Batterer intervention programmesa meta-analytic review of effectiveness

  1. Arias Martínez, Esther
  2. Arce Fernández, Ramón
  3. Vilariño Vázquez, Manuel
Journal:
Psychosocial Intervention

ISSN: 1132-0559

Year of publication: 2013

Issue Title: La intervención con hombres, condenados por violencia de pareja contra la mujer en España: investigación y avances en intervención

Volume: 22

Issue: 2

Pages: 153-160

Type: Article

DOI: 10.5093/IN2013A18 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR

More publications in: Psychosocial Intervention

Abstract

A meta-analysis of the state-of-the-art on the efficacy of batterer treatment programmes was conducted from the year 1975 to 2013. A total of 19 Spanish and English language research articles were retrieved yielding 49 effect sizes from a sample of 18,941 batterers. The results revealed that the recidivism rate as measured by couple reports (CR) was significantly higher than the rate based on official reports (OR), since the recidivism as measured by OR is underestimated. Overall, treatment showed a non significant positive weighted mean effect, d = 0.41. Nevertheless, the counternull effect size, EScounternull =0.82, suggested a null effect was as probable as a treatment efficacy rate of 38%. The intervention type was not a significant moderator of recidivism, but the counternull effect sizes, EScounternull = 0.82 and 0.94, revealed an efficacy rate of 38% and 42% based on ORs, for Duluth Model and behavioral-cognitive treatment, respectively. The long-term treatment interventions had a significantly positive medium effect size, d = 0.49. The implications of these findings for the design and assessment of future intervention programmes are discussed.

Funding information

This research has been sponsored by a grant of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation to the project “Reeducación de penados por violencia de género: Implementación y evaluación de programas de tratamiento” (Ref.: EDU2011-24561).

Funders

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