Attrition from a male batterer treatment program: client-treatment congruence and lifestyle instability

Although patient compliance is a problem for almost all forms of therapy, treatment programs for male batterers face special concerns. Male batterers are often perceived as coming to therapy only because of the external pressures of courts or intimate partners. In the present study, we examined the rates at which male batterers failed to attend treatment following an initial assessment interview. Of the 526 men recommended for treatment, only 218 (41%) attended a single treatment session, and only 132 (25%) completed the brief (10-week) treatment program. The variables associated with attrition fell into two general categories: (a) those associated with lifestyle instability (e.g., moves, unemployment, youthfulness), and (b) those variables indicating a congruence between the clients' self-identified problems and the targets of treatment (e.g., self-admitted problems with spousal assault). Suggestions are provided as to how programs could reduce their attrition rates by attending to the issues of client-treatment congruence and lifestyle instability.