Positions constructed for a female therapist in male batterers' treatment groups
The aim of this study was to examine how male batterers regard to a female therapist in their group treatment. Of interest were the socially constructed positions for a female therapist. This study intends to examine what kind of positions the batterers construct for a female therapist in their speech and how the female therapist reacts to invitations to take up these positions. Attention was paid also to the male therapist’s positions in these situations. The topic was approached from a social constructionist and discourse analytic point of view and Grounded Theory was used as the method of analysing the data. The data consisted of five therapy groups for male batterers, each of which gath…
Positions constructed for a female therapist in male batterers' treatment group
How the gender of the therapist affects the treatment of intimately violent men has been little researched. In this study we examined the positions that batterers construct for a female therapist in batterers' group treatment. The data consisted of five videotaped therapy groups for male batterers. Three positions of a woman were constructed: woman in general; woman as spouse and woman personally as herself. These positions were often based on a constructed difference between men and women. The female therapist repositioned herself to diminish the difference constructed between the genders and to make fear of the spouse visible. peerReviewed
Results of the Jyväskylä research project on couple therapy for intimate partner violence : topics and strategies in successful therapy processes
Despite controversy over the indications of couple therapy for IPV, current research has indicated some benefits. This article examines some crucial aspects when dealing with couple therapy for IPV, such as how dominance and power abuse are present, and which important issues should be taken into account during the therapeutic process and be brought up in therapeutic conversations. It also proposes strategies for therapists conducting couple therapy for IPV. Ten studies conducted within the Jyväskylä research project on couple therapy for IPV were reviewed. Findings highlighted the importance of the therapists’ awareness of the presence of violence, dominance and power during the sessions, …
Affective Arousal During Blaming in Couple Therapy: Combining Analyses of Verbal Discourse and Physiological Responses in Two Case Studies
Blaming one’s partner is common in couple therapy and such moral comment often evokes affective arousal. How people attune to each other as whole embodied beings is a current focus of interest in psychotherapy research. This study contributes to the literature by looking at attunement during critical moments in therapy interaction. Responses to blaming in verbal dialogue and at the level of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) were investigated in two couple therapy cases with a client couple and two therapists. Video-recorded couple therapy sessions were analyzed using discursive psychology and a narrative approach. The use of positioning, a discourse analytic tool, was also studied. ANS res…
Dominant Story, Power, and Positioning
From a narrative perspective, how we understand our life and tell stories about our lives is shaped and defined by cultural discourses. During these tellings, some stories become dominant while others become silenced. As well as reflecting cultural discourses, these local stories also reflect the positions embedded in these discourses.
Gendered positioning: Addressing gendered power and cultural discourses in therapeutic conversations
This research examined gendered positioning in therapeutic conversations, especially in treatment of intimate partner violence (IPV). A feminist-informed reading combined with a discursive psychological approach was applied in three studies on positioning in therapeutic conversations. This reading focused on gendered positioning, gendered power and cultural discourses. Thus, the aim of this research was to examine how gender is constructed in therapeutic conversations that deal with couple relationship issues, and how the power distribution this entails is addressed in these conversations. The data consisted of videotaped and transcribed couple therapy sessions and group treatment sessions …
Towards gender awareness in couple therapy and in treatment of intimate partner violence
Gender is the most pervasive classification of individuals and thus strongly defines couple relationships. Cultural discourses on couple relationships reproduce hierarchical gender differences, and couple distress is often linked to gendered power inequalities. At worst, gender is the basis for intimate partner violence (IPV). Generally, however, therapeutic interventions do not address the issues of gender and gendered power. This paper discusses the meaning and functions of gender in the context of couple therapy, in particular for IPV. It is argued that the therapist needs to be skilled in discursive deconstruction to be able not only to address the client’s situation as an individual ex…
Intimate Partner Violence in Finland
High prevalence of intimate partner violence against women and high levels of gender equality in Finland yield to what has been called the “Nordic paradox.” It has been argued that the high level of gender equality has caused the need for IPV interventions and especially the gendered perspective to be overlooked. However, there has been recent and ongoing development in IPV intervention and prevention in regard to perpetrator programs, couple therapy, and programs to address post-separation stalking. Training programs for social and healthcare professionals and the police have been developed, as well as for teachers and other professionals at school. We hope the current government’s new act…
Reporting, Reflecting and Recognising Emotions in Therapeutic Work with Domestic Violence Perpetrators : Experiences of the Jyväskylä Group Model
Emotions are central in therapeutic work, but interventions for violence vary in how they address emotions. While emotional work with perpetrators is often associated with ‘anger management’ and behavioural elements, a more comprehensive view of emotions might be beneficial in efforts to stop and prevent violent behaviour. Perpetrators’ self-regulation can be promoted by recognising and addressing primary feelings (vulnerability, fear, jealousy, etc.) that may manifest as anger and aggressive behaviour. However, this kind of therapeutic work with perpetrators of violence is also challenging for professionals. For example, when working towards ending violence, it is crucial to differentiate …