Couples and Family Interventions for Intimate Partner Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a widespread public health problem that that has significant consequences for couples, their children, and their entire family unit. Traditional interventions take a one-size-fits-all approach and neglect the needs of couples that have children or wish to stay together. Although controversial, a small, but growing body of literature indicates that couples therapy is a safe and effective intervention for couples experiencing situational couple violence. Additionally, exposure to IPV has significant consequences for child witnesses and implications for children’s relationships later in adulthood. As such, there are a number of intervention and prevention programs for child witnesses and teen populations. These programs appear promising for reducing the harmful effects in childhood and decreasing the likelihood that adolescents will experience teen dating violence and IPV into adulthood.