Client personality disorders affecting wife assault post-treatment recidivism

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Criminology
• Sociology

Background:

• Previous wife assault treatment outcome evaluations lacked clear success criteria.
• Generic "success" or "failure" labels obscure nuanced treatment effectiveness.
• Understanding differential treatment outcomes is crucial for refining interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify specific patient profiles that benefit most and least from wife assault treatment.
• To determine which types of personality disorders are associated with poorer post-treatment outcomes.
• To analyze the effectiveness of group treatment for reducing post-treatment abusiveness.

Main Methods:

• Evaluation of treatment outcomes for men participating in wife assault groups.
• Assessment of post-treatment abusiveness using self-reports and wife reports.
• Analysis of personality disorder scores (borderline, antisocial, avoidant) in relation to treatment success.

Main Results:

• Men with high scores on borderline, antisocial, and avoidant personality disorders showed the worst post-treatment prognosis.
• Despite variations, men in the treatment group demonstrated significantly reduced post-treatment abusiveness.
• Both self-reported and wife-reported data indicated a reduction in abuse following treatment.

Conclusions:

• Wife assault treatment groups are generally effective in reducing male abusiveness.
• Specific personality disorders (borderline, antisocial, avoidant) are key indicators of poorer treatment outcomes.
• Future interventions should consider tailoring approaches for men with these personality profiles.