The author(s) shown below used Federal funds provided by the U.S. 

Department of Justice and prepared the following final report: 

Document Title: Culturally-Focused Batterer Counseling for 

African-American Men 

Author(s): Edward W. Gondolf 

Document No.: 210828 

Date Received: August 2005 

Award Number: 2001-WT-BX-0003 

This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. 

To provide better customer service, NCJRS has made this Federallyfunded grant final report available electronically in addition to

traditional paper copies.

 

Opinions or points of view expressed are those 

of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect 

the official position or policies of the U.S. 

Department of Justice.
 

CULTURALLY-FOCUSED BATTERER COUNSELING 

FOR AFRICAN-AMERICAN MEN 

FINAL REPORT 

(NIJ Grant #: 2001-WT-BX-0003 9/1/01 to 2/28/05) 

Submitted to: 

Violence and Victimization Research Division 

National Institute of Justice 

810 Seventh St., NW 

Washington, DC 20531 

March 2, 2005 

Revised: June 10, 2005 

Principal Investigator: 

Edward W. Gondolf 

Director of Research 

Mid-Atlantic Addiction Training Institute 

Indiana University of Pennsylvania 

Indiana, PA 15705 

Phone: 724-357-4749 

Fax: 724-357-3944 

Email: egondolf@iup.edu

Website: www.iup.edu/maati/publications

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
CULTURALLY-FOCUSED BATTERER COUNSELING 

FOR AFRICAN-AMERICAN MEN 

Abstract 

Clinicians and researchers alike have strongly recommended the implementation of 

culturally-focused counseling with African-American men arrested for domestic violence. This 

recommendation has been supported with evidence of the substantial portion of AfricanAmerican men being mandated to batterer counseling, higher dropout and re-arrest rates for these 

men, and differences in the men’s cultural outlook and experience. Culturally-focused 

counseling is designed to identify specific cultural topics and respond to emergent cultural issues 

in a racially-homogenous group that engages the men. However, the effectiveness of this 

approach in improving counseling outcomes has yet to be documented. 

An experimental clinical trial was used to test the effectiveness of culturally-focused 

batterer counseling against conventional cognitive-behavioral counseling. African-American 

men arrested for domestic violence in Pittsburgh were randomly assigned to one of three options 

(N=501): culturally-focused counseling in all-African-American groups, conventional counseling 

in all-African-American groups, and conventional counseling in racially-mixed groups. 

Reassignments at intake and during the counseling had no effect on the outcomes (n=64). The 

principal outcome measures were program dropout (less than the required 16 weekly group 

sessions), re-assault reported by the men’s partners during a 12-month follow-up period, and rearrest for domestic violence according to local police records during the 12-month follow-up. 

The female partners were interviewed about re-assault and related behaviors at program intake 

and at three-month intervals during the 12-month follow-up. The response rate was 66% for the 

full 12-month period (n=333). 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
There was no apparent benefit from the all-African-American groups with conventional 

counseling or culturally-focused counseling. The completion rate for the 16-week program was 

approximately 55% across the three counseling options. There was also no significant difference 

in the re-assault rate reported by the men’s female partners (23% overall). Men in the raciallymixed groups were, moreover, half as likely to be re-arrested for domestic violence as the men in 

the culturally-focused groups. While men with high racial identification were more likely to 

complete the culturally-focused groups, their re-assault and re-arrest rates were not significantly 

improved in that option. These results were confirmed by logistic regressions controlling for a 

variety of batterer characteristics and showing program dropout to be significantly associated 

with re-assault and re-arrest. 

The effectiveness of culturally-focused counseling needs to be further tested in other 

settings and context. In the current study, the culturally-focused counseling was an appendage to 

an existing agency closely linked to the criminal justice system. Culturally-focused counseling 

may prove to be more effective within community-based organizations more closely tied to local 

services and supports. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
SUMMARY 

Introduction 

 In many major urban areas, African-American men comprise at least half of the men 

arrested for domestic violence and referred to “batterer” educational or counseling programs. 

The dropout and re-arrest rates of these men tend to be higher than those for white men in the 

same programs. African-American researchers and practitioners have argued that the 

conventional cognitive-behavioral counseling with African Americans needs to be revised in 

order to improve outcomes. “Culturally-focused counseling” has been endorsed as one way to 

do this. This approach explicitly identifies and addresses cultural issues that may reinforce 

violence or present barriers to stopping violence, such as prejudice in the criminal justice system. 

A set curriculum progressively leads men to and through cultural issues, and counselors are 

trained to acknowledge and elaborate cultural issues that emerge during group discussion. 

Clinical Observations 

 Clinical explanations from social work and psychotherapy suggest that cultural 

differences contribute to African-American men dropping out of batterer counseling or reassaulting if they do complete it. Many African-American men draw on a more personalistic 

culture that values reputation and familiarity over ascribed position or authority. Consequently, 

they may rely on kinship and friendship networks to talk about their problems rather than 

strangers in group counseling. Some African-American men are simply confused by the 

demands to change certain attitudes and behaviors that they see as normative and even essential 

to survival in their neighborhoods. This is especially the case with some of the anti-violence 

positions promoted in conventional batterer program curriculums. Also, many African-American 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
ii

men may be suspicious of social services in general because they tend to be dominated by 

whites, who are often unfamiliar and unsympathetic to their social reality and experiences. 

 The literature on counseling African-American men uniformly prescribes greater social 

and cultural consideration to mitigate these issues and improve counseling participation and 

outcomes. It recommends several means to do so: cultural assessment as part of program intake, 

greater cultural awareness among group counselors, and a broader social focus and interaction in 

group counseling. These recommendations might be best integrated and implemented through 

culturally-focused batterer counseling with all African-American men in the group. 

 

Outcome Research 

Very little research examines the outcomes of culturally-oriented counseling in general, 

and the research that is available offers some contradictory results. A comprehensive review of 

the racial and ethnic outcome research concludes that culturally-oriented counseling produces 

more positive changes than counseling that does not explicitly consider cultural factors. 

However, the few outcome studies of conventional treatment groups provide only slight evidence 

that African-American men necessarily have poorer outcomes in such groups. The limited 

research on African-American-only groups and racially-matched counselor-and-client has, 

moreover, produced inconclusive results. For instance, a few studies indicate similar mental 

health and alcohol use outcomes after conventional counseling in African-American-only groups 

or counselor-client matched treatment. 

An additional line of research suggests that the lack of evidence supporting culturallyfocused counseling is due in part to the cultural diversity within the African-American 

community. African-American students with a greater sense of racial identity are, for instance, 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
iii

more likely to prefer racially-matched counselors. It is not merely “race” that needs to be 

identified, but also the cultural attitudes that accompany one’s racial and ethnic background. 

Batterer Counseling Evaluations 

 The research in the domestic violence field is limited to a few outcome studies of 

conventional batterer counseling and one preliminary study of culturally-focused counseling. A 

multi-site evaluation of batterer intervention systems offers support for a specialized response to 

African-American men arrested for domestic violence. In 1995, only half of the AfricanAmerican men completed the Pittsburgh batterer program compared to 82% of the white men 

(n=210). Moreover, the African-American men were more than twice as likely to be re-arrested 

for domestic violence (13% vs. 5%). 

 A batterer program study in the Baltimore area confirms the role of race in dropout from 

a counseling approach similar to that used at the Pittsburgh program (N=101 including 40 

African-American men). The strongest predictor for dropout was race with African-Americans 

being less likely to complete the program. Only one preliminary study of culturally-focused 

batterer counseling has been conducted to date (N=41). The African-American men in the 

culturally-focused counseling reported feeling more comfortable talking to other men in the 

group, and were more likely to develop friendships that carried outside of the group. They were 

more positive about the counselor as well. 

 Experimental clinical trials of culturally-focused batterer counseling for AfricanAmerican men are ultimately needed to test the outcomes of this approach against conventional 

batterer counseling. African-American men would need to be randomly assigned to culturallyfocused counseling, conventional counseling in a group of only African-Americans, and a 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
iv

conventional counseling in a racially-mixed group. The African-American-only conventional 

counseling would be necessary to help isolate the effect of culturally-focused counseling beyond 

the racial composition of the group. Additionally, the cultural attitudes of the men would be 

measured and tested as a possible moderating effect on the counseling outcomes. As the 

reviewed research suggests, individuals with stronger cultural attitudes tend to be more 

responsive to culturally-sensitive counseling or racially-matched counselors. 

 

METHOD 

Research Design 

An experimental clinical trial was employed to test the expectation that culturallyfocused counseling would improve batterer program outcomes, specifically program dropout, 

victim-reported re-assaults, and re-arrests during a 12-month follow-up period. Approximately 

500 African-American men, mandated by the domestic violence court in Pittsburgh to batterer 

counseling, were randomly assigned to one of three counseling options and their respective 

outcomes compared. The hypotheses were: 

1) program dropout, re-assault, and re-arrest rates would be lowest for the culturallyfocused counseling compared to conventional counseling in either the all-African-American 

groups or racially-mixed groups, 

2) these outcomes would also be lower for the all-African-American groups with 

conventional batterer counseling than the conventional racially-mixed groups, and 

3) men with high racial identification would have better outcomes in the culturallyfocused counseling than in the other two counseling options (i.e., lower dropout, re-assault, and 

re-arrest rates). 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
v

We additionally examined the effect of overrides or reassignments to the randomization, 

the representativeness of the sample compared to previous samples and other sites, and the 

impact of program context, such as variations in dismissal policy, on the outcomes. 

Counseling Implementation 

The experimental group of culturally-focused counseling included a curriculum of 

cultural topics and discussion of emergent issues, along with basic anti-violence instruction, in a 

group of African-Americans. Two culturally focused counseling groups were added to the 

existing batterer program that has been the primary recipient of court referrals for the last 15 

years in Pittsburgh. The program has multiple sites for group sessions throughout the city and a 

representative in the domestic violence court to receive referrals and assist with court supervision 

of compliance. The conventional group counseling followed a cognitive-behavioral curriculum, 

available on the internet, with “colorblind” implementation. The largely instructional format 

focuses on abusive behavior and thought patterns associated with abuse. Nearly all the contracted 

group counselors have a college degree and counseling experience of a year or more. 

 An external expert in culturally-focused curriculum helped to establish two groups of 

culturally-focused counseling beginning in the fall of 2001. He conducted a 3-day training with 

a group counselor recruited for the culturally-focused groups, and further instructed this 

counselor by observing and commenting on his performance in the groups on a monthly basis for 

4 months. The counselor followed the manual for culturally-focused counseling mentioned 

above. The criteria for the culturally-focused counselor raised a difficult challenge: finding a 

man with strong ties to the African-American neighborhoods of the city and yet with group 

counseling skills sufficient to guide the discussion of the curriculum topics and issues. An 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
vi

African-American man initially recruited for the position developed conflicts with the 

administration and personal problems of his own. He consequently resigned after a few weeks of 

the in-service training. His replacement was less experienced in group skills and counseling in 

general. 

