This research was designed to evaluate the applicability of social norms approaches to interventions with male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV). Participants included 124 nonadjudicated IPV perpetrating men recruited from the general population who completed assessment of their own IPV behaviors via telephone interviews and estimated the prevalence of behaviors in other men. Results indicated that IPV perpetrators consistently overestimated the percentage of men who engaged in IPV and that their estimates were associated with violence toward their partner over the past 90 days. Findings provide preliminary support for incorporating social norms approaches into clinical applications.

Objective To preliminarily evaluate telephone-delivered motivational enhancement therapy (MET) in motivating unadjudicated and nontreatment seeking intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrators, who also use substances, to self-refer into treatment. Method 124 adult men were recruited via a multimedia marketing campaign and were randomly assigned to the intervention (MET) or comparison group following a baseline assessment. Participants in the MET condition received a personalized feedback report on their IPV and substance-use behaviors, consequences, and social norms beliefs. Results Results supported the likely effectiveness of MET in short-term reduction of IPV behavior, increasing motivation for treatment seeking, and changing perceived norms for IPV and substance abuse (SA). Conclusions Applications for brief MET interventions to facilitate voluntary treatment entry among substance-using IPV perpetrators are discussed.

There is limited research available on children’s involvement in incidents of adult domestic violence. This study collected direct reports on real-life events and went beyond earlier research by eliciting information on a larger array of family and contextual factors that may account for variation in children’s responses. Anonymous telephone interviews with 114 battered mothers in four metropolitan areas elicited detailed information from women on their children’s responses to the violence being committed against the mothers. One quarter of the mothers reported that their children were physically involved in the events. In addition, mothers with less stable financial, social, and living situations at the time of the interview reported their children to have intervened more during the past violent incidents. The article concludes with recommendations for a greater emphasis on careful assessment of children’s involvement in domestic violence incidents and on assisting mothers to achieve economic stability as well as safety.

This novel adaptation of MIF shows promise for decreasing drinking and alcohol dependence among this high-risk sample of non-treatment-seeking soldiers and may complement existing AUD services already provided by the Army. (PsycINFO Database Record