EMERGING THEORIES IN THE PREVENTION OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

 

MODEL 1:  PUBLIC HEALTH CAMPAIGNS ADDRESSING CAUSATION:

In order to initiate campaigns that address domestic violence prevention, we must first understand the causes of domestic violence.  At this time, there are several theories seeking to explain violent male behavior:

A) Biological Theory:  According to this theory, violent behavior is biological or genetic.  Notably, theorists account for changes in brain development that are due to trauma, which may indicate causation for violent behavior.

B) Individual Psychopathological Theory:  In this perspective, early childhood experiences cause personality disorders which cause violent behavior.  According to this theory, it is likely that most male batterers were the victims of abuse as children, which make them incapable of regulating emotions.  Research indicates that male batterers are more likely to perform poorly on mental health indicators than non batterers (Magdol, 72).

C) Couple & Family Interactions Theory:  This theory describes dysfunctional family systems as the root cause of domestic violence.  Psychologists assert that individual behavior cannot be explained without also examining the family context, relationships and social environment of the batterer.

D) Social Learning and Development Theory:  This theory suggests that violent behavior is learned and modeled after other violent behaviors in the individual’s environment.  Here, the individual learns through modeling that aggression is the appropriate way to resolve conflicts.

E) Societal Structure Theory:  This theory uses the patriarchal society to explain causes of male violence against women.  The power imbalance between men and women, and gender roles ascribed contribute to men’s aggression toward women.  Here, domestic violence reflects the inequality between men and women in society.

The variety found in causation explanations demonstrates that currently, domestic violence is a complex problem that lacks common understanding.  The theories presented offer multiple variables as the potential origins of batterer behavior, however most theories agree that childhood trauma and experiences creates a potential foundation for violence later in life.

MODEL 2:  PRIMARY PREVENTION, SECONDARY PREVENTION & TERTIARY PREVENTION.

The second model of domestic violence prevention examines prevention opportunities along a continuum of harm, primary prevention, secondary prevention and tertiary prevention.  

Primary prevention seeks to reduce the incidence of the problem before it occurs; these models include broad school-based programs that teach students about domestic violence, or targeted interventions among at-risk populations.  Broad based interventions include community wide awareness campaigns regarding the effects of domestic violence.  Schools are the ideal location to introduce such interventions as most children and youths attend school, therefore wide reaching interventions are available.  Targeted interventions introduce alternative conflict-resolution skills, examine healthy and dysfunctional relationship patterns, and introduce relationship alternatives that are incompatible with violence into at-risk populations

Secondary prevention seeks to decrease the prevalence after early signs of the problem.  These programs might include home visiting for high-risk families and community-based programs on dating violence for adolescents referred through child protective services (CPS).

Tertiary prevention aims to intervene once the problem is already clearly evident and causing harm.  Tertiary prevention includes the many targeted intervention programs already in place (and described in other articles in this journal issue). Early evaluations of existing prevention programs show promise, but results are still preliminary and programs remain small, locally based, and scattered throughout the United States.

Below is a table introduced in “Domestic Violence and Children” regarding appropriate Domestic Violence prevention strategies according to life stage.

 

A PUBLIC HEALTH MODEL FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PREVENTION
Life Stage	Primary Intervention	Secondary Intervention	Tertiary Interventions
Infant & Preschoolers (0-5 years)	Home visitation. Public health nurses and trained paraprofessionals assisting new parents.	Home visitation with high risk families combined with support and services for family members identified as potential perpetrators or victims of domestic violence.	Home visitation with abused victims and their children.  Specialized services offered to those children that are identified as having been harmed by domestic violence.
School Age Children (6-12 years)	School-based awareness and skill development. Collaborative efforts by schools and  communities to teach violence awareness and alternative  conflict-resolution skills.	Community based interventions.  Children exposed to violence are offered support groups, counseling and educational services geared toward crisis intervention.	Disorder based treatment services.  Children who present emotional and behavioral health problems are offered specialized services to address those problems.
Adolescents & High-School Age Youths (13-18 years)	School-based awareness and skill development. Same as above, with emphasis on issues related to dating violence and forming healthy intimate relationships.	Community based interventions.  Same as above with interventions tailored to adolescents and focused on dating violence.	Disorder based treatment services.  Same as above with the possible involvement of the juvenile justice system as an identification and access point for treatment.
Adults (18 years +)	Public education. Media campaigns promoting awareness of domestic violence and providing information about local resources and how to respond to domestic violence situations.	Community based interventions.  Individuals exposed to violence are identified at the earliest possible opportunity, and provided with coordinated support services.	Community based intervention for chronic domestic violence.  Intensive police, court and community collaboration to address symptoms of chronic domestic violence.

Source:  Wolfe, 1999

THE IMPORTANCE OF PRIMARY PREVENTION:
When concerning VAW, all forms of prevention and intervention are relevant.  However, one cannot ignore the importance of primary prevention in eliminating forms of violence against women.  Primary prevention seeks to change social norms that promote violence against women.  If primary prevention is effective, secondary and tertiary interventions will become irrelevant. 

 

Resources:
Magdol, L., Moffitt, T.E., Caspi, A., et al. Gender differences in partner violence in a birth cohort of 21-year-olds: Bridging the gap between clinical and epidemiological approaches.  Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (1997) 65:68–78.

Wolfe, D.A., Jaffe, P.G.  Emerging Theories in the Prevention of Domestic Violence.  Domestic Violence and Children.  Volume 9, Number 3, Winter 1999, 133-144.