All the groups were monitored for “treatment integrity” every six weeks through a 

combination of direct observation and audio tapes. A monitoring form was used to rate the group 

sessions on several aspects: curriculum presentation, group process, group leader, men’s 

participation, and overall impact. Additionally, 100 of the program participants were contacted 

by phone following the minimum requirement of 16-weeks of program attendance, and asked for 

their rating of these components and their impressions of the program curriculum. The direct 

observation and subject interviews indicated that the counselors were adequately implementing 

the prescribed curriculum, but the observers later raised some suspicions that the culturallyfocused counselor was inconsistent in his adherence to the curriculum and use of group skills. 

The context of the batterer counseling, namely its linkage to the courts and enforcement 

of compliance, appears to contribute to program outcomes. Therefore, we also watched for 

variations in the program context during the course of the study and found two variations that 

warranted attention in the analysis. One, the dismissal policy was more strictly enforced in the 

second half of the study. Two, the probation department began to refer men to the program for 

32 weeks instead of the 16 weeks from the domestic violence court (n=48 or 10% of the full 

sample). 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
vii

Randomization and Sample 

 At the program intake, the men completed a structured background questionnaire, the 

Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test, the Racial Identity Attitudes Scale, a research 

consent notice, and a contact information form. They were then randomly assigned to one of the 

three counseling options and began attending group counseling the next week. The refusal rate to 

the assignment was a low 4%, in part because the men were required to attend a group at the 

program’s discretion. 

The total sample initially recruited was 501 men. This number includes all the AfricanAmerican men ordered to the batterer counseling program in Pittsburgh between November 2001 

and May 2003. However, some men were reassigned at program intake (“overrides”) or during 

counseling because of scheduling or location conflicts. The total number of subjects randomly 

assigned with no initial or later reassignment, and also with the typical 16 required sessions, was 

335, or 67% of the recruited sample. 

One concern with deleting the reassigned non-random subjects was that the remaining 

sample would not likely be representative of the typical population eligible for program 

participation. We therefore retained the initial recruited sample of 501 and compared the 

outcome results for this full sample of 501 against the “pure” randomized sample. Using the 

total recruited sample also offered greater statistical power for the multivariate analyses 

employed in the study. 

Variables 

The three principal outcome variables for comparing the conventional and culturallyfocused counseling were: program dropout, re-assault, and re-arrest for domestic violence. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
viii

“Dropout” was assessed as completing less than the court-required 16 weekly sessions. “Reassault” was defined as physical abuse of the subject’s female partner reported by that partner 

during follow-up interviews. It was assessed using categories of the Conflict Tactics Scale. 

Additionally, the women’s subjective appraisal of their own safety and well-being were 

considered. Domestic violence “re-arrests” were determined by reviewing the arrest records of 

each subject provided by the Pittsburgh police department. 

 To assess the hypothesized moderating variable of “cultural or racial identification,” the 

Racial Identity Attitude Scale (RIAS) was administered at program intake. An average score of 

greater than 4 (for the 5-point Likert response) on the “internalization” subscale was used to 

indicate high racial identification. 

Several other variables were assessed at program intake to help describe the sample, test 

for equivalent subsamples of counseling options, and offer controls for subsequent analyses: 

demographics, employment, relationship status, alcohol and drug use, past abuse and assault, 

prior social service and criminal justice contact. The Short Michigan Alcohol Screening Test 

was also administered at program intake to help identify alcoholic tendencies which are highly 

associated with program outcomes. 

 The victim reports of re-assault were obtained through follow-up interviews at 3, 6, 9, 

and 12 months after an initial interview at the time of the men’s program intake. Two research 

assistants tracked the women using the contact forms of name and address information obtained 

from the male subjects at program intake and updated with each follow-up interview. The 

women were paid $10 for each completed interview through a check mailed to an address they 

designated. The follow-up interviews were completed in July 2004 with a 66% response rate for 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
ix

the full 12-month period (0-12 months after intake; n=333), and 68% for the full 6 months after 

program intake (n=343). 

Analysis 

We first computed the percentages for the variables indicating the selected characteristics 

of the men in the sample, and compared these sample characteristics to other samples of AfricanAmerican men and Caucasian men to help assess the representativeness of the current sample. 

To test for the effect of culturally-focused counseling on the program outcomes, we computed 

cross-tabulations using Chi Square statistics for each outcome variable with the counseling 

options, and Partial Eta Squared to help assess effect size. The tabulations were repeated with 

various samplings that accounted for the randomization implementation and program 

contingencies (e.g., no assignment change, stricter dismissal enforcement, 16-session mandates 

only, etc.). Three-way cross-tabulations were also computed using “high racial identification” as 

a control variable with the program outcomes and counseling options in order to test for a 

moderating effect of racial identification on the outcomes. Lastly, we conducted confirmatory 

multivariate analyses to control for the possible influence of the subsample characteristics, 

randomization implementation, and program context on the outcomes. Forward stepwise logistic 

regressions with the full recruited sample were computed for the outcome variables. 

Additionally, the time-to-re-assault was also examined using Kaplan-Meier Survival Analysis 

and Cox regressions controlling for sample characteristics. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
x

RESULTS 

Sample Characteristics 

 An inspection of characteristics across the three counseling options suggests nearly 

equivalent groups of men. Over half of the African-American men were over 30 years old (56%), 

not living with their partners (56%), not fully employed (60%), screened positive for alcoholism 

(57%), and had been previously arrested for violent crimes other than domestic violence (56%). 

Men in the racially-mixed option were, however, significantly less likely to have scored positive 

on the SMAST for alcoholism, but were more similar to the other counseling options in the 

proportion of men who reported being drunk at least once a month. This distribution of 

characteristics remains constant when the non-random cases are deleted. 

The current sample of African-American men is, however, less likely to be employed 

than the 1995 sample of African-American men at the same site, and it is also almost twice as 

likely to be under-employed than African-Americans at other sites previously studied. For 

instance, the educational level and full-time employment rates of the current Pittsburgh AfricanAmerican men were markedly lower than those of the Baltimore men in the attendance study 

mentioned in the introduction. These differences reflect the marked decline in Pittsburgh’s 

economy during the past five years. 

A comparison of the characteristics of the African-American men in the current sample to 

Caucasian men entering the program at the same period (N=71) confirm some expected 

differences but also expose some broad similarities across the racial groupings. The AfricanAmerican men were less likely to be married and more likely to have children living with them. 

However, the two groupings of men had similar levels of partner contact. The African-American 

men were also more likely to report having used drugs in the past year, but less likely than the 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xi

Caucasian men to report being drunk. Moreover, a greater portion of the African Americans had 

been threatened with guns/knives or witnessed shootings/stabbings, although they were similar to 

the Caucasians in exposure to other types of violence. 

Program Dropout 

The culturally-focused counseling did not appear to improve program dropout as 

expected. Approximately half of the men in each of the counseling options dropped out prior to 

completing the minimum required number of 16 sessions regardless of the sampling (i.e., full 

recruited sample or pure random sample). The overall completion rate for the current sample of 

African-American men is nearly the same as that of African-American men recruited at the same 

site in 1995 for our previous evaluation (n=105). The completion rates of the culturally-focused 

and conventional all-African-American groups were initially slightly higher than the raciallymixed option, but under stricter enforcement, the culturally-focused and conventional allAfrican-American options had slightly lower completion rates. Moreover, the men with “very 

high” racial identification were 30% more likely to complete the culturally-focused and allAfrican-American options (p<.05). Our multivariate analysis controlling for the potential 

differences in characteristics across the counseling options confirmed the “no effect” finding of 

the cross-tabulations. 

Re-assault 

 There was no evident reduction in re-assault derived from assigning African-American 

men to culturally-focused counseling or conventional counseling in the all-African-American 

groups. The re-assault rate for the African-American men during the 12-month follow-up was 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xii

23% according to their partners’ reports. This rate is less than the re-assault rate of 30% for a 

1995 sample of African-American men at the same program site (n=105 with a response rate of 

75%) for the same time period. This difference may be attributable to the increased length of the 

program (formerly 12 weeks instead of 16 weeks) and the lower partner contact during the 

follow-up period. 

 The cumulative re-assault rates were also not statistically different across the options at 

the 6-month, as well as the 12-month follow-up. There was, furthermore, no difference in the reassault rates for the post-program period (i.e., the 9-month period following treatment) or when 

considering only program completers. Other victim-reported outcomes (e.g., felt “very safe” at 

the 12-month follow-up) were overall very positive, but again showed no significant differences 

across the counseling options. While the men with high cultural identification were more likely 

to complete the culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American options, they were 

also more likely to re-assault their partners than their counterparts in the racially-mixed option. 

Re-arrest 

 The re-arrest rate for domestic violence was overall relatively low—10% during the oneyear follow-up. The re-arrest rate for any violent crime (i.e., domestic violence or other violence) 

rose to 18%. Nearly a third of the men were re-arrested for some crime. These re-arrest rates are 

comparable to those in our previous multi-site evaluation. However, the men in the culturallyfocused option were twice as likely to be re-arrested for domestic violence as the men in the 

racially-mixed counseling—a difference that was also statistically significant. There is no 

significant difference in re-arrest for other crimes of violence or for any crime committed during 

the follow-up. The logistic regressions basically confirmed the results of the cross-tabulations of 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xiii

both the cumulative re-assault and re-arrest outcomes. Survival analyses also showed no 

significant difference across the three counseling options for the time-to-re-assault. Program 

completion significantly decreased the likelihood of both re-assault and re-arrest in all these 

multivariate equations.

 

 

DISCUSSION 

Major Findings 

 The findings of our clinical trial show no apparent benefit from culturally-focused or 

conventional all-African-American counseling over conventional racially-mixed batterer 

counseling. There are some variations in the program outcomes, however, that warrant further 

consideration. One, the dropout rate increased in the culturally-focused and conventional 

counseling in all-African-American groups following stricter enforcement for absenteeism and 

delinquent payment. The all-African-American groups appeared more susceptible to the stricter 

enforcement. Two, although not a statistically significant difference, the conventional allAfrican-American option produced a slightly higher rate of re-assault than the other two options. 

Conventional all-African-American counseling, therefore, should be used as a comparison group 

in future studies to explore this tendency further. 

Three, the lowest rates of domestic violence re-arrests were produced by the conventional 

racially-mixed option where there was likely to be a more direct and emphatic message about 

stopping violence and the consequences for it. The other groups might benefit from more 

explicitly establishing the consequences of violence and the means to avoid violence. Four, a 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xiv

moderating effect of high racial identification on program dropout may suggest that counseling 

in the all-African-American groups does at least more immediately engage the men in the 

counseling process. 

