Does Batterer Treatment Reduce Violence?: A Randomized Experiment in
Brooklyn
by Robert C. Davis; Bruce G. Taylor; Christopher D. Maxwell
Abstract
Although there is no shortage of evaluations of spouse abuser treatment
programs (some 36 have appeared in the literature since the 1980's),
most of these studies have methodological deficiencies that make it difficult
to interpret their findings. In using a true experimental design, the
current evaluation randomly assigned 376 court-mandated batterers to
batterer treatment or to a program irrelevant to the battering problem
(community service). All men assigned to batterer treatment were mandated
to complete 39 hours of class time; however, some were assigned to complete
the treatment in 26 weeks and others in 8 weeks.
Men assigned to the control condition were sentenced to 40 hours of community
service. For all cases in the study, interviews were attempted with victims
and batterers at 6-month and 12-month intervals after the sentence date.
In addition, records of criminal justice agencies were checked to determine
whether new crime reports or arrests had occurred that involved the same
defendant and victim. Treatment completion rates were higher for the
8-week group than for the 26-week group; however, only defendants assigned
to the 26-week group showed significantly lower recidivism at 6-month
and 12-month post-sentencing compared to defendants assigned to the control
condition. The groups did not differ significantly at either 6 months
or 12 months after sentencing in terms of new incidents reported by victims
to research interviewers. Findings suggest that batterer intervention
has a significant effect in suppressing violent behavior while batterers
are under court control, but may not produce long-term change in behavior.
13 tables and 60 references [National Institute of Justice/NCJRS, January
3, 2000]