women who use aggression in intimate relationships christine berry, psychologist director, family...
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Women Who Use Aggression In Intimate Relationships
Christine Berry, PsychologistDirector, Family Violence Prevention Initiatives
Calgary Counselling CentreSuite 200, 940 – 6th Ave SW
Intake Phone: (403) 691-5991www.calgarycounselling.com
Overview of the Presentation Who is Calgary Counselling Centre? Why is the issue of women who use
aggression so complex? Responsible Choices for Women (RCW)
group program for women who use aggression in intimate relationships
Practice implications and questions
Learning Objectives
Become aware of the contentious issues surrounding this population
Identify challenges working with women who use aggression
Provide a specific approach to working with women who use aggression
Who is Calgary Counselling Centre? Registered charitable organization
in business since 1962 Research and Knowledge based
Counselling Facility Recognized leader in the
treatment of Family violence
Women who use Aggression
Contentious Issueso A Review of Research on Women’s
Use of Violence With Male Intimate Partners (Swan, Gambone, Caldwell, 2008)
Contentious (con’t)
Women’s violence usually occurs in the context of violence against them by their male partners
Contentious con’t In general, women and men perpetrate
equivalent levels of physical and psychological aggression but men perpetrate sexual abuse, coercive control and stalking more frequently than women and women much more frequently injured during domestic violence.
Contentious (con’t)
Women and men equally likely to initiate physical violence in relation ships involving less serious situational couple violence and in relationships in which serious and very violent intimate terrorisms occur men more likely to perpetrate
Contentious (con’t)
Women’s physical violence is more likely than men’s violence to be motivated by self-defense and fear, whereas men’s physical violence more likely than women’s to be drive by control motives
Contentious (con’t) Couples in mutually violent relationships
find more negative effects for women Because of the many differences in
behaviors and motivations between women’s and men’s violence intervention based on male models of partner violence are likely not effective for many women.
Women who use aggressiono His Violence Her Violenceo Physical power Verbal powero Hits Slapso Punches walls Throws thingso Gets in her face Nagso Shoves Pusheso Grabs to restrain Gets in front
of door
Women who use aggression Pounds on table Refuses to talk Yells Sulks Raises fist Raises knife Comes home late Locks him out Cheats Withholds sex Drinks not to argue Drinks for
courage to argue
Women who use aggressiono Criticizes her all time Insults him
in public o Ignores her Makes a
scene
o Ref: Weaver Manual : Treatment of Women Arrested for Domestic Violence. 2002
Continuum of Aggression and Abuse Common Couple Aggression
o Remorseo No fear or injuryo Arguments escalateo Could happen in any family
Continuum (con’t) High Conflict
o No fearo Anger is an issueo May have sporadic physical aggression or
destruction of propertyo Do not solve problems wello May have remorseo Not emotionally abusive
Continuum (con’t)
Abuseo Sporadic physical aggressiono Name calling but not character assassinationo Apprehensiono Verbal abuseo Threats of abandonmento May be remorsefulo Aggression takes place without witnesses
Continuum (con’t)
Batteringo Isolationo Threats o Name calling that attacks charactero Regular physical abuseo Threats to kill self or others
Continuum con’t
Battering con’toJealousyoPutting down friend and familyoDestruction of propertyoMore generally violentoSelf absorbedoChange in the personality of the person being abused
Continuum (con’t)
Terrorism/Stalkingo Monopolization of perceptiono Insidious psychological abuseo Well-thought out threats to killo Torture of petso Extreme isolationo Generally more regular physical abuse but may
occur without physical abuseo Sexual humiliation and degradation
Women who use aggression In Calgary, Alberta, Canada , a
specialized community court process, HomeFront, was initiated in 2001 to offer low risk accused who were willing to take responsibility for their actions the opportunity to be mandated to treatment.
Women who use aggression
Data that looked at different phases of the project from 2001 until present indicated sex of the accused consistently 85 % male, 15 % female. (Tutty, L. Homefront presentation, 2011).
Women who use aggression
At least some of those women referred to Calgary Counselling Centre’s Family Violence Prevention Program
Women who use aggression Calgary Counselling Center has offered
groups for men who abuse for over 25 years
1995 began groups for women who abuse and modeled it after men’s groups
Published paper comparing group women mandated and non-mandated 1995 -2008
Women who use Agression
A Comparison of Women Who Were Mandated and Non-mandated to the “Responsible Choices for Women” Group
Women who use aggression
Nature of the Abuseo Physically abusive behaviors: the most
commonly endorsed were: •pushing/shoving (63%), •slapping with an open hand (46.4%), •grabbing (39.5%), and •punching with a closed fist (38.6%).
