Impact Evaluation of Special Session Domestic Violence: Enhanced Advocacy and Interventions, Final Report Summary

• NCJ Number: 210363
• Author(s): Eleanor Lyon Ph.D.
• Date Published: April 2005
• Length: 13 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2000-WE-VX-0014
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Award: Enhanced Advocacy and Interventions

Annotation

This is a summary of a report on an evaluation of the impact of a 26-week, 52-session skill-building, culturally sensitive, psycho-educational curriculum-based intervention for male domestic-violence offenders who have victimized women.

Abstract

The program, called EVOLVE, addresses issues of fathering and the impact of violence on children, integrates substance abuse education throughout the program, and includes a multisession component on sexuality and sexual violence. EVOLVE was implemented in 2000 in three urban courts that have specialized domestic-violence court sessions. The evaluation focused on the program's impact on subsequent rates of physical and emotional abuse, partners' safety, and safety planning; rates of program completion compared to the more general 26-week program for other courts; and how the victim advocate's role was affected. The evaluation used a sample of 420 men who attended at least 1 session of EVOLVE and a sample of 124 men who attended at least 1 session at the comparison site. Data were collected through interviews at program intake and at 3, 6, and 12 months after intake. The two groups completed their programs at similar rates: 63.5 percent for EVOLVE and 65.2 percent for the comparison group. Regarding recidivism, 6 months after leaving the program, 83.4 percent of those who successfully completed EVOLVE had no subsequent arrests leading to conviction, compared to 58.3 percent of those negatively discharged from the program. Recidivism patterns were similar across racial/ethnic groups for program completers. Victim advocates' primary concerns were inconsistent court responses, limited resources, and clarification of their role in relation to group facilitators. The evaluation recommends further efforts to develop group interventions for abusive men, with attention to cultural issues of race and ethnicity.