Efficacy of Court-Mandated Counseling for Domestic Violence Offenders in Broward County, Florida, 1997-1998

The ultimate purpose of the study was to test whether court-mandated counseling reduced the likelihood of repeat violence by men convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence. Researchers also tested the underlying theory arising from the reanalyses of the Minneapolis experiment (MINNEAPOLIS INTERVENTION PROJECT, 1986-1987 [ICPSR 9808]) and Spouse Assault Replication Programs (SARPs). This theory proposes that having a stake in conformity predicts when an intervention (whether an arrest or court-mandated treatment) will be effective in reducing the likelihood of subsequent violence. The study used a classical experimental design to test whether courts can effect change in men convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence by mandating them to participate in a spouse abuse abatement program (SAAP). All men convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence in Broward County, Florida, between May 1 and September 30, 1997, were randomly assigned to either an experimental or control group. The only exceptions were for those couples in which either defendant or victim did not speak English or Spanish; either defendant or victim was under 18 years of age; the defendant was severely mentally ill; or the judge, at the time of sentencing, allowed the defendant to move to another jurisdiction and serve his probation through mail contact. Of the remaining 404 defendants, men in the control group were sentenced to 1 year's probation and men in the experimental group were sentenced to 1 year's probation and mandated into one of the five local SAAPs. In an effort to determine the true amount of change in individuals undergoing court-mandated counseling, the researchers included various measures from several sources. Each batterer was interviewed at time of adjudication and again six months after adjudication. The victim was also interviewed at adjudication and 6 and 12 months after adjudication. Standardized measures with known reliability were used when possible. Probation records and computer checks with the local police for all new arrests were used to track the defendants for one year after adjudication. The defendant interviews asked questions to assess the defendant's stake in conformity including those dealing with his relationship to the victim, his employment, his residential stability and his relationship to others. Included in these interviews were questions from an abbreviated version of the Crowne-Marlowe Social Desirability Scale, the Shortened Attitudes Towards Women Scale, the Inventory of Beliefs About Wife Beating (IBWB), and the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale. The data file also includes questions dealing with offenders' perceptions of the fairness of the criminal justice process they had just been through, who they believed was responsible for the instant offense that brought them to court, and whether they felt coerced into the batterer's program. The victim interviews were similar to the defendants though most of the questions asked the victim to provide information about the offender and his relationship with her. The woman was also asked to provide information on her work history, who she regularly spent time with, whether she had spoken with family, friends, and neighbors about her relationship with the offender and, if she had, if they were critical of her or her partner's actions in the particular incident leading to this court case. Similar to the offender's interviews, victims were asked about the history of violence in their home of origin and the particular incident bringing the offender to court. The probation reports provided information on the offender's criminal history, behavior in the community for the year while under supervision, and compliance with the batterer program.

本研究的最终目的是验证法院强制咨询是否能降低因轻罪家庭暴力被定罪男性的重复施暴可能性。研究者还验证了源于明尼阿波利斯实验（MINNEAPOLIS INTERVENTION PROJECT，1986-1987 [ICPSR 9808]）和配偶攻击复制项目（Spouse Assault Replication Programs，SARPs）再分析的基础理论。该理论提出，对从众的利害关系（stake in conformity）可预测干预措施（无论是逮捕还是法院强制治疗）何时能有效降低后续施暴的可能性。

本研究采用经典实验设计，验证法院是否能通过强制男性参与配偶虐待缓解项目（spouse abuse abatement program，SAAP）来改变因轻罪家庭暴力被定罪的男性。1997年5月1日至9月30日期间，佛罗里达州布劳沃德县所有因轻罪家庭暴力被定罪的男性被随机分配到实验组或对照组。唯一的例外情况包括：被告或受害者不使用英语或西班牙语；被告或受害者未满18岁；被告患有严重精神疾病；或法官在量刑时允许被告迁往其他司法管辖区并通过邮件联系完成缓刑。在剩余的404名被告中，对照组男性被判处1年缓刑，实验组男性被判处1年缓刑并被强制加入当地五个SAAP中的一个。

为确定接受法院强制咨询个体的真实改变程度，研究者采用了来自多个来源的多种测量方法。每位施暴者在裁决时及裁决后6个月接受访谈；受害者也在裁决时、裁决后6个月及12个月接受访谈。研究者尽可能使用具有已知信度的标准化测量工具。通过缓刑记录和当地警方的所有新逮捕电脑核查，对被告在裁决后一年内进行追踪。

被告访谈中的问题旨在评估其对从众的利害关系，包括与受害者的关系、就业状况、居住稳定性及与他人的关系。这些访谈包含克劳恩-马洛社会期望量表（Crowne-Marlowe Social Desirability Scale）的简化版、简化版对女性态度量表（Shortened Attitudes Towards Women Scale）、配偶殴打信念量表（Inventory of Beliefs About Wife Beating，IBWB）以及修订版冲突策略量表（Revised Conflict Tactics Scale）中的问题。数据文件还包含关于罪犯对其刚经历的刑事司法程序公平性的认知、他们认为谁应对导致其出庭的当前罪行负责，以及是否感到被强迫加入施暴者项目的问题。

受害者访谈与被告访谈类似，但大多数问题要求受害者提供关于施暴者及其与受害者关系的信息。女性还被问及工作史、常接触的人、是否与家人、朋友和邻居谈论过她与施暴者的关系，以及若谈论过，这些人是否对她或其伴侣在导致此次法庭案件的特定事件中的行为持批评态度。与施暴者访谈类似，受害者被问及原生家庭的暴力史以及导致施暴者出庭的特定事件。

缓刑报告提供了关于施暴者的犯罪史、监督期间一年内的社区行为，以及对施暴者项目的依从性信息。