NCJ Number
226017
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 24 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2009 Pages: 123-132
Date Published
February 2009
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This article describes a culturally sensitive group treatment for domestically violent Latino immigrant men designed to help them assume responsibility for the abuse and reduce or stop their violent behavior.
Abstract
The treatment approach was developed in an agency setting that provided domestic violence intervention in Spanish to Latinos who were court mandated to complete a treatment program. Observations of the men’s response to the culturally sensitive approach indicated that they engaged more actively and positively in the group process than was the case with their participation in the Duluth model of intervention, whose underlying theme is the association of patriarchy with male oppression and abuse. Preliminary evidence that the culturally sensitive approach is relevant and effective with this population were the high rates of program completion (almost 90 percent) and low rates of repeat enrollment (less than 25 percent) in the treatment program over a 2-year period. Research findings have shown that working-class Mexican couples who have recently immigrated to the United States often tighten their traditional gender-role expectations as a coping strategy in unfamiliar settings. Other findings support the view that patriarchal arrangements per se are not responsible for partner abuse in Latino couples. In fact, Morash et al. (2000) found that Mexican immigrant couples who shared expectations for a traditional relationship experienced less violence than couples with differing views on gender roles. Given these findings, the treatment program described in this article focuses on the acceptance of unequal but respectful (nonabusive) power relations as a treatment modality for domestically violent immigrant men. 46 references