1. Repeated explorations of violent scripts: psychotherapy for men acting violently against their female partner.
- Author
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Lømo, Bente, Haavind, Hanne, and Tjersland, Odd Arne
- Subjects
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PSYCHOTHERAPY , *PSYCHOTHERAPISTS , *INTIMATE partner violence , *MENTAL health services , *QUALITATIVE research , *VIOLENCE , *SPOUSES , *PSYCHOTHERAPIST attitudes , *READABILITY (Literary style) , *DESCRIPTIVE statistics , *MOTIVATION (Psychology) , *DOMESTIC violence , *MEN'S health , *INTENTION , *COUNSELING , *COMPARATIVE studies , *PSYCHOSOCIAL factors - Abstract
The effects of psychotherapy for men perpetrating violence toward their female partners have been found to be modest or equivocal; therefore, further research is necessary to determine how therapists can intervene to help clients stop acting violently. To obtain a better understanding of successful therapist strategies in a particular case, we conducted an interpretive phenomenological analysis of interactional patterns and change processes during therapy sessions in four carefully selected cases - two cases in which the use of violence ended after the completion of therapy (violence ended) were compared with two cases in which the client completed therapy but continued to act violently (violence continued). The client's use of violence was addressed repeatedly in all four cases, but the scripting of such events varied between the two case types. I) Violence ended: Joint explorations of the script of "the annoying other" led to therapist strategies that fostered new experiences of the states of mind of the client and partner. This seemed to help clients develop more caring and safer ways of relating to their partner. II) Violence continued: Engagement in the script of "hopeless me" was associated with therapist strategies that relied more on explanations of the client's vulnerability to acting violently. This seemed to hinder deeper comprehension of the clients' use of violence and the needs and intentions of their partners. Contrary to expectations, engagement in the script of "the annoying other" facilitated exploration of emotional states in both the client and his significant other. We present some empirically derived principles for moment-to-moment therapist strategies that facilitated in-session change with men acting violently toward their partner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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