Trauma-Informed Treatment and Prevention of Intimate Partner Violence

Individuals who engage in intimate partner violence have high rates of previous exposure to trauma and, most notably, to childhood violence. While decades of research support this finding, most models of intimate partner violence and training programs for practitioners who work with these individuals fail to take into consideration the impact of trauma on relationship functioning.

Such programs are thus often ineffective in preventing or reducing violent behavior. The urgent need for programs that give greater weight to trauma has been highlighted by the needs of returning military veterans who have experienced significant trauma and engage in intimate partner violence.

This book provides mental health professionals the knowledge and skills they need to deliver effective treatment to individuals who engage in intimate partner violence. The authors draw on their extensive clinical experience as well as their own recent studies to help clinicians assess and intervene both with military personnel and civilians who belong to this "hard to treat" population. Their positive approach to treatment addresses trauma-related issues in those who experience intimate partner violence as well as those who engage in it.

Clearly written and approachable, the book provides guidelines for intervention with groups, couples, and individuals, providing much-needed answers to both common and unexpected clinical challenges.

A comprehensive appendix features ready-to-use worksheets and forms for both practitioners and their clients, including:

• Common Reactions to Trauma
• Trauma Impact Questions
• Anger Analysis Form
• Roots of Your Communication Style
• Conflict Analysis Sheet

Introduction

I. Foundations

1. Social Information Processing Model of Trauma and Intimate Partner Violence
2. Trauma and Intimate Partner Violence in Military Veterans
3. Trauma and Intimate Partner Violence in Civilian Populations
4. Assessment
5. Safety Considerations
6. Process Considerations

II. Trauma-Informed Intimate Partner Violence Interventions and Examples

7. Group Interventions
8. Example of Group Intervention
9. Couples Interventions
10. Example of Couples Intervention
11. Individual Interventions
12. Examples of Individual Intervention
13. Adjunctive Interventions

Afterword: Conclusions, Future Directions, and Challenges

• Appendix A: Group Philosophy
• Appendix B: Common Reactions to Trauma
• Appendix C: Trauma Impact Questions
• Appendix D: Anger Analysis Form
• Appendix E: What to Do During Time-Out
• Appendix F: "Survival Mode" and Alternative Thoughts
• Appendix G: Anger Meter
• Appendix H: Roots of Your Communication Style
• Appendix I: Identifying Feelings Handout
• Appendix J: Daily Feelings Expression — Individual
• Appendix K: You've Been Caught Doing Something Nice
• Appendix L: Common Themes Related to Trauma
• Appendix M: Conflict Analysis Sheet
• Appendix N: Time-Outs — Planning, Preparing, and Practicing
• Appendix O: Daily Feelings Expression

References

Index

About the Authors

Casey T. Taft, PhD, is a staff psychologist at the National Center for PTSD in the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, and professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine.

Dr. Taft received his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He was the 2006 Young Professional Award winner from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and the 2009 Linda Saltzman Memorial Intimate Partner Violence Researcher Award winner.

He has served or is currently serving as principal investigator on funded grants focusing on understanding and preventing intimate partner violence through the National Institute of Mental Health, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Centers for Disease Control, the Department of Defense, and the Blue Shield of California Foundation.

Dr. Taft has published more than 100 empirical papers and book chapters, chaired an APA task force on trauma in the military, and consulted with the United Nations on preventing violence and abuse globally.

Christopher M. Murphy, PhD, is professor and chair of psychology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and clinical supervisor for the New Behaviors Program for intimate partner violence at HopeWorks, a community-based nonprofit agency in Howard County, Maryland.

Dr. Murphy received his PhD in clinical psychology from Stony Brook University. He received the 2015 Linda Saltzman Memorial Intimate Partner Violence Researcher Award from the Institute on Violence, Abuse, and Trauma.

His research, which has been supported by the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, focuses on the efficacy of cognitive behavioral and motivational interventions for individuals who engage in partner violence, the identification of personal and contextual factors that inhibit treatment response in this population, the role of alcohol and drug use in partner violence and its treatment, and the forms and effects of emotional relationship abuse.

Suzannah K. Creech, PhD, is a research psychologist in the Treatment Core at the VHA VISN 17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans and the Central Texas Veterans Healthcare System, and an assistant professor (research) in the Department of Psychiatry at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

Dr. Creech received her PhD in clinical psychology from Texas A&M University. She also completed an advanced fellowship in PTSD treatment at the Brown Psychology Training Consortium and another fellowship in clinical research at the VA Boston Health Care System. She has spent her career working with veterans and service members recovering from exposure to trauma.

Dr. Creech's recent work has focused on family and relationship functioning in women veterans who deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

A welcome and important resource for any provider who works with IPV, other forms of violence and forensic issues.
—New England Psychologist