.html This website provides information about domestic violence, what it is, who is battered and some of the types of situations that may be looked at as battering. This is important to establishing what battering is and how people are abused. National Domestic Violence Hotline. (2010). Survey shows domestic violence services provided in one day in the U.S. Retrieved March 11, 2011 from http://www.thehotline.org/ This website provides general information about domestic violence. The information is good for general statistics and to identify those who abuse. Price, B.J., and Rosenbaum, A. (2009). Batterer intervention programs: a report from the field. Violence And Victims, 24 (6), 757-70.Retrieved from Medline database. The article explains information about batterer intervention programs and some facts about why they do not work from the point of view of those who do them. This article is important to my study because it adds to the idea that the programs are not effective. Roleff, T. L. (2000). Domestic violence : opposing viewpoints. CA: Greenhaven Press. This book will give information about how different people in society view domestic violence and what can be done about it. This is essential reading for the project because it gives more than one viewpoint. Vickerman, K.A. (2007). Posttraumatic stress in children and adolescents exposed to family violence: II. Treatment. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 38 (6), 620-628. 10.1037/0735-7028.38.6.620 This article will fit the section on the psychological issues that hurt the family of people who commit domestic violence. It also explains interventions for young people which could be part of a positive treatment program. Women's Rural Advocacy Programs. (2007). Domestic violence information. Retried from http://www.letswrap.com/dvinfo/alcohol.htm This is another website that provides general information about domestic violence and provides a profile of the abusers. This information is important to the statistics section of the project. Read More