Working with Violent Men: From Resistance to Change Talk in Probation Domestic Abuse Programmes [Paperback]

Chapter 1: Introduction and Overview

Chapter 2: Working with Men who Abuse their Partners: Context, History and Challenges

Chapter 3: Thinking Differently about Programmes for Men who have been Abusive

Chapter 4: I am not one of those wife beaters: Working with Resistance and Hostility

Chapter 5: These are a good bunch of Guys: From Resistance to Masculine Bonds and Engagement

Chapter 6: Finding Common Ground: Facilitator Perceptions and Perceptions of Facilitators

Chapter 7: But do these Programmes Actually Work?

Chapter 8: Conclusion and Final Reflections

Working with Violent Men gives a detailed insight into working with men who have been violent towards intimate partners. As such this monograph aims to contribute to a gap in knowledge and understanding within an important social and criminal justice topic.

The book is underpinned by research based on participant observation at domestic abuse groups, allowing for direct observation of behaviours and interactions, including gestures and emotional responses, as well as semi-structured interviews with group facilitators and participants. It also draws on the authors experience of working with domestically abusive men, as a probation officer and facilitator of domestic abuse programmes. He argues that groups involve a micro social order, involving rules and rituals. These are continuously constructed and negotiated by participants, against a backdrop of ideas about masculinity, and involve the performance of gendered roles. Understanding the perspectives of these men, as well the interactional rules, rituals, and dynamics of programmes, enables facilitators to navigate the hostility that men display and engage them in a process of change. Attention to these consideratls\