 The sample appeared to approximate the goal of randomization, as demonstrated by to 

the similar distribution of characteristics across the counseling options and in the full and pure 

random samplings. The equivalent results in the cross-tabulations and logistic regressions with 

the different samplings, and the non-significant influence of the “random” variable in the 

regressions, further confirm this assumption. Therefore, we might also assume that the results 

apply to all the African-American men enrolled in the Pittsburgh batterer program during the 

recruitment period and not just to an exceptional group that fully complied with the random 

assignment. The current sample of African-American men was however lower in socio-economic 

status than the previous batterer programs’ samples of African-American men at the same site 

and at other sites, and than Caucasian men at the same site. 

Possible Explanations 

 We examined several other explanations for the lack of any additive effect from 

culturally-focused counseling. One possibility is that batterer counseling in general has little or 

no effect, as a meta-analysis of batterer program evaluations suggests. We previously identified 

a moderate program effect in our multi-site evaluation using both instrumental variable analysis 

and propensity score analysis, and argue why this result might be more reliable than those of the 

available experimental studies. Moreover, the logistic regressions applied to the current data 

showed that program completion was a significant predictor of partner re-assault and domestic 

violence re-arrest. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xv

 Another explanation within clinical trials comparing alternative treatments is the “dodo 

bird” effect—that is, counseling approaches tend to produce similar outcomes because they 

include similar components, structures, or interactions. All of the counseling options in our study 

had, for instance, a clear message of change, directions on how to change, and group support for 

change. Furthermore, our options may have merely reflected the comparisons between process 

(i.e., discussion-oriented) and didactic (i.e., instructional) formats, or between dynamic and 

cognitive-behavioral modalities, that have shown similar outcomes in depression and alcohol 

treatment, as well as in batterer counseling. 

Qualifications 

 We examined several other implementation issues of internal validity that could have 

influenced the results, in addition to violations of the random assignment. For one, our 

monitoring of “treatment integrity” found some evidence of treatment convergence. The 

debriefing interviews with the counseling participants reported similar amounts of discussion 

across the counseling options, but confirmed that the culturally-focused group was much more 

likely to address African-American issues. Two, the counselor leading the culturally-focused 

group may have been deficient in group skills and counseling experience. However, the observer 

consistently rated the counselor as adequate, and substantially more men in the culturallyfocused groups rated their counselor as “very effective.” In our estimation, the internal validity 

of the clinical trial is, therefore, relatively strong. 

The threats to external validity caused by the agency context of the culturally-focused 

groups are of greater concern. The culturally-focused counseling was an appendage to a social 

service agency that exclusively relied on more conventional counseling and may not have been 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xvi

as supportive of culturally-focused counseling as an agency with a different approach. The 

program’s close relationship with the court and enforcement of compliance may also heighten 

the perception that the counseling, regardless of the approach, is an extension of the criminal 

justice system and to be viewed with suspicion. There is no direct evidence, however, that 

verifies these potential influences. 

Additional Considerations 

 There are several broader social and cultural considerations in interpreting the findings, 

as well. Our study exposed a diversity of racial identification and cultural attitudes that needs to 

be considered in culturally-focused counseling. Racial identification is obviously a complex and 

dynamic concept, and one that was only crudely measured by the instrument used in our study. 

The question remains as to whether men with high racial identification benefit from considering 

cultural issues in batterer counseling. 

 The broader social backdrop of racism, discrimination, and prejudice in society at large 

has been particularly visible in Pittsburgh. In the mid-1990s, a federal human rights commission 

investigated the police department in response to a highly publicized “police brutality” case. We 

might assume that this backdrop adds to resistance, resentments, and rationalizations that affect 

program outcomes, and therefore needs to be more explicitly addressed in culturally-focused 

counseling at this particular site. 

Treatment Implications

 A study of this sort does not produce decisive recommendations for treatment and 

intervention. On the one hand, culturally-focused counseling might not seem worth the extra 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xvii

resources required to recruit and train appropriate African-American counselors, maintain 

specialized groups along with conventional counseling groups, and negotiate the intra-agency 

tensions that we observed from introducing culturally-focused counseling. On the other hand, 

culturally-focused counseling was, for the most part, as effective as conventional batterer 

counseling. It might be offered at least as an option to which men might self-select rather than 

be assigned. Moreover, its effectiveness might be improved through some modifications 

suggested in our study. 

For one, the identification, training, and support of appropriate African-American 

counselors warrants more attention and resources. Two, attendance and payment policies, that 

adversely affected program completion in the all-African-American groups, might be negotiated 

more liberally. Three, the culturally-focused counseling might be improved by linkages with 

resources and services in the African-American community, as the curriculum itself 

recommends. Also, embedding culturally-focused counseling in a community-based agency 

operated primarily by African-Americans might enhance program support and service referral. 

A final treatment consideration is to approximate the benefits of culturally-focused 

counseling in racially-mixed groups through a culturally diverse staff and staff trained in cultural 

sensitivity. This approach alleviates the resource issue of establishing and supporting separate 

groups for men of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, and may better integrate the 

advantages of culturally-focused and conventional cognitive-behavioral counseling. 

 

Research Implications 

 Our findings and qualifications have some obvious implications for further research. The 

most immediate need is for replication of our clinical trial at other sites and in different settings. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
xviii

The African-American men in our study are not necessarily representative of other cities 

especially in terms of socio-economic status. Evaluation of culturally-focused counseling might 

test the impact of linkages and associations with the neighborhood services and programs, and of 

embedding the counseling in a community-based agency or organization, rather than as an 

appendage to an existing batterer program agency. 

Culturally-focused counseling also needs to be tested with other racial and ethnic 

groupings and compared against the culturally-focused counseling with African-American men. 

If the culturally-focused counseling is more effective with other groupings or with other 

measures of racial and cultural identification, it would help reinforce the need to screen men for 

such counseling in order to make the specialized counseling more effective. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
CONTENTS 

Abstract 

SUMMARY—i 

Acknowledgments—x 

INTRODUCTION—1 

The Call for Culturally-Focused Counseling—1 

Culturally-Focused Versus Conventional Counseling—4 

Counseling Issues—8 

Outcome Research in Other Fields—11 

Batterer Counseling Outcomes—13 

Needed Clinical Trials—16 

METHOD—18 

Research Design—18 

Counseling Options—19 

Counseling Implementation—22 

Randomization and Sample—27 

Variables—33 

Follow-up Data Collection—39 

Analysis—43 

RESULTS—46 

Sample Characteristics—46 

Violence Exposure and Prior Arrests—48 

Program Dropout—49 

Re-assault—52 

Re-arrests—54 

Confirmatory Multivariate Analysis—56 

Women’s Program Recommendations—58 

DISCUSSION—60 

Summary—60 

Qualifications—64 

Treatment Implications—71 

Research Implications—77 

Conclusion—79 

REFERENCES—81 

FIGURES AND TABLES—93 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
Acknowledgments 

Oliver Williams, Director of the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American 

Community, helped initiate the research and served as the principal consultant and trainer for the 

“treatments” tested in the clinical trial. He and the author wish to thank Robert Foster, CEO, and 

Trudy Paul Bennardo, Program Director, of the Domestic Abuse Counseling Center, Pittsburgh, 

PA, for their assistance in developing and implementing the research presented in this report. 

Larry Graziano, Chief Operating Officer, developed the computerized record system and 

retrieved the subjects’ attendance information and group assignments used in this study. Jack 

Simmons, Chief Magistrate of the Pittsburgh Municipal Courts, helped guide the project’s 

implementation in the courts and provided procedural advice during the course of the study. 

Special appreciation goes to Crystal Deemer, Project Director, and support staff of the MidAtlantic Addiction Training Institute for project coordination and database management. Haran 

Wernik and Santiago Sanz assisted with data management and analysis. Research assistants, 

Gayle Moyer, Angie Beamen, and Vera Bonnet conducted the follow-up interviews. The 

research was sponsored by a grant from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), U.S. Department 

of Justice (Grant No. 2001-WT-BX-0003), but the conclusions do not necessarily represent the 

official view of NIJ. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
INTRODUCTION 

THE CALL FOR CULTURALLY-FOCUSED COUNSELING

 In many major urban areas, African-American men comprise at least half of the men 

arrested for domestic violence and referred to “batterer” educational or counseling programs 

(Gondolf, 1999b). The dropout and re-arrest rates of these men tend to be higher than those for 

white men in the same programs. African-American researchers and practitioners working on 

domestic violence have argued that the conventional approach to working with these men needs 

to be revised in order to improve outcomes (e.g., Blake & Darling, 1994; Hampton Carrillo & 

Kim, 1998; Oliver, 1994; Williams, 1994, 1998). Their recommendations echo those in related 

fields (e.g., alcohol treatment, psychotherapy, and social work): culturally-focused counseling 

should supplement conventional counseling developed primarily for white middle-class clients 

(e.g., Brodsky, 1982; Ponterotto & Casas, 1991; Rasheed & Rasheed, 1999). The need for 

culturally-focused batterer counseling has also been endorsed by a recent conference on domestic 

violence intervention convened by the National Institute on Domestic Violence in the AfricanAmerican Community (Nelson, 1999), and by the African-American Task Force on Violence 

Against Women of New York City (Garfield, 1998). 

 “Culturally-focused counseling” refers to specialized counseling for racially homogenous 

groups which explicitly identifies and addresses cultural issues that may reinforce violence or 

present barriers to stopping violence, such as prejudice in the criminal justice system, violence 

and crime in the inner-city neighborhoods, and conflicting images of Black manhood. The 

approach also promotes the positive aspects of culture that can strengthen a man’s effort to be 

non-violent: the sense of brotherhood, survival strength, and spiritual traditions. A set 

curriculum progressively leads men to and through cultural issues, and counselors are trained to 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
2

acknowledge and elaborate cultural issues that emerge during group discussion. The counselors 

are encouraged to “hear out” the men’s viewpoint and understand the different styles of 

interaction and expression. 

 Culturally-focused counseling differs in extent and intensity from what is commonly 

referred to as “culturally-sensitive” or “culturally-competent” counseling, although all three 

terms are sometimes used interchangeably (Williams, 1999). “Culturally-sensitive counseling” 

implies using counselors trained in cultural issues and awareness of how the issues may affect 

certain behaviors, including group attendance, participation, and personal change. The counselor 

is not necessarily of the same race and the group participants may be racially mixed, but the 

counselor strives to recognize and respond to cultural issues when they emerge. In contrast, 

cultural issues are an explicit part of the curriculum in culturally-focused counseling. 

 “Cultural competence” generally refers to demonstrated skill and experience with 

participants of different racial background, and structural supports that ensure cultural 

information is available. A racially diverse staff, advisory committees, board members, program 

location, promotion materials, and program curriculum are some of the ways cultural information 

is ensured. Cultural competence is distinguished by organizational or structural components that 

help a program be more responsive to cultural differences. These components are also likely to 

make the program receptive and equipped for culturally-sensitive counseling. 

