Expert System Intervention--Domestic Violence Offenders

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Male-to-female partner violence poses a major threat to the physical and emotional well being of women. Research assessing the efficacy of court-mandated domestic violence treatment programs has yielded disappointing results. A major problem with mandated treatment is that it tends to be standardized and 'one-size-fits-all,' neglecting individual differences in motivation level and readiness to change. We propose to individualize services by developing and testing a Transtheoretical Model (TTM) based intervention tailored to individual stage of readiness to end the violence. In Phase I the objective was to develop a stage-based computer-administered multimedia expert system intervention and self-help manual designed to be administered as an adjunct to traditional batterer treatment. In Phase II, the objective is to complete development of the intervention materials, translate them into Spanish, and assess their efficacy in a randomized clinical trial. English- and Spanish-speaking domestic violence treatment clients will be randomly assigned at treatment intake to the experimental (n=350) or control condition (n=350). Efficacy will be assessed by comparing the intervention and control groups on number of batterer treatment sessions attended, partner reports of recidivism, re-arrests for domestic assault, and several secondary outcome measures.