Citation

Woodin EM, O'Leary KD. J. Marital Fam. Ther. 2006; 32(3): 283-296.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-2500, USA. erica.woodin@stonybrook.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1752-0606.2006.tb01607.x

PMID

16933434

Abstract

Pretreatment aggression severity was examined as a risk marker for recidivism in the treatment of partner aggression. Intact married couples experiencing husband-to-wife partner aggression were recruited from the community and participated in either conjoint group treatment or gender-specific group treatment. Elevated levels of husband and wife physical aggression and wife psychological aggression before treatment predicted the continuation and severity of physical aggression by both spouses during treatment and in the following year, with no significant differences across treatment formats. These results indicate that high levels of psychological and physical aggression signify a poor prognosis for both conjoint and gender-specific group treatment programs, suggesting the need for interventions of greater intensity, duration, and/or focus for individuals highest in psychological and physical aggression.

Language: en