 A recent survey of batterer programs indicates that very few of these programs 

specifically address cultural issues through any of these forms (Williams & Becker, 1994). Most 

of the programs asserted that they were open to working with African-American men. 

Approximately half of the programs (n=142) actually had some activity addressing cultural 

issues, such as outreach to minority communities, but only one quarter had cultural components 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
3

in their curriculum. There appears to be a perception among most batterer programs that they are 

at least culturally-sensitive, even though they are doing little in their counseling approach to 

ensure this. 

 Despite the endorsement by clinicians and researchers alike, there is very little outcome 

research on culturally-oriented counseling in general, and the research that is available offers 

some contradictory results (reviewed below). It seems particularly important to evaluate 

culturally-focused counseling in the domestic violence field because of the association of batterer 

programs to the criminal justice system and the cultural insensitivity—especially racial 

discrimination—that many African-Americans experience and perceive in that system. 

According to a Gallup poll over half of adult African-Americans have negative reactions to the 

criminal justice system that might further affect their response to court-referred batterer 

counseling (Stone, 1999). These are reactions that do not necessarily apply to the mental health 

or alcohol treatment programs where most of the previous research on culturally-oriented 

counseling has been conducted. 

 If culturally-focused counseling does appear to reduce dropout and re-assault among 

African-American men, then more should be done to implement the clinical recommendations 

for such counseling which have thus far been largely neglected. If the culturally-focused 

counseling does not have a significant effect, conventional counseling may be sufficient or other 

means of cultural support might be considered. We also might find that culturally-focused 

counseling is more effective with a subgroup of African-American men who hold more 

culturally-specific attitudes, that is, who identify most with African-American culture. This 

finding would suggest some criteria for assigning and admitting men to culturally-focused 

counseling. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
4

 We review below the clinical recommendations for counseling African-Americans, 

outcome research of culturally-oriented counseling, and preliminary findings regarding batterer 

counseling with African-Americans. Culturally-focused counseling appears to warrant more 

consideration. It might be more widely implemented in order to develop and refine its 

curriculum and training. Currently there are only a few articles describing such counseling and 

only a couple of manuals for culturally-focused counseling in circulation (Williams, 1994, 1998, 

1999; Williams & Donnelly, 1997; Wilson et al., 2000). These are based largely on clinical 

observations and experience, and as yet lack theoretical and empirical support for the specific 

cultural aspects they include. But ultimately, more evaluation research is needed to test its 

effectiveness in improving outcomes, specifically in terms of program dropout, re-assault, and 

re-arrests. 

CULTURALLY-FOCUSED VERSUS CONVENTIONAL COUNSELING 

Conventional Batterer Counseling 

 “Conventional batterer counseling” follows the parameters common to most state 

guidelines for batterer programs (Austin & Dankwort, 1999) and the gender-based cognitivebehavioral treatment outlined in published manuals (e.g., Pence & Paymar, 1993; Russell, 1995; 

Stordeur & Stille, 1989). The main curriculum topics include the nature and impact of abuse, the 

consequences and costs of abuse, taking responsibility for one’s abuse, ways to avoid abusive 

behavior, and beliefs and attitudes that sustain abusive behavior. The counseling sessions 

generally begin with a “check-in” period in which the participants report any particular 

accomplishments or problems from the previous week. A topic about domestic violence is 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
5

presented followed by exercises, role-plays, or demonstrations. Responses and discussions are 

integrated into the session or solicited in a period near the end of the session. 

 Trained counselors lead a racially-mixed group of approximately 15 men in what might 

be considered a “color-blind” approach (Williams, 1998). “Color-blind” means that the 

counselors have not received any cultural-sensitivity training, do not pursue cultural issues in the 

group, and do not introduce any culturally relevant topics. The objective is to stay focused on the 

behavior of concern and not let tangents or rationalizations divert the group from this objective. 

Men who batter tend to use rationalizations in general to justify and perpetuate their abuse. The 

discussion of cultural issues can open the door to more of this in the form of prejudice, “the 

police, or my neighborhood made me do it.” 

 The conventional curriculum, moreover, focuses on attitudes and behaviors that 

supposedly represent commonalities of woman battering. These commonalities theoretically 

underlie the violent behavior of men regardless of race and ethnicity. One of the fundamental 

commonalities is, moreover, to avoid personal responsibility for one’s behavior. Responding to 

cultural issues can easily become a way to diffuse this responsibility. 

 The effectiveness of conventional batterer counseling is, however, in question. Several 

reviews of quasi-experimental program evaluations suggest a weak effect (e.g., Davis & Taylor, 

1999; Babcock, Green, & Robie, 2004). Men who complete batterer programs do not have 

substantially lower re-assault rates than men who drop out. Two recent experimental evaluations 

compared men assigned to batterer programs to those assigned to control groups without 

counseling (Feder & Dugan, 2002; Davis, Taylor, & Maxwell, 1998). They found little or no 

program effect. These evaluations, however, encountered implementation and follow-up 

problems that may compromise their results (Gondolf, 2001). One of the evaluations examines a 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
6

program in New York City and the other, a program in South Florida. Both evaluations 

appeared to have low completion rates (less than 50%) that may, moreover, have affected the 

results, as well as problems with the intervention system as a whole (e.g. the court response to 

non-compliance, probation supervision of men, referrals to drug and alcohol treatment). 

Replication at other sites with better developed and operated programs is needed to confirm the 

initial findings. 

 Our multi-site evaluation of batterer intervention systems did show a program effect that 

lends support to well-established batterer programs (Gondolf & Jones, 2001; Jones, D’Agostino, 

Gondolf, & Heckert, 2004). This evaluation compared the outcomes of four different batterer 

programs across the country (N=840). Approximately a third of the men who enrolled in the 

programs re-assaulted their partners during a 15-month follow-up with approximately 70% of the 

men’s initial and new female partners (Gondolf, 1997a). The rate of re-assault increased only 

slightly to 41% by the 30-month follow-up (2 1⁄2 years after program intake). The men who 

completed at least two months of program sessions were significantly less likely to re-assault 

than the men who dropped out within two months and had access to their female partners (67% 

vs. 40% for 27% difference). This difference remained significant when controlling for 

demographics, previous violence and criminality, alcohol abuse, and psychological problems 

(Gondolf, 2000a). 

Moreover, “instrumental variable” structural equations were used to control for batterer 

characteristics, the association of these characteristics to program dropout and completion, and 

the program context (e.g., availability of victim services, probability of arrest for re-assault, local 

unemployment rates). This more complex analysis identified a moderate “program effect” (0.44 

to 0.65) (Gondolf & Jones, 2001), and was confirmed using propensity score analysis that 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
7

weighted both dropouts and completers to approximate equivalent comparison groups (Jones, 

D’Agostino, Gondolf, & Heckert, 2004). The conflicting outcome results have led some 

reviewers of the research to call for diversification of batterer counseling, including the use of 

culturally-focused counseling (e.g., Saunders & Hamill, 2003). 

Culturally-Focused Counseling 

 As mentioned at the outset, “culturally-focused counseling” is comprised of the 

conventional batterer counseling plus several components to accommodate the cultural issues of 

African-American men (Williams, 1999; Williams & Donnelly, 1997). Culturally-focused 

counseling goes beyond so-called “cultural sensitivity” or “cultural competency” in placing 

violence against women within a cultural context and explicitly integrating cultural issues into 

the curriculum. The curriculum components include: 1) only men who identify themselves as 

African-American in the group, 2) an African-American counselor trained to identify and 

elaborate cultural issues which are suggested in the participants’ comments, and 3) specific 

cultural topics that are introduced for discussion (Williams, 1994, 1999; Williams & Donnelly, 

1997). 

 Some of the distinguishing curriculum topics are African-American men’s perceptions of 

the police, relationships with women, sense of African-American manhood, past and recent 

experiences of violence, reactions to discrimination and prejudice, and support in the AfricanAmerican community. These topics address the major cultural issues facing African-American 

men, according to clinicians and researchers (see counseling issues below). The curriculum also 

varies from conventional batterer counseling in that it is more structured with concrete examples, 

vignettes, and directive questions. This structure is to help engage men of less education, more 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
8

resistance, and less counseling experience. It also assures that the cultural issues will be 

systematically introduced and not be neglected or overlooked as taboo. 

 The focus on cultural issues is not to fixate on negative cultural stereotypes or social 

pathology (Goldstein, 1990). These are, of course, a distortion of the dynamic and multifaceted 

aspects of any culture, and need to be checked with cultural strengths as well as barriers. The socalled “strength perspective” in social work practice (e.g., Cowger, 1994; Saleeby, 1992) has 

been integrated into culturally-focused counseling as well (See, Oliver, & Williams, 2002). 

Specifically, culturally-focused counseling encourages men to access the sense of brotherhood, 

communal spirit, initiative insight, poetic expression, spirituality, and ritual of the AfricanAmerican culture, as well as expose detrimental aspects it may hold. 

The support for culturally-focused counseling comes primarily from the cultural issues 

identified by clinicians and counselors in related fields with some tentative reinforcement from 

outcome studies of culturally-oriented counseling. That is, the justification for the construct—its 

particular topics and techniques—and its relationship to specific outcomes has not been 

theoretically and empirically established. There is only preliminary evidence in the batterer 

counseling that culturally-focused counseling is effective in reducing dropout and re-assault rates 

beyond the current levels achieved in conventional counseling. Moreover, it is not clear what 

cultural aspects of the counseling might be associated with improved outcomes. 

COUNSELING ISSUES 

 Clinical explanations from social work and psychotherapy suggest that cultural 

differences contribute to African-American men dropping out of batterer counseling or reassaulting if they do complete it (e.g., Blake & Darling, 1994; Franklin, 1999; Lum, 1986; 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
9

Logan, 1990; Rasheed & Rasheed, 1999; Sue & Sue, 1999; Thorn & Sarata, 1998). Three main 

types of issues are noted. The first type is sub-cultural or community-based issues. Many 

African-American men draw on a more personalistic culture that values personal reputation and 

familiarity over ascribed position or authority (Gondolf, 1980; Williams, 1998). They are more 

likely to rely on kinship and friendship networks to talk about their problems. Consequently, they 

tend to be reluctant to disclose to a group of strangers in counseling, or to test the sincerity and 

understanding of the group leader. Counselors may, therefore, see them as unresponsive to 

treatment and “unserviceable” (Logan, 1990). They are also likely to have different learning 

styles, as well as communication patterns. Many of the batterer programs use highly cognitive—

and even cerebral—approaches, which slight the action and emotive orientation of many 

African-American men referred to such programs. 

