Submit a Manuscript to the Journal
Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma

For a Special Issue on
Contemporary Developments in Anti Domestic Violence Interventions

The Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, and Trauma announces a forthcoming Special Issue on Contemporary Developments in Anti Domestic Violence Interventions. We are seeking articles that address a wide range of topics overviewing the spectrum of Anti Domestic Violence Interventions related programs and services offered.

The current U.S. response to those convicted with domestic violence offenses is often court-orders to what are generally referred to as battering intervention programs (BIPs). These programs are broadly designed to address heterosexual men’s male privilege, power, and control and in most instances, the relationship between these experiences and their use of violence. Traditional BIPs were theoretically created to promote victim safety and hold perpetrators accountable within a criminal justice and community accountability framework. Historically, victim advocates and others charged with attending to and protecting the rights of victims have raised concerns about the effectiveness of BIPs and their success in keeping victims safe. Nevertheless, these interventions are often promoted as the “best” recourse available to address and change the cycle of violence that is present in intimate relationships.

Considering the #BLM and #SayHerName movements, there are also justified concerns that traditional BIPs are too closely aligned with policing and the courts, contribute to racial disparities in criminal legal system involvement, do not focus and may not be relevant for LGBTQ + situations, and may not improve the safety of many survivors or their children. There are also difficult conversations regarding appropriate intervention for women who have used force and who may have themselves survived domestic and sexual violence as well as women who are primary aggressors. Thus, delivering BIPs to same-sex perpetrators, and cultural adaptations of BIPs have been problematic. The one size fits all approach to BIPs may in these and other instances fail to address the absence of consideration of non-hetero conforming intimate partnerships where violence has occurred, the integration of communities in any intervention to address the negative sequelae associated with IPV, and the science related to effective behavior change interventions.

This special issue seeks to expand the dialogue and highlight new and innovative conceptualizations and intervention strategies with partners. By addressing these complex issues, we hope to refocus and integrate contemporary developments in anti-domestic violence interventions. It calls for innovative approaches. It is our goal with this special issue to provocatively bring visibility to anti-domestic violence intervention efforts that have the potential to transform community-based responses for those who have caused harm. The special issue will also request papers on how we conduct research and evaluate if and how these approaches may enhance and support our current efforts to teach and facilitate anti-violence skills, keep victims safe, and ultimately change the zeitgeist around domestic violence and its perpetration.

Manuscripts that address one or more of the following topics are welcome. A manuscript may consist of theoretical or conceptual paper, case studies, completed research studies, and or clinical-based commentaries concerning but not limited to:

• Group practice with LGBTQIA+ perpetrators
• BIPs from a harm reduction perspective
• Trans men in BIPs
• Working with Black and Brown men from a psychosocial perspective
• What does it mean to be a man or woman working in BIPs
• Cultural approaches to working with IPV offenders
• Thinking about BIPs within a cultural context
• Themes of oppression in BIPs
• Alternative approaches in working with IPV offenders, including with couples
• Practice with females who are aggressors

The submission process involves the following key steps:

1. Interested authors should submit a 500-word (maximum) abstract that highlights the main goals of the article, methodology used, contributions of findings to the special issue, and implications for clinicians, patients, educators, researchers, and/or policymakers. Abstracts should be sent to Drs. Gordon and Aymer via email: Derrick M. Gordon, Ph.D.: [email protected]; Samuel Aymer, Ph.D.: [email protected] no later than March 17^th, 2023.
2. Editors will review submitted abstracts and solicit submissions for full-length manuscripts by March 31, 2023. Full-length manuscripts will be due no later than July 1st, 2023.
3. Accepted manuscripts need to follow the APA manual, 7th edition. This includes 12 pt. Times New Roman font and 1-inch margins. The title page should also include the author(s) address and contact information for correspondence, affiliation, and 8 key words or phrases for abstracting. Headings must follow APA format with bold, italics, and indentation as appropriate. Each article should be summarized in an abstract of no more than 120 words. Articles should not exceed 30 double spaced pages, including abstract, references, tables, and figures. All references in the text should be cited in the references section, and vice versa. These should be double checked before submission. Cite in the text by author and date (e.g., Smith, 2008) and include an alphabetical list at the end of the article. Additionally, all submissions should include a discussion of diversity as it applies to the manuscript (e.g., nature of the sample, limitations of the measurement, etc.).

Questions & comments can be addressed to the guest editors at [email protected] and [email protected]; please cc [email protected] on all correspondence.

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