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- Title
- Exploring influences on couple therapist violence screening practices : a qualitative study
- Creator
- Parker, Nicole
- Date
- 2018
- Collection
- Electronic Theses & Dissertations
- Description
-
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a tremendous social problem with devastating consequences for survivors and loved ones, with effects that often last for generations. IPV not only affects the victim but it hurts society as a whole, and costs billions of dollars to the US economy each. Yet it is a preventable problem. Many couples who experience abuse seek solutions through couple therapy, yet most therapists working with couples do not directly address nor assess for the presence of...
Show moreIntimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a tremendous social problem with devastating consequences for survivors and loved ones, with effects that often last for generations. IPV not only affects the victim but it hurts society as a whole, and costs billions of dollars to the US economy each. Yet it is a preventable problem. Many couples who experience abuse seek solutions through couple therapy, yet most therapists working with couples do not directly address nor assess for the presence of violence, one estimate finding that only 4% of therapists follow guidelines to routinely screen for partner violence. Engaging couples in treatment when violence has not been assessed is dangerous for victimized clients and ethically perilous for the therapist. There is a healthy discourse in the IPV literature about how best to respond to violence in couples seeking treatment, but what is missing from this discussion is a thorough understanding of factors which influence therapists' couple violence screening practices. Guided by two theories, Ecological Theory and Role Theory, this qualitative study explores the many factors that influence clinicians in their screening practices around the topic of violence, and highlights the individual and contextual elements that govern clinical choices by the therapist. Data was gathered from clinicians working in a variety of contexts, and was analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. Findings contribute to a growing knowledge of literature that focuses on violence detection efforts within the field of mental health, and may inform educational and training policy.
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