 The second type of issue is inter-racial differences and cultural clash. Some AfricanAmerican men are simply confused by the demands to change certain attitudes and behaviors 

that they see as normative and even essential to survival in their neighborhoods (Blake & 

Darling, 1994; Franklin, 1999; Oliver, 1994). This is especially the case with some of the antiviolence positions promoted in conventional batterer program curriculums. Furthermore, many 

black men have historically been faced with a different model of male-female relationships than 

middle-class white professionals (Asante, 1981; Bell, Bouie, & Baldwin, 1990). They have 

experienced a greater fluidity of roles and responsibilities in contrast with the gender 

assumptions asserted in some batterer programs. There is, moreover, the daily impact of 

prejudice, racism, and oppression that contributes to feelings of powerlessness, hopelessness, and 

rage. Not only do counselors often overlook or discount these feelings, they also tend to criticize 

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10

or condemn African-American men who acknowledge these feelings (Franklin, 1999; Oliver, 

1994; Williams, 1993, 1994). 

 The third type of issue is a reaction to racial discrimination or insensitivity (Hu, 

Snowden, Jerrell, & Nguyen, 1991; Logan, 1990; Rasheed & Rasheed, 1999). Some men are 

suspicious of social services in general because they are dominated by whites. They see the 

whites as unfamiliar and unsympathetic to their social reality and experiences. As a result, many 

African-American men expect to be misunderstood or “screwed over” (Gary, 1985). White 

counselors are often trained with a middle-class perspective that views individual and intrapsychic factors as fundamental to behavior, and neglects the social and cultural circumstances 

affecting many African-American men (Brodsky, 1982; Oliver, 1994; Richardson & Molinaro, 

1996). In many cases, there are few resources and services within African-American 

neighborhoods, and the ones that do exist are primarily used to correct or punish black men or 

deal with perceived deficits in the African-American community (Logan, 1990). 

 The literature on counseling African-American men uniformly prescribes greater social 

and cultural consideration to mitigate these issues and improve counseling participation and 

outcomes. The means to accomplish this prescription vary in terms and design but are similar in 

substance. One mean is to learn to conduct a cultural assessment of program participants as part 

of their individual assessment or program intake (Dana, 1998; Logan, 1990). This sort of 

assessment addresses the availability and access to needed resources and services, the 

assimilation of positive community norms and expectations, and emotional reactions to prejudice 

and racism. A second mean is developing a greater cultural competence among group counselors 

(Lum, 1986; Ponterotto, 1995; Richardson & Molinaro, 1996). Counselors need to be better 

educated about the nature of cultural differences, skills for identifying cultural issues, and 

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11

collaborating with staff, community leaders, and program participants from diverse cultural 

backgrounds. A third mean recommends a different dynamic and focus in group counseling 

(Robinson & Howard-Hamilton, 1994). The counselor establishes personal familiarity and 

shared-meanings, probes cultural issues and digressions, and identifies community-based 

responses and solutions (Rasheed & Rasheed, 1999). 

 These sorts of recommendations might be best integrated and implemented through 

culturally-focused batterer counseling with all African-American men in the group (Williams, 

1994, 1999). This approach and format is more likely to initiate cultural disclosure through its 

dynamics, curriculum, and group environment. While racially homogeneous groups with only 

African-Americans may improve rapport and disclosure in them, a trained sensitivity to cultural 

issues and a curriculum that explicitly identifies these issues are needed to ensure that culture is 

addressed. (See Figure 1 for a summary of the clinical and research review.) 

OUTCOME RESEARCH IN OTHER FIELDS 

 A comprehensive review of the racial and ethnic outcome research concludes that 

culturally-sensitive counseling produces more positive changes than counseling that does not 

explicitly consider cultural factors (Sue, Chun, & Gee, 1995; Sue, Zane, & Young, 1994). 

(“Culturally sensitive” refers here to a variety of means to identify and address distinguishing 

cultural attitudes and behaviors.) However, the limited research on this topic presents a less than 

clear and decisive picture. The few outcome treatment studies on conventional counseling groups 

provide only slight evidence that African-American men necessarily have poorer outcomes in 

such groups. A few past evaluations show that African-American men tend to be equivalent to 

white men in terms of dropout and symptom improvement, and a few more current evaluations 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

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12

suggest they may do slightly worse (Sue et al., 1994). For instance, a major evaluation of a 

variety of drug treatments did find that African-American outpatients were more likely to 

dropout and relapse (Brown, Joe, & Thompson, 1985), and a study of over a thousand mental 

health patients found that African-Americans had the lowest improvement scores on the Global 

Assessment Scale among Asian Americans, Mexican Americans, and whites (Sue et al., 1991). 

Research on alcohol and drug use has detected different usage patterns among African-American 

men as compared to whites (Caetano, Clarke, Tam, 1998; Harper, 1980). According to the 

researchers, this difference in itself implies the need for specialized treatment, as do the 

differences in communication and learning styles (Wade, 1994). 

 The limited research on African-American-only counseling groups and racially-matched 

counselor-and-client has produced inconclusive results (Sue et al., 1994). A few studies indicate 

similar mental health and alcohol use outcomes after conventional counseling in AfricanAmerican-only groups or counselor-client matched treatment (Jones, 1982; Rosenheck, Fontana, 

& Cottrol, 1995). In the mental health treatment study, African-Americans matched with 

African-American counselors were less likely to dropout, compared to those with a counselor of 

another race, but they were no more likely to improve (Sue et al., 1991). It may be that the 

cultural sensitivity of the counselor and the cultural-focus of the curriculum mediate these 

results. If counseling clients perceive the counselor to be culturally aware and addressing 

cultural issues, they are more likely to judge the counseling positively, according to a study of 

African-American college students (Parham & Helms, 1981, Pomales & Williams, 1989). 

African-American students with mistrust or suspicion of other races, moreover, are less likely to 

seek or accept counseling help (Nickerson, Helms, & Terrell, 1994). Additionally, AfricanAmericans living in a predominately African-American neighborhood are more likely to attend 

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and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
13

mutual help groups than African-Americans who live in predominately white areas (Humphreys 

& Woods, 1993). These sorts of findings imply that local African-American-only counseling 

groups are more likely to draw and retain African-Americans better than racially-mixed groups, 

but racial matching by itself does not necessarily improve outcomes. 

 An additional line of research suggests that the less than emphatic findings supporting 

culturally-focused counseling are due in part to the cultural diversity within the AfricanAmerican community. The few studies that consider cultural attitudes find that the conventional 

counseling outcomes worsen with fewer African-American men in a group and for men with 

higher racial identification (Aponte & Barnes, 1995). Cultural attitudes of African-Americans are 

also associated with the client’s response to aspects of counseling. African-American students 

with a greater sense of racial identity are also more likely to prefer racially-matched counselors 

(Parham & Helms, 1981; Ponterotto, Anderson, & Grieger, 1986), and racial acculturation 

appears to contribute to dropout and relapse in conventional drug treatment (Pena & Bland, 

2000). As suggested in the clinical literature, it is not merely race that needs to be identified, but 

also the cultural attitudes that accompany one’s racial and ethnic background (Dana, 1998; 

Logan, 1990). 

BATTERER COUNSELING OUTCOMES 

 A multi-site evaluation of batterer intervention systems offers information that appears to 

support the need for a specialized response to African-American men arrested for domestic 

violence (Gondolf, 1997a, 1999a, 2000a). This evaluation of racially-mixed conventional 

batterer counseling was conducted by the first author of this review article and is especially 

relevant to the proposed study. The site for the proposed research (Pittsburgh) was one of the 

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14

four geographically-distributed sites in the multi-site evaluation, and the outcomes were based on 

unusually high response rates and verification procedures. The multi-site study was a 

longitudinal follow-up (every 3-months initially for 15-months and extended to 48-months) of 

men court-referred to batterer programs because of an assault against their female partners 

(N=840). Nearly half of the Pittsburgh subsample (n=210) were African-American men (the 

percentages were lower at other sites that also included a substantial portion of Latino men). The 

African-American men, as compared to the white men in Pittsburgh, were more likely to dropout 

of what was a 12-week batterer program at the time. They were also more likely to be re-arrested 

according to police records. 

 More specifically, only half (52%) of the African-American men completed the program 

in 1995, as compared to 82% of the white men (n=210). The current difference in completion 

rates is over 40%. The African-American men were over twice as likely to be re-arrested for 

domestic violence as the white men (13% vs. 5%), and substantially more likely to be re-arrested 

for any crime (45% vs. 28%) and for any assault (29% vs. 17%). The re-assault rates reported by 

the women did not significantly differ, and were in fact slightly lower for the African-American 

men (32% vs. 39%; n=180). (Interestingly, the re-assault rates are significantly higher for 

African-American men in Colorado [46% for African-Americans and 27% for whites], less in 

Dallas [28% for African-American men and 45% for whites] and equivalent in Houston [both 

approximately 35%]). The relationships for dropout and re-arrest in Pittsburgh persist when 

controlling for the possible differences in partner contact, marital status, and prior arrests. 

 A batterer program study in the Baltimore area confirms the role of race in dropout from 

a counseling approach similar to that used at our Pittsburgh site (i.e., 16-weeks, cognitivebehavioral, racially-mixed) (Taft et al., 2001). The role of race was examined using regression 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
15

analyses with a variety of demographic variables (N=101 including 40 African-American men). 

The strongest predictor was race with African-Americans being less likely to complete the 

program. Re-assault and re-arrest outcomes were not investigated in this study, nor specifically 

addressed in the previous outcome evaluations discussed above (e.g.., the experimental studies in 

New York City and South Florida). 

 Only one preliminary outcome study of culturally-focused batterer counseling has been 

conducted to date (Williams, 1995). It must be considered preliminary because of its small 

sample size (n=41) and limited outcome measures, but its findings do point toward some utility 

in culturally-focused counseling for batterers. In the early 1990s, African-American men in 

Minneapolis-St. Paul attended either a conventional batterer counseling or a culturally-focused 

group of exclusively African-Americans. The men were retrospectively interviewed in-depth, by 

either phone or in-person at the program site, about their experience in batterer counseling. 

While the African-American men in both groups identified some common lessons, the men in 

the culturally-focused counseling were more likely to learn that they were not unique, isolated, or 

alone with their problems. They also felt more comfortable talking to other men in the group, and 

were more likely to develop friendships that carried outside of the group. They were more 

positive about the counselor as well, even though the counselor confronted and challenged the 

men at times. In sum, the culturally-focused counseling appeared to achieve more trust, support, 

and openness. As a result, the African-American men in that group seemed to learn more about 

themselves. These findings support the observations of clinicians in related fields and suggest 

African-American men are at least more comfortable and more engaged in culturally-focused 

counseling. The outcomes in terms of program dropout and re-assault, however, need to be 

documented. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
16

NEEDED CLINICAL TRIALS

 What is ultimately needed are clinical trials of culturally-focused batterer counseling for 

African-American men that test the outcomes of this approach against conventional batterer 

counseling. African-American men would need to be randomly assigned to culturally-focused 

counseling, conventional counseling in a group of only African-Americans, and a conventional 

counseling in a racially-mixed group. The African-American-only conventional counseling 

would be necessary to help isolate the effect of culturally-focused counseling beyond the racial 

composition of the group. Attendance records, victim reports, and arrest records would then be 

compared across the three counseling options. The counseling approaches would need to be 

explicitly articulated in manuals and monitored regularly to ensure that no “leakage” occurred 

across the options, especially between the culturally-focused counseling and the AfricanAmerican-only conventional counseling. 