RCW San Diego 2009
Women who use Aggression
Nature of the Abuseo The non-mandated women in the RC
for Women program were statistically more likely to self report four physically abusive behaviors: • poking, • pushing/shoving, • grabbing, and pulling hair
Women who use Aggression
Nature of the Abuse Psychologically Abusive Behaviours
o The most commonly endorsed items were:• name calling (63%)• making degrading/critical comments (58%)• unfair accusations or interrogation (40.3%),
& • glaring at partner (40.2%)
Women who use Aggression 1995 - 2008 N= 261
o 58% of the women (156) were self- or counsellor-referred compared to 42% (114 women) who were mandated either by the courts, probation, or child welfare
2004 -2010 N = 139o 40.3 (56) self referred and 59.7% of the women (83)
were court, probation or child welfare referred
Women who use aggression
Challenges when working with this population o Own bias
• Not taken seriously• Attendance compliance
o Lack of therapy models• Journey to Change
o Risk assessment –
Women who use aggression
Family Violence Homicide Conference
Link to 2010 conference in Calgary,
Dobash and Dobash Murder in Britian Study
Women who use aggression
Challenges (con’t)o “I thought the women would be more
open and supportive... I was wrong”o “With men I confronted them without
a second thought, with the women confrontations were more indirect, more gentle.”
Women who use aggression
Challenges (con’t)o “It was more of a struggle to get the
women to take responsibility”o “One client openly stated she didn’t
take shit from anyone, her aggressiveness made her who she was… don’t see that ownership in men’s group”
Women who use aggression
Program Principleso Respecto Accountabilityo Safetyo Responsibility
Goals of RC for Women Program The primary goal is to assist women who
are abusive to become violence free.o decreasing all forms of abusive behaviour; o accepting responsibility for one’s behaviour;o increasing self esteem;o increasing assertive behaviour; o improving family relations;o decreasing stress;o increasing empathy toward those who have been impacted
by abusive behaviour; ando assisting parents to cease physically abusing their children.
Women who use aggressiono Before group-
• PAS, URICA • Engagement - Session Rating Scale (SRS)• Level of Distress – OQ 45 - CAGE• Persons who use Aggression in Intimate Relationships • Time Outs• When Contemplative go to group
o
Women who use aggression
30 hour group Male/female facilitator team 10 women in group 3 partner checks during time of
treatment Pre/Post measures
Women who use aggression
Pre onlyo Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40
(TSCL-40)Briere
Women who use aggression
Pre and posto Abuse of Partner Scales: Physical and
Non-Physical (Hudson, 1992)o Partner Abuse Scales: Physical and
Non-Physical (Hudson, 1992)o Generalized Contentment Scale
(Hudson, 1992)o Outcome Questionnaire (OQ 45.2)
Women who use aggression Pre and Post o Fam –III Dyadic Relationship Scaleo The University of Rhode Island Change
Assessment – Domestic Violence (URICA-DV)
o Marlowe Crowne Social Desirability Test Short Form (Reynolds, 1982)
Women who use Aggressiono Rosenberg Self-Esteem Index
(Rosenberg, 1965)o The Personality Assessment Screener o Index of Clinical Stress (Hudson,
1992)
Women who use Aggression
Key Themes Safety Checks all sessions
o Operationalize Abuse and violence in intimate relationships• - House of Abuse
o Taking Responsibility • Turning Points Women who Abuse. video
Women who use Aggression
Themes (Con’t)oOwning and Dealing with anger and abuse in conflict situations-
• Responsibility Logs
oChallenging beliefs• Gender
Women who use aggression
Themes (con’t) o How beliefs support abuse
• Karpman’s Triangle
o Participant’s affect• Iceberg concept
o Eliminating abuse from lives • Power cards
Women who use Aggression
Themes (con’t)oSpirituality
• Wisedom Cards
oBecoming responsible for taking a stand against violence
• Perspective Taking (Empty Chair)
Women who use aggression
Themes (con’t)o Commitment to work continuously on
non-violenceo Gateway to healthy, non abusive
relationships
Women who use aggression
Turning Point –Women who Abuse, 28 minutes in totalo Kinetic Video
Women who use aggression
Perspective taking- empty chair exercise
Women who use aggression
Practice Implicationso Partner checks with males- what are
we learning from themo Addictions -o Traumao Mental health o Mutual abuse
Women who use aggression
Discussion
Women who use aggression References Alyce LaViolette- Continuum of Aggression and Abuse, 2006.
Conference on Family Violence Treatment, Calgary 2006. Koonin M., Cabarcas, A., Geffner, R. (2002) Treatment of
Women Arrested for Domestic Violence: Women Ending Abusive/Violent Episodes Respectfully. (Weaver Manual)
Swan, S.C., Gambone, L.J., Caldwell, J. E., Sullivan, T.P., Snow, D. K. A. (2008).A Review of Research on Women’s Use of Violence With Male Intimate Partners. Violence and Victims Volume 23, Number 3.
Women who use aggression Tutty L., Babins-Wagner, R., Rothery, M. (2009).A
Comparison of Women who were Mandated and Nonmandated to the “Responsible Choices for Women” Group. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma 18:770-793.