Changes in Intimate Partner Violence Among Women Mandated to Community Services

Abstract

Increasingly, female victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) are charged with IPV perpetration and mandated by courts or child protective services to receive domestic violence services. A critical need exists for evidence-based interventions targeting the needs of this unique population, but such research is scarce. To address this gap, we evaluate a novel intervention developed by two community-based agencies and delivered to 70 female IPV victims who are primary caregivers for children and mandated to services. Using a quasi-experimental design, IPV perpetration and victimization data are collected at three time points: baseline, program completion, and 3-month follow-up. Analyses use binary logistic regression to control for clustering and to incorporate time-varying covariates. Results show statistically significant reductions in both IPV victimization and perpetration at program completion. This study also provides evidence for the feasibility of recruiting and retaining this vulnerable group of IPV victims in research studies conducted in community-based settings.