 Additionally, the cultural attitudes of the men need be tested as a possible moderating 

effect on the counseling outcomes. As the reviewed research on counseling with AfricanAmericans suggests, individuals with stronger cultural attitudes tend to be more responsive to 

culturally-sensitive counseling or racially-matched counselors. Instruments that measure 

cultural attitudes and racial identification, such as “The African-American Acculturation Scale”

(Landrine & Klonoff, 1994, 1995) and “The Racial Identity Attitude Scale” (Parham & Helms, 

1981; Helms & Parham, 1990, 1996), could be administered for this purpose. African-American 

men scoring higher on culturally-specific attitudes are more likely to have better outcomes in 

culturally-focused counseling than in racially-mixed conventional counseling. Men with lower 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
17

culturally-specific attitudes, conversely, are likely to do best in the racially-mixed conventional 

counseling, as opposed to the African-American-only counseling groups.

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
18

METHOD

RESEARCH DESIGN 

We conducted an experimental clinical trial to test the expectation that culturally-focused 

counseling would improve batterer program outcomes. Approximately 500 African-American 

men mandated by the domestic violence court in Pittsburgh to batterer counseling were randomly 

assigned to one of three counseling options: culturally-focused counseling in an all-AfricanAmerican group, conventional counseling in an all-African-American group, and conventional 

counseling in a racially-mixed group. Our hypotheses were: 

1) program dropout, re-assault, and re-arrest rates would be lowest for the culturallyfocused counseling compared to the conventional counseling in either the all-African-American 

groups or racially-mixed groups, 

2) these outcomes would also be lower for the all-African-American groups with 

conventional batterer counseling than the conventional racially-mixed groups, and 

3) men with high racial identification would have better outcomes in the culturallyfocused counseling than in the other two counseling options (i.e., lower dropout, re-assault, and 

re-arrest rates). 

Previous experimental evaluations of batterer programs (Davis, Taylor, & Maxwell, 

1998; Feder & Dugan, 2002) have been compromised by refusals, overrides, and other 

implementation problems (see Gondolf, 2001). Several unique features eased implementation 

problems in our clinical trial. The random assignment was done at program intake reducing 

refusals and overrides (i.e., a subject is re-assigned because of a legal or assessment reason). 

Also, one agency coordinated the multiple sites for batterer counseling in the city and facilitated 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
19

subject recruitment. Dismissal policies and attendance records were uniformly maintained 

through a centralized computer system. 

It is, moreover, difficult to know whether a randomized sample reflects real-world 

operation of the program in many experimental evaluations (Dobash & Dobash, 2000; Pawson & 

Tilly, 1997). Overrides and reassignments can create an unrepresentative sample. Therefore, we 

additionally considered the potential impact of these sorts of problems on the results of our 

experimental design by comparing the results of unchanged random assignments to those of all 

the African-American men sent to batterer counseling. We then compared these latter men to 

previous samples of African-American men at Pittsburgh and other sites. 

COUNSELING OPTIONS 

Conventional Batterer Counseling 

The “conventional batterer counseling,” used in the mixed-racial and all-African-American 

groups, follows the parameters common to most state guidelines for batterer programs (Austin & 

Dankwort, 1999) and the gender-based cognitive-behavioral treatment outlined in published 

manuals (e.g., Pence & Paymar, 1993; Russell, 1995; Stordeur & Stille, 1989; ). The main 

curriculum principally addresses abusive behavior and thought patterns associated with abuse. It 

considers the nature and impact of abuse, the consequences and costs of abuse, taking 

responsibility for one’s abuse, ways to avoid abusive behavior, and beliefs and attitudes that 

sustain abusive behavior. Each topic is presented with handouts, exercises, role-plays, or 

demonstrations. Responses and discussions are integrated into the instruction or solicited near 

the end of the session. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
20

 In what might be considered a “color blind” approach (Williams, 1999), the counselors 

attempt to stay focused on the behavior of concern and not let tangents or rationalizations divert 

the group from this objective. Some manuals for “conventional counseling” do recommend 

responding to emergent cultural issues (Pence & Paymar, 1993), but the cognitive-behavioral 

approach employed at our research site did not do so, as is the tendency with cognitivebehavioral approaches in general. Moreover, very few batterer programs systematically explore 

cultural issues, according to the survey of cultural competence cited in the introduction 

(Williams & Becker, 1994). Our observations of numerous batterer groups in our previous 

studies confirm the prevalence of colorblind batterer counseling (for example, see Gondolf, 

1999a). 

 The conventional curriculum tends to focus on attitudes and behaviors that theoretically 

represent commonalities of woman battering. These commonalities supposedly underlie the 

violent behavior of men regardless of race and ethnicity. The assumption is that men who batter 

use rationalizations to justify and perpetuate their abuse, and avoid dealing with it (Henning, 

Jones, & Holdford, 2003). Discussion of cultural issues could digress into rationalizations in the 

form of prejudice, the police, or my neighborhood “made me do it.” In other words, tending to 

cultural issues can diffuse the decisive message regarding the need and way to stop violence, and 

serve as an excuse for being violent or abusive towards one’s partner. 

 

Culturally-Focused Counseling 

The “culturally-focused counseling” was comprised of the conventional batterer 

counseling plus several components to accommodate cultural issues of African-American men 

(Williams, 1999; Williams & Donnelly, 1997). Culturally-focused counseling goes beyond soThis document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
21

called “cultural sensitivity” or “cultural competency” in placing violence against women within a 

cultural context and in explicitly integrating cultural issues into the curriculum. The components 

of this more holistic approach include: 1) a culturally-rooted African-American counselor with 

ties to the predominantly African-American neighborhoods and thus someone with whom 

African-American program participants can identify, 2) acknowledgment and elaboration of 

cultural issues suggested by participants’ comments, and 3) specific cultural topics introduced 

for discussion as part of the curriculum (Williams, 1999; Williams & Donnelly, 1997). 

 Some of the distinguishing curriculum topics are African-American men’s perceptions of 

the police, relationships with women, sense of African-American manhood, past and recent 

experiences of violence, reactions to discrimination and prejudice, and support in the AfricanAmerican community. Other topics that specifically address violence include being oppressed 

and being the oppressor, finding peace when you feel powerless, and exploring the roots of 

violence in one’s life. The curriculum also varies from conventional batterer counseling in that it 

relies on more concrete examples, vignettes, and directive questions to help engage men of less 

education, more resistance, and less counseling experience. The culturally-focused counseling 

draws, furthermore, on positive aspects of African-American culture such as the sense of 

brotherhood, communal spirit, intuitive insight, poetic expression, spirituality, and ritual. 

 The culturally-focused counseling does also include instruction in the fundamental points 

of anti-violence education at the core of the conventional batterer counseling. Specifically, the 

consequences of violence and avoidance techniques were, in our study, introduced in the 

orientation session to all the counseling participants, and were reviewed and reinforced in the 

group sessions near the beginning of the sessions. Specific beliefs supporting violence (e.g., men 

needing to be always in charge or right) were addressed through the curriculum of cultural 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
22

topics. As with the cultural factors themselves, there is little empirical substantiation that the 

specific anti-violence techniques themselves correspond with a reduction in violence. In fact, 

outcomes with a dynamic thematic approach (without explicit instruction in anti-violence 

techniques) were, in one randomized study, equivalent to a cognitive-behavioral approach with 

anti-violence techniques (Saunders, 1996). 

 The culturally-focused counseling tested in our clinical trial was based on a manual that 

incorporated this curriculum and technique (Williams & Donnelly, 1997). The manual was 

developed by a team of clinicians, social workers, and researchers associated with the Institute 

on Domestic Violence in the African American Community, and has been used in training 

batterer program staff about culturally-focused counseling in workshops around the country. One 

of the co-authors of the manual served as a consultant, collaborator, and trainer in our clinical 

trial to ensure proper implementation and supervision of the culturally-focused option. 

Admittedly, the manual is not the only curriculum available for culturally-focused counseling or 

the only approach to addressing cultural issues. Its prominence in the field, inclusion of 

acknowledged issues, and logical format, however, make it a prime candidate for evaluation. 

 

COUNSELING IMPLEMENTATION 

Group Counselors

The group counselors were selected from current agency staff who met the experience 

requirements and characteristics prescribed for each counseling option. To accommodate the 

assigned African-American men, four racially-mixed groups led by four different counselors 

were used. The group counselors in the racially-mixed groups were white men or women with at 

least one year of previous experience leading batterer groups and a year or more at other social 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
23

service agencies. All of these counselors had at least a bachelor’s degree in social work or 

psychology, and one had a master’s degree. 

The group counselor for the two conventional all-African-American groups was an 

African-American man who worked as a manager and trainer for a retail coffee chain. He had a 

high school degree and manager training from his business, and approximately six months of onthe-job training as a group counselor at the batterer program. The counselor for the two 

culturally-focused groups was an African-American man who had previously worked only a few 

months as a group counselor and had worked at other community-based programs prior to his 

employment at the batterer program. He was a resident of a predominantly African-American 

neighborhood with strong identification with its cultural and social issues, and had a bachelor’s 

degree in high school teaching. In sum, the two African-American counselors were not 

advanced therapists, but had strong ties to predominately African-American neighborhoods. 

The criteria for the culturally-focused counselor, in particular, raised a difficult challenge: 

finding a man with strong ties to the African-American neighborhoods of the city and yet with 

group counseling skills sufficient to guide the discussion of the curriculum topics and issues. 

African-American men might perceive a counselor with advanced group skills and experiences 

as too “professional” and detached from their experience, yet a counselor with extensive 

neighborhood involvement is less likely to have the group skills needed for the culturallyfocused approach and perhaps would over identify with some of the culturally issues. Our 

efforts to recruit an appropriate counselor illustrate this point. 

Initially, the batterer program identified an African-American man who had worked with 

the program previously and even done community training for the battered women’s shelter. 

