Nicole Westmarland
Durham University, School of Applied Social Sciences, Faculty Member
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Psychology and Routledge
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Psychology and Harassment
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Purpose This study explores responses by domestic violence perpetrator programme (DVPP) providers of three Western countries (UK, USA and Australia) to the COVID-19 pandemic and population movement control measures on their practice. The... more
Purpose This study explores responses by domestic violence perpetrator programme (DVPP) providers of three Western countries (UK, USA and Australia) to the COVID-19 pandemic and population movement control measures on their practice. The purpose of this paper was to offer an evidence base for changes to programme and intervention delivery around domestic violence to sustain integrity of safe, effective working practices with perpetrators, survivors and staff. Design/methodology/approach Based on 36 semi-structured qualitative interviews conducted from July to September 2020, the authors mapped the experiences of changes in service with frontline staff, managers and sector-wide representatives. Findings The findings focus on how providers of DVPPs adapted to the increase in referrals and workload that had a positive impact on service delivery innovation but an adverse impact on staff wellbeing. Digital services were reported to be adopted into mainstream approaches but introduced new barriers to service access and group dynamics. Integrated safety support for survivors, if not adequately connected to programmes pre-pandemic, risked being disconnected from DVPP that may undermine positive programme outcomes. Originality/value The paper provides a documentation of changes in DVPPs, and a cross-comparison of services across three Western countries during the first wave of COVID-19. The work offers implications of the development of digital modes of service delivery for DVPPs and highlights the need for focus on resource management and integration of safety services for survivors in DVPP services.
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Psychology and Routledge
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Sociology and Criminology
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Working with families living with child and adolescent‐to‐parent violence raises a number of challenges which were compounded during the Covid‐19 pandemic. In this article, UK umbrella organisation ‘Respect’ is used as a case study to... more
Working with families living with child and adolescent‐to‐parent violence raises a number of challenges which were compounded during the Covid‐19 pandemic. In this article, UK umbrella organisation ‘Respect’ is used as a case study to explore how 10 practitioners navigated social, emotional and safeguarding concerns that occurred when transitioning to remote working. Engagement with children and young people proved difficult, especially for those with special education needs and/or disabilities. However, parental engagement with services increased. Practitioners were quick to adapt to the changing landscape of remote working; continually adapting their practice to otherwise unforeseen safeguarding and/or practical challenges.
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As we complete this study there is more conversation about what is to be done with perpetrators of domestic violence than for some time - a conversation which ricochets across police, social services, women’s support services,... more
As we complete this study there is more conversation about what is to be done with perpetrators of domestic violence than for some time - a conversation which ricochets across police, social services, women’s support services, multi-agency groups, policymakers, commissioners, media commentators and academics. At issue are two key questions: - Do domestic violence perpetrator programmes (DVPPs) actually work in reducing men’s violence and abuse and increasing the freedom of women and children? - How do we hold more perpetrators to account, since even if DVPPs do work, their limited capacity means the majority of men do not access them and criminal justice interventions alone are clearly not creating the change that all stakeholders seek? This report can offer evidence with respect to the first question and will engage with the second. The starting point for Project Mirabal was our contention that we had reached an impasse in both research and policy on perpetrator programmes. On the ...
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This briefing paper argues that there are not enough direct services available for children of men on domestic violence perpetrator programmes. Those that do exist provide one-to-one work and group work, children’s workers often interact... more
This briefing paper argues that there are not enough direct services available for children of men on domestic violence perpetrator programmes. Those that do exist provide one-to-one work and group work, children’s workers often interact with staff working with women and men in innovative ways. We suggest more openness and clarity with children around men’s attendance on DVPPs. Although only a small sample of children and young people were interviewed, for these children the outcomes were largely positive – children reported feeling safer, happier, and doing more with their dads/male carers. We reiterate that these children were among the very few who received integrated services through a DVPP, and this finding cannot be extrapolated to DVPPs without integrated children’s services. However, it does show the potential for improving the lives of children and young people through commissioners including funding of integrated services for children/young people alongside women’s support...
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This article introduces and evaluates ‘scrapbooking’ as a critical pedagogic approach to gender-based violence (GBV). This approach is inspired by the rapid development of conceptual and methodological tools for researching violence and... more
This article introduces and evaluates ‘scrapbooking’ as a critical pedagogic approach to gender-based violence (GBV). This approach is inspired by the rapid development of conceptual and methodological tools for researching violence and abuse and the need for their translation into transformative teaching. Drawing on a feminist methodology of ‘research conversations’, but original in its development of ‘pedagogic conversations’, this research advocates further empirical attention to GBV teaching and presents its own four ‘lessons learnt’ from experimenting with scrapbooking. Scrapbooking is argued to facilitate not only the translation of GBV research into teaching, but also affective and embodied consciousness-raising and continuum-thinking in both students and tutors.
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Domestic violence perpetrator programmes are a frequently used intervention to respond to perpetrators of domestic violence. However, there is considerable concern about the use of ‘online’, ‘virtual’, or ‘digital’ programmes delivered... more
Domestic violence perpetrator programmes are a frequently used intervention to respond to perpetrators of domestic violence. However, there is considerable concern about the use of ‘online’, ‘virtual’, or ‘digital’ programmes delivered remotely. Policy and practice have developed at pace through the COVID-19 pandemic and research is lacking. This exploratory research examined the challenges and opportunities associated with a pilot online programme in Minnesota, US, for court mandated men. It took place before the COVID-19 pandemic, making it the first study to investigate a ‘live’ online programme. A mixed method design was used, consisting of 40 hours of observational data (covering 25 sessions); four interviews with programme facilitators, 12 interviews with programme observers, and six perpetrators enrolled on the programme. We did not investigate the experiences of partners or ex-partners or of partner organisations, which is a limitation. We found that while the online format ...
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The suitability of 'out of court resolutions' (restorative justice and community resolutions) in cases of domestic abuse is theoretically contentious and empirically under-researched. This study investigated the nature and extent of out... more
The suitability of 'out of court resolutions' (restorative justice and community resolutions) in cases of domestic abuse is theoretically contentious and empirically under-researched. This study investigated the nature and extent of out of court resolutions for domestic abuse using the Freedom of Information Act. Out of court resolutions were used by every UK police force except Scotland to respond to over 5,000 domestic abuse incidents (including intimate partner abuse) in 2014. Some of these incidents related to offences with sentencing tariffs up to life imprisonment. Such widespread use has been taking place 'under the radar' in stark contrast to police guidance, has immediate implications for policy and practice, and fundamentally shifts the research terrain in this field.