One way counselors can help victims of violence in a partnership (IPA) is to create plans to respond to behavioral crises with customers who commit the abuse. We (the authors of this article) have both worked in various roles with IPA programs, from direct service and administrative roles to research and advocacy. We believe that working with IPV offenders is an essential part of reducing domestic violence.
We are therefore familiar with research on the treatment of IPV offenders and find that the results are often poor. Most clients report an increased desire for changes in self-reporting measures, but often do not have any follow-up measures (for more information, see the article "Motivational interviews as pre-group intervention for men with partner violence" by Peter Musser and colleagues in the journal Violence and Die victims). We can do more as consultants by providing behavioral support to these clients as they work to change. We need to give customers real behavioral techniques that they can use at the moment. In this article, we share behavioral techniques that counselors can pass on to their clients to bring about a real change in behavior.
Crisis response planning (also known as security planning) refers to the creation of an actionable plan if there is a poorly adapted response to a situation. Crisis response planning is often used in patients with a tendency to commit suicide (as Barbara Stanley and Gregory Brown shared in their 2012 article in Cognitive and Behavioral Practice "Safety Planning Intervention: A Short Intervention to Reduce the Risk of Suicide"). In the past, IPV-related security planning has been associated with helping victims prepare for and engage in behaviors that are most secure against partner threats (see, for example, the article by Christine Murray and colleagues from The 2015, "Domestic Violence Perception of Security Planning by Service Providers: A Focus Group Study" in the Journal of Family Violence, and we advocate the use of a crisis response plan similar to that of Stanley and Brown with clients who conduct IPA.
The crisis response planning is effective to mitigate the intervention in harmful drives. In this case, the point is to cope with the urge to commit abusive acts. The goal of the crisis response plan is crisis management. It is not an instrument that reduces the urge to commit abusive behavior, but one that is aimed at coping with urges.
If the client who commits the abuse has the urge to engage in aggression, he will use the capabilities of the crisis response plan (which he creates together with his advisor) to avoid reacting to the abuse. The use of the crisis response plan enables clients to reduce their emotional arousal and to practice engaging in alternative behavior when they feel the need to be aggressive.
This is no small matter as these customers may have a deep-seated history in responding to their urge. For every second that they deal with a coping ability from their crisis response plan, they are not aggressive. When a client no longer responds to the urge immediately, but delays the urge by 10 minutes, therapy shifts from a focus on riding the urge to problem solving and cognitive restructuring.
A crisis response plan for IPV offenders
Stanley and Brown's customized crisis response plan asks questions to help customers identify warning signs, coping strategies, people to call, emergency contacts, environmental safety, and the most important reason not to engage in abusive behavior . It is recommended that customers review the crisis response plan repeatedly and carry it with them at all times. The following is a review of each section of the crisis response plan.
Identify warning signs. When you ask customers who commit abusive behavior to identify warning signs that lead to abusive behavior, you should focus on cross-context experiences. For example, it is good to help customers realize that they are more likely to show abusive behavior when the dishes are not ready. However, it is more helpful to identify her anger (which is probably an underlying emotion). Anger has been consistently identified as a proximal factor in IPV, but is not consistently treated in the treatment of IPV. Recognizing anger as a warning sign will go beyond contexts and ultimately make the crisis response plan more helpful. Warning signs can be physiological arousal, emotions and thoughts such as unpretentiousness or personalization.
Activate internal coping strategies. Internal coping strategies prevent customers from abusing their partners. These strategies may not reduce your anger or the experience of your urge, but the goal of the strategies is not to respond to the urge. As long as they do not choose abusive behavior towards their partner, they are adept. Distraction (e.g. watching TV, walking, listening to music), practicing progressive muscle relaxation or listening to a funny show, sketch or video (humor is a useful intervention to reduce anger) can be helpful.
]
One skill that many customers like is changing the temperature. It's about holding your breath underwater for 30 seconds to activate the diving reflex in mammals. At this point, the temperature lowers the client's heart rate and also lowers his anger. If they are unable to hold their breath under water for 30 seconds (e.g. by using a sink), they can splash cold water on their face or use ice cubes. Customers may be more likely to use this coping strategy when practicing in a session. If you wear a Fitbit or similar, you can see the effects immediately. This ability is commonly used as a crisis management ability in dialectical behavior therapy.
The most important thing is to find and list the skills that work for your customer.
Activate external coping strategies. It is important to help customers improve their self-efficacy by first using their internal coping skills. However, if they are unable to cope with the urge or believe that they are still aggressive, it is best for them to call someone. Calling a friend or family member can be a distraction. The client need not necessarily tell the person about their urge to commit abusive behavior. If your customer can identify a friend who likes to talk about themselves, now is the time to call that friend. When you call someone, the likelihood that the customer will respond to their urge will decrease. If this is not effective, you can call someone they trust (e.g. a close friend or family member, a spiritual leader) to talk to them about the situation. If you are still fighting the urge to aggression, you can turn to a crisis resource (see the resources at the end of this article).
Plan ahead . The crisis response plan not only intervenes, but also acts preventively by focusing on what the customer can do to protect the environment. This could mean removing threatening objects (e.g. knives) or speaking through a locked door. For example, if the customer or partner knows that they are going to have a difficult conversation about finance, they can agree that the conversation is on opposite sides of a physically locked door in the house so that they are separate, or they could agree, to have another person present. Many IPV clients will not abuse their partner in front of another person.
Finally, the crisis response plan prompts the customer to state the main reason for the change. It is best to take the reason in a positive direction ("I want a strong, healthy relationship with my wife and children") rather than missing something ("I don't want to get divorced"). This reason reminds the client of what he is working towards, so it is best to raise this reason frequently during treatment.
practice. The crisis response plan works best if it is rehearsed outside of the triggering context. Similar to basketball players who practice their shape so that they can shoot the ball in-game (and under pressure), a client needs to try these behaviors before using them at the moment.
Behavior changes are difficult, especially for customers who abuse their partners. Trying to develop alternative behaviors while angry is unlikely, especially given the fact that anger is associated with tunnel vision. Practicing these skills early enables the client to expand their repertoire of behavior in the heat of the moment.
In addition, a change in behavior is a challenge because the abusive behavior of the clients has been positively strengthened in the short term. Customers who deal with IPV often get what they want after committing the abuse (e.g. by punishing their partner). Consultants who work with clients who commit abuse know that abusive behavior is learned behavior. The crisis response plan helps clients learn new, more positive behaviors between sessions.
Working with perpetrators is an essential part of reducing IPV cases and increasing victim security. Crisis response plans offer counselors an effective tool to use in their work with these clients.
Additional resources
****
Thomas DiBlasi is an assistant professor at St. Joseph’s College, where he teaches students and explores domestic violence, anger, aggression, and revenge. He has given lectures at local, national and international levels and has published primarily on anger and aggression. He is a member of the executive committee for the Forensic and Externalizing Behavior Interest Group. Contact him at [email protected].
Kelly Smith is a licensed professional advisor and recognized clinical director, who began working for sexual assault and domestic violence (SA / DV) agencies in 2006. She is also a certified partner for abuse interventions. From 2015 she led program groups for partner abuse interventions and was most recently director of abuse intervention services for a comprehensive SA / DV organization in Illinois. She is an assistant professor in the counseling department at Springfield College and has a research agenda that addresses issues related to IPA offenders. Contact her at [email protected].
****
It should not be assumed that opinions and statements in articles appearing on CT Online reflect the opinions of the editors or guidelines of the American Counseling Association.