The man had previously been in treatment for drug treatment and jail for a drug-related crime. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
24

As a result, he had experience as a participant in the group process that enhanced his skills as a 

group counselor, and involvement with the criminal justice system that helped him relate with 

the men court-ordered to batterer counseling. Unfortunately, this man lasted only about six 

weeks as a culturally-focused counselor. The culturally-focused curriculum apparently 

heightened his concerns about the discrimination in the criminal justice system and batterer 

counseling programs. Conflicts developed with the batterer program administrators over what 

batterer program procedures should apply to the culturally-focused groups. The counselor 

wanted to be in charge of them and independent from the program administrators. Then issues 

with his family and friends re-emerged. The combined pressure of the program conflicts and the 

relationship problems led him to resign. His replacement had much less group experience and 

skill, but fewer conflicts with the program administrators and problems outside the program. 

Tensions did emerge, however, between this new counselor and the female clinical director over 

procedures and authority. The culturally-focused curriculum appeared to reinforce or raise racial 

issues that added to the tension. 

Some of the tensions may have in part been due to the separate training and monitoring of 

the culturally-focused counselors. The counselors using the conventional counseling approach 

were trained and supervised by the clinical director of the batterer program following the 

program’s established manual of procedures, policies, and curriculum. An external expert in 

culturally-focused curriculum conducted a 3-day training with the group counselor for the 

culturally-focused groups, and further instructed this counselor by observing and commenting on 

his performance in the groups. The latter was done on a monthly basis over a 4-month period. 

The counselor for the culturally-focused groups followed a manual developed by the expert 

trainer and a colleague (Williams & Donnelly, 1997). The separate training for the culturallyThis document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
25

focused counseling and the association with the external trainer may have created the impression 

that the counselor was exempt from the administrators’ authority and had special knowledge 

beyond those administrators. 

Treatment Integrity 

 All the groups were monitored for “treatment integrity” every six weeks through a 

combination of direct observation and audio tapes. The agency’s clinical director monitored the 

racially-mixed and all-African-American groups using the conventional counseling approach, 

and the culturally-focused expert regularly monitored the all-African-American groups with both 

culturally-focused and conventional counseling. He also observed racially-mixed groups twice to 

offer a contrast to his observation of the other groups. The monitoring of the conventional allAfrican-American groups by both the clinical director and culturally-focused expert was 

designed to help identify any convergence among the counseling options. Specifically, they were 

to observe whether the conventional all-African-American group varied from the conventional 

racially-mixed group, and whether the conventional all-African-American group remained 

distinct in approach from the culturally-focused all-African-American group. A monitoring form 

was used to rate the group sessions on several aspects: curriculum presentation, group process, 

group leader, men’s participation, and overall impact (see Figure 2). For instance, the form 

assessed the degree to which the group leader conformed to the prescribed curriculum and 

approach, and the extent of discussion as opposed to instruction. 

Additionally, 100 of the program participants were contacted by phone following the 

minimum requirement of 16-weeks of program attendance, and asked for their rating of these 

components and their impressions of the program curriculum (see Figure 3). These men were the 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
26

first 100 contacted by sequentially calling subjects recruited for our study. The men were called a 

maximum of four different times over a two-week period. If there was no response, that subject 

was replaced until 100 men were contacted. The response rate was 52% out of 242 men 

recruited over the first half of our study. The ratings on these forms, discussions with group 

monitors, and impressions of the counseling observers were used to qualify the results of the 

study, as well as to advise and guide the group counselors. 

Counseling Monitoring and Rating Results

The direct observation of the groups indicated that the counselors were adequately 

implementing the prescribed curriculum, but the observers raised some suspicions of 

inconsistency later in the project. After the first three months of the training period, the 

observers consistently rated the counselors in all the options at 80% or better in meeting the 

overall ideal of the respective curriculums. The highest ratings were for one of the racially-mixed 

counselors at 90%. The observers’ interpretation of 80% ratings was that the counselor was 

adequately implementing the curriculum and conducting the group. They considered this an 

acceptable performance in the “real world” of program implementation. In other words, few 

counselors were able to achieve the ideal itself. 

The culturally-focused expert initially noted, however, that the culturally-focused 

counselor was weakest in group process and occasionally wandered from the curriculum. Both 

the culturally-focused expert and the program clinical director were suspicious that the counselor 

leading the culturally-focused group was not as consistent in implementing the curriculum and 

following program procedures as the other counselors. They suspected that he lapsed into a 

directive and condescending posture at times. This suspicion was bore out in a couple of 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
27

sessions that were audio taped without observers present. It is difficult to assess the extent and 

impact of this potential inconsistency, especially given the relatively positive ratings from the 

direct observations and the group participants’ positive ratings of the counselors. 

 The men’s ratings suggest that the counseling options were adequately implemented but 

that a substantial portion of men actually preferred conventional counseling (see Table 1). The 

men in the culturally-focused option were, in fact, more likely to rate the counselor/group leader 

as “very effective” (CF: 84% vs. AA: 67% vs. MX: 64%; Х2

(2)=3.52, p<.05; N=100; ήp

2

=.034 

for CF vs. AA/MX). The men in the culturally-focused counseling were also much more likely to 

indicate that “special issues of African-Americans were addressed to a “great extent,” as the 

culturally-focused curriculum intends (CF: 77% vs. AA: 39% vs. MX: 11%; Х2

(2)=32.06; 

p<.001; N=100; ήp

2

=.437 for CF vs. MX and ήp

2

=.152 for CF vs. AA). (Ratings for the amount 

of discussion across the three options were, however, equivalent.) Furthermore, the men in the 

culturally-focused option were slightly more likely to appreciate the counseling, as the previous 

preliminary study of specialized counseling suggests (Williams, 1993). They tended to rate the 

program overall as “very helpful,” its effect on them to a “great extent,” and the comments from 

other men as “very helpful” (e.g., program overall “very helpful”-- CF: 70% vs. AA: 59% vs. 

MX: 61%; Х2

(2)=.90; p=.64; N=100; ήp

2

=.009 and .014). 

The men in the two all-African-American options were, however, more likely to prefer 

being in a conventional racially-mixed group compared to the African-American men assigned to 

the racially-mixed group wanting to be in an all African-American counseling group (CF: 67% 

vs. AA: 80% vs. MX: 30%; Х2

(2)=18.18; p<.001; N=100; ήp

2

=.089 for CF vs. MX and ήp

2

=.236 

for AA vs. MX). This finding may reflect the diversity of racial identification shown on the 

Racial Identity Attitudes Scale and comments from some men’s partners questioning the use of 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
28

all African-American groups. (These latter findings are discussed in the “Results” section 

below.) 

Setting and Context 

The context of the batterer counseling, namely its linkage to the courts and enforcement 

of compliance, appear to contribute to program outcomes (Gondolf, 2000b); therefore, these 

aspects of the context are considered as part of the setting and discussed in some detail here. We 

might speculate from the previous research that a batterer program with weaker linkage and 

enforcement would have less favorable outcomes and that changes in this context over time 

could influence the outcomes (e.g., Gondolf, 2001). 

All three counseling options required a minimum of 16 weekly group sessions. In our 

previous multi-site evaluation of batterer intervention systems, this 16-week program had similar 

re-assault rates to other programs requiring 51⁄2 and 9 months (Gondolf, 1999a). Pittsburgh’s 

periodic court-review appears to contribute to program compliance and effectiveness despite the 

shorter program (Gondolf, 2000b). Arrested men first appear in a domestic violence court for a 

pre-trial hearing. At that point the vast majority of men are ordered to batterer counseling as a 

stipulation of their bond. The men must appear in court again at 30 and 90 days following the 

initial court order. If they fail to demonstrate compliance at that time, they are given additional 

penalties. They may be held over for full prosecution, receive fines or jail time, or be required to 

attend additional program sessions. If the court-ordered men complete the program, their assault 

charges are generally reduced to harassment. 

 All of the men are assessed a weekly fee based on a sliding scale ranging from $5 to $50. 

One-eighth of the men in our sample were required to pay $5 or less, and approximately oneThis document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
29

fifth paid over $20 (M=$12, SD=$17). Two missed payments resulted in a 2-week suspension 

from the program. If payment was not made within that time, the man was dismissed from the 

program and sent back to court for additional penalties. Men with three absences were also 

dismissed and returned to court. In these cases, the court required additional group sessions, or 

imposed jail time and full prosecution. The batterer program also charged a $25 penalty for men 

returned to the program. Over a quarter of the men (28%) in our sample were given additional 

sessions because of absences or overdue fees. 

 The dismissal policy was uniformly enforced and records systematically maintained 

through a centralized computer system. Each counselor had a laptop pre-programmed with the 

assigned group participants. At the beginning of each session, the counselor entered the 

appropriate data for attendance and payment. This data was downloaded by modem into the 

main computer where it was merged with previous data. The computer automatically sent 

dismissal notifications to the men and the court, and compiled each man’s attendance and 

payment records used in our research. However, counselors or the program office did initially 

allow some men more time to make payments or accepted some undocumented excuses for 

absences. 

RANDOMIZATION AND SAMPLE 

Assignment Procedure 

 A staff member from the batterer program in Pittsburgh was stationed in the court to 

receive men ordered to batterer counseling and set an appointment for program intake within a 

week. The staff directed African-American men to one of two sites in the city’s predominantly 

African-American neighborhoods. At the program intake, the men completed a structured 

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and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
30

background questionnaire, the Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (SMAST; Selzer, 

Vinokur, & Van Rooijen, 1975), the Racial Identity Attitudes Scale (RIAS; Helms & Parham, 

1996), a research consent notice, and a contact information form. At the end of the orientation, 

the men were randomly assigned to one of the three counseling options and began attending 

group counseling the next week. There were four groups available at each of the two sites: one 

culturally-focused group, one all-African-American group, and two racially-mixed groups (two 

groups were needed to accommodate those assigned to that option). Each group had a maximum 

enrollment of 20 men with an average attendance of 13 and met on a weekday evening. 

 The participation refusal rate was 4%. The point of random assignment is the main reason 

for the relatively low rates of refusal in our study. The men in this study were assigned 

following program intake rather than in the court. Refusal to participate in the study would not, 

therefore, exempt a man from being assigned to some group and possibly the same group as the 

study assignment. Furthermore, our clinical trial did not involve withholding “treatment” as 

other experimental evaluations have done to establish a control group. Withholding treatment 

generally contributes to higher refusals by those men who want to avoid treatment altogether. 

Sample 

 The total sample initially recruited for the clinical trial is 503 men. This number includes 

all the African-American men ordered to the batterer counseling program in Pittsburgh between 

November 2001 and May 2003. (An additional 18 men were not included in this sample because 

they refused to participate in the research, and another 20 men were excluded because their 

assault did not involve their female partner.) The sample includes, however, two major 

implementation contingencies: some men whose assignment was overridden at program intake 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
31

because of scheduling or location conflicts (n=65), and some who were reassigned to another 

group during the course of counseling for these and other reasons (n=64). Nearly all of these men 

were reassigned from the specialized counseling sessions that met only on Tuesday and 

Thursday evenings, to one of the racially-mixed groups that met on other days and at other times. 

Also, if the subject needed to change buses more than once to reach the assigned site, he was 

reassigned to a racially-mixed group nearer his residence. 

Reassignments were made during the course of the program if a man obtained or changed 

jobs, began working another shift, or moved to a new location. These reassignments contributed 

to a larger sub-sample in the racially-mixed option (culturally-focused=165, all-AfricanAmerican=152, racially-mixed=186). Both men who were non-randomly assigned at intake and 

men who changed assignment during the program were, in fact, more likely to pay higher fees 

(which reflects their income), and be employed (60% changed vs. 47% unchanged; Х2

(1)=.33; 

p=.57; n=65; ήp

2

=.005; and 60% nonrandom vs. 49% random.; Х2(1)=.22; p=.64; n=68; 

ήp

2

=.003). These two implementation contingencies leave a randomized sample with no 

assignment changes of 373 (75% of the initial 503) and a more even distribution across the three 

options (culturally focused=121, all-African American=117, racially-mixed=135). 

During the course of the subject recruitment, we observed two other contingencies that 

could confound the results. These contingencies were related to program structure: an additional 

referral source and a shift in dismissal policy. Near the start of the subject recruitment, the 

probation department began to refer men to the program for 32 weeks, as opposed to the 16 

weeks required by the Domestic Violence court through the procedures elaborated above under 

“Setting.” Prior to the study, nearly all the men were referred to the program through a 

preliminary hearing in the Domestic Violence court. In contrast, the men from probation had 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
32

been fully prosecuted because they had an extensive arrest record, had previously been in the 

batterer program, or were charged with severe aggravated assault. The probation referrals 

amounted to 10% of the total sample (n=48). The total number of subjects randomly assigned 

with no initial override and no later group reassignment, and also with the typical 16 required 

sessions was 335, or 67% of the recruited sample (culturally focused=112, all-African 

American=103, racially mixed=120). 

Midway through the recruitment process, the dismissal policy was shifted from three to 

two weeks of unexcused absences or delinquent payments, and was automated through a new 

computerized record system. The computerization especially limited the discretion of counselors 

to occasionally allow some exceptions. The number of men recruited prior to the stricter 

dismissal policy was 238 and after its implementation was 263. 

One concern with deleting “override” non-random cases is that the remaining sample 

would not likely be representative of the typical population eligible for program participation 

(Gondolf, 2001). We therefore retained the initial recruited sample of 503 and compared the 

outcome results for this full sample of 503 against the “pure” randomized sample of 373. Using 

the total recruited sample also offered greater statistical power for the multivariate analyses 

employed in the study. Experimental designs have also been criticized for overlooking the 

program context that includes the referral system and dismissal practices (Dobash & Dobash, 

2000). In this case, there was referral from the domestic violence court versus from the probation 

department, and a shift in dismissal and monitoring procedures. We therefore tested for the 

impact of these contingencies by comparing results of domestic violence court referrals to those 

of the probation department, and those men recruited under the less strict dismissal policy to 

those under stricter enforcement. These sampling and contingency variables were also entered 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
33

into multivariate analyses as control variables to further examine their potential impact on the 

outcomes. 

VARIABLES 

Outcome Variables 

The three principal outcome variables for comparing the conventional and culturallyfocused counseling were: program dropout, re-assault, and re-arrest for domestic violence. We 

used “dropout” because of the established relationship of dropout to re-assault (Gondolf & Jones, 

2001) and the court’s consideration of dropout as “non-compliance.” “Dropout” was assessed as 

completing less than the court-required 16 weekly sessions (1=dropout and 0=completion). An 

alternative more precise measure for attendance was also used. Since attendance is highly 

skewed, the number of sessions attended was coded into four categories: 1=0-3 sessions 

attended, 2=3-15 sessions, 3=16 sessions, 4=more than 16 sessions. 

“Re-assault” was the major outcome used because it remains a relatively objective 

measure of woman abuse, and is the reason for the domestic violence arrests and program 

referral. Also, re-assault was directly correlated with the victim’s perceptions of safety and of 

“well-being” in our previous research (Gondolf, 1997a). As explained below, re-assault was 

based on the report of the man’s female partner—that is, the victim of the assault that led to the 

man’s arrest and mandate to batterer counseling. Any new partner who was identified at program 

intake or during the course of the follow-up was also contacted for re-assault information. 

 More specifically, “re-assault” was defined as physical abuse of the subject’s female 

partner reported by that partner during follow-up interviews. It was assessed through a series of 

questions that included an open-ended question about “how is the relationship going,” 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
34

descriptions of any conflicts and their circumstances, and an inventory using the categories of the 

Conflict Tactics Scale (Straus, 1979). A re-assault was considered any incident that included one 

of the tactics on the physical aggression subscale of the Conflict Tactics Scale (i.e., push, shove, 

grab; slap; hit with a fist, bit, kick; hit with something, attempt to hit with something; choke or 

burn; threatened with a knife or gun; used a knife or gun; forced sex against will). “Severe” reassault was also considered, and defined as use of any of the so-called “severe” tactics of the 

Conflict Tactics Scale (i.e., hit with a fist, bit, kick; hit with something, attempt to hit with 

something; choke or burn; threatened with a knife or gun; used a knife or gun; forced sex against 

will). The nature of battering injuries and medical assistance received for those injuries were 

also obtained and any injury resulting in at least a bruise (i.e, coloration that lasted more than one 

day) was indicated in a variable for “bruises.” (The reliability of the women’s reports is 

discussed further in the “Follow-up” section below.) 

 Additionally, the women’s subjective appraisal of their own safety and well-being were 

considered, as we and others have done in previous batterer program evaluations (Dobash et al., 

2000; Gondolf, 2000a), in order to supplement further the re-assault findings. These variables 

offer some indication of the subjective experience of the women beyond the behavioral acts (e.g., 

re-assaults) of the man, and an indication of whether their quality of life is improving along with 

cessation of the violence. The women were asked a global question “Would you say that your 

life overall is generally better, worse, or the same?” They were also asked to estimate how safe 

they felt at that point, and how likely it is that their partners will hit them in the next three 

months (using a Likert scale). These indicators were not only very highly correlated with the 

reports of re-assault in our previous study (Gondolf, 1977a, 2000a), but were also the strongest 

predictors of the outcomes (Heckert & Gondolf, 2004). 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
35

“Domestic violence re-arrests” were used as an outcome, as well, because they are of 

particular concern and cost to the court, and considered by the court to be a measure of 

recidivism and therefore “failure” of a particular case. Pittsburgh arrest records indicate 

“domestic violence” for simple or aggravated assault against a family member or known female 

partner. As explained further below, Pittsburgh police currently make this determination at the 

time of arrest and indicate it on the incident report that is later recorded in the county-wide arrest 

record database. The analysis focuses on the “domestic violence” arrests, which are the main 

arrests being addressed by the program intervention, but it also compares other kinds of rearrests across the counseling options to see if the culturally-focused counseling extends its 

impact beyond domestic violence. 

Domestic violence arrests were determined by reviewing the arrest records of each 

subject provided by the Pittsburgh police department (details on obtaining these records appear 

below under “Follow-up Data Collection”). The criminal counts for each arrest during the 12-

follow-up period (i.e., 0-12 months after program intake) were coded on a hierarchy of offenses 

as follows: any count for domestic violence=1, no domestic violence count, but other violent 

offense=2; no violence-related count, but alcohol or drug related count=3, and no violencerelated or alcohol-related count, but another offense=4. These codes were tabulated across the 

12-month follow-up period to also identify the occurrence of “any arrest” and the “total number 

of arrests.” The arrest records were similarly coded for any arrests prior to the domestic violence 

incident that brought the man to batterer counseling. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
36

Racial Identification

 To assess the hypothesized moderating variable of “cultural or racial identification,” the 

Racial Identity Attitude Scale (RIAS) was administered at program intake (Parham & Helms, 

1981; Helms & Parham, 1990, 1996). The developers of the scale define “racial identity” as 

having internalized attitudes of one’s racial or ethnic group and being suspicious of the attitudes 

prevailing in the dominant group or culture. RIAS is a 30-item scale that measures attitudes 

associated with a developmental model of racial identity (Cross, 1971). The RIAS uses a Likerttype scale (1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree) to rate agreement with each item (e.g., 

"I believe that Black people should learn to think and experience life in ways that are similar to 

White people"). The scoring categorizes the respondent in one of four developmental stages (i.e., 

pre-encounter, encounter, immersion, internalization) that range from low to high in racial 

identity. (Scores are obtained by summing the responses for each stage subscale and dividing the 

sums by the number of items in each subscale.) In our analysis, an average score of greater than 

4 (for the 5-point Likert response) on the internalization subscale was used to indicate high racial 

identification. “Internalization,” according to the test developers, represents a confident and 

assertive black identity and preference for a black counselor. (The scale and our use of it are not 

continuous or interval measures, but categorical ones based on developmental theory.) 

The Racial Identification Attitudes Scale (RIAS) is a tool designed to help clinicians 

assess the racial identification of African-American clients in order to adapt counseling to their 

cultural needs (Helms & Parham, 1996). Internal consistency reliability for the subscales range 

from .67 to .80 (Burlew & Smith, 1991; Helms, 1990; Parham & Helms, 1981), and factor 

analysis strongly supports the subscale construct (Ponterotto & Wise, 1987). The Racial Identity 

Attitude Scale is related to emotional states and psychological functioning (Carter, 1991; Parham 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
37

& Helms, 1985; Pyant & Yanico, 1991) and preference for racially-matched counselors (Parham 

& Helms, 1981), as predicted by racial identify theory (Helms, 1990). Social class and education 

do not appear to determine the scoring for either scale. 

 We also pre-tested another measure of cultural attitudes which has been used in a variety 

of studies with college students, professionals, and mental health patients: The African American 

Acculturation Scale (AAAS; Landrine & Klonoff, 1994, 1995). Both the AAAS and RIAS were 

administered individually to 20 African-American males recruited through sociology classes at a 

university with which our research institute is associated. After completing the tests, a research 

assistant, also of minority background, asked each respondent about their impressions of the two 

tests. The African-American men overwhelmingly dismissed the AAAS as “too dated”, “not 

relevant”, and “somewhat insulting.” They still had some reservations about the RIAS, such as it 

sounding “racist” in places, but thought its questions about attitudes were easier to answer and 

“more real” to them. The development model of the RIAS and its definition of the 

“internalization” subscale were closer to the conception of racial identification used in previous 

counseling studies, than the one-dimensional conception of acculturation in the AAAS. 

Therefore, we decided not to use the AAAS as an alternative or supplement to the RIAS. 

Other Variables 

Several other variables were assessed at program intake to help describe the sample, test 

for equivalent subsamples in the random assignment, and offer controls for subsequent analyses. 

The background questionnaire administered at intake included close-ended questions about the 

man’