| Project title: | Programs for Men Who Are Violent at Home - An Evaluation of Attitude Behaviour Change Programs For Male Perpetrators of Family Violence |
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| Project type: | Developmental Crime Prevention |
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| Researchers/contact: | Dr Christine Alder and Ms Ruth Francis, Dept of Criminology, University of Melbourne |
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| Commencement date: | 1992 |
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| Location: | Australia |
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| Funding body/institution: | Criminology Research Council Grant |
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| Description of the study: | The study provides a detailed account selected Victorian programs for male perpetrators of family violence. Unlike many programs in the United States and other countries, these Victorian initiatives tended not to have strong formal links with criminal justice. Almost all men taking part in groups had not been compelled to be there by a court order and were participating on a voluntary basis. |
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| Description of the outcomes: | Overall the it appears that in Victoria at least, group programs should not be relied on to transform men from violent to non-violent and should not be viewed as an alternative to formal sanctions. Overloading groups with men whose only reason for being there was that they had to attend as part of a court order may simply have the effect of undermining preventative effectiveness. |
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| Evaluation: | See description of outcomes which are based on a systematic evaluation of impact. |
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