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The aim of this paper was to evaluate an individual 20 sessions cognitive- behavioral programme in the treatment of male batterers after implementing it for ten years in a community setting. The sample consisted of 196 subjects who voluntarily participated in the study. An experimental design with repeated measures (pre-treatment, posttreatment and 1-, 3-, 6- and 12-month follow-up) was used. The success rate was of 88% in the treatment completers. In spite of the lost patients in the follow-ups (46% at the end of twelve months), the results were maintained in the contacted patients at follow-up (53% in the 12-month-follow-up), with a high impact on reducing recidivism. However, the rate of refusals and drop-outs of the treatment was rather high. Therefore it is necessary to develop strategies to improve motivation for treatment. Implications of this study for clinical practice, policy decisions and future research in this field are commented upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this cuasi-experimental study the effectiveness of a psychological treatment program for men who were in prison because of having committed a serious offence of gender violence is tested. The sample consisted of 148 men who were imprisoned in 18 Spanish prisons. The psychological treatment was a cognitive- behavioral program, in a group format, with 20 weekly sessions that lasted for 8 months. The results showed a significant modification of the irrational beliefs both about women and about violence as a strategy to cope with everyday difficulties. Likewise a significant decrease of the psychopathological symptomatology, of anger and impulsivity, as well as a relevant increase in the self-esteem, was obtained. On the other hand, results indicated that the only difference between the patients who dropped out of treatment and the ones who completed it was the lack of previous criminal record. High impulsivity and depressive symptoms before treatment predicted a poorer therapeutic outcome. Implications of this study for future research in this field are commented upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child sexual abuse is a severe problem where psychologists interface with the courts in various contexts and situations. This theoretical study is intended to be a good practice guide in this field. Child credibility assessment is an important issue of relationship between psychologists and judges. This paper outlines the most relevant methods of credibility assessment. Since the criteria-based statement analysis is very useful, but does not often fully meet the requirements, an integrative approach is proposed. In addition the problem of court-induced trauma in sexually abused children is so serious that it merits considerable attention. If a sexually abused child does not feel safe during the forensic process, he/she will not be able to give meaningful evidence in a courtroom and it will become a meaningless experience for the child. According to Spanish laws, several recommendations are proposed to deal with child sexual abuse cases in order to create an environment for the child to feel safe in court and to leave the child with a feeling of self-worth and empowerment. Anyway the multi-disciplinary approach in sexual abuse cases also needs more research to implement such a system successfully in Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this ex post facto study was to analyze the profile of 1,081 cases, which were denounced in the police station of the Ertzaintza (Basque Country), because of having committed a serious offense of gender violence. First, psychological and sociodemographic variables, as well as of couple's relationship, of both aggressors and victims are presented. And second, the most significant differences between the serious violence and the less serious violence in these variables are determined. Results showed that both the aggressors and the victims were rather young and with a high rate of immigration. Regarding the most serious aggressors, they tended to be jealous or possessive, to feel humiliated by the couple's breaking up, what directly influenced in a lower self-esteem, and to abuse of alcohol or drugs. Regarding the victims of the most serious violence, they usually felt in danger of death and they were more easily in vulnerability circumstances, such as a very young age, a very dependent personality, a chronic illness, an economic dependence, an abuse of alcohol or dregs or an environment of loneliness. Implications of these results for further research and clinical practice are commented upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this ex post facto study, the most frequent Personality Disorders (PDs) related to pathological gambling are described. A sample of 50 consecutively recruited treatment-seeking pathological gamblers was compared to 50 consecutively recruited psychiatric outpatients with non-addictive disorders and to 50 normative subjects from the general population with the same demographic features (age, sex, and socioeconomic level) to find out the prevalence of PDs. All participants were assessed with the International Personality Disorders Examination (IPDE), the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI-II), and with the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). According to the results, 32% of pathological gamblers and 16% of the general clinical sample (versus 8% of the normative sample) showed at least one personality disorder. The most prevalent ones were the borderline personality disorder (16%), followed by the antisocial, narcissistic, and non specified personality disorders (8% each). The coincidence about the number and the kind of PDs diagnosed by both instruments was not strong. Finally, implications of this study for clinical practice and future research in this field are commented upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present ex post facto study aims to find out the prevalence of personality disorders (PD) in patients with eating disorders (ED) and to determine the concordance between the IPDE and MCMI-II to assess PDs in patients with an ED. Using the International Personality Disorders Examination (IPDE) and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-Il (MCMI-II) it was compared the personality profile in 84 outpatients with eating disorders. The statistical analyses have been carried out using Kappa statistic, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. The 54.8% of the overall sample met criteria for at least one personality disorder on the IPDE and 77.4% met the criteria on the MCMI-II. The concordance between the two measures was only marginal. The MCMI-II tend to overdiagnose specific PDs, so it is not a good assessment measure for doing PDs diagnosis. This fact is a challenge for the clinical evaluation, so implications for further research in this area are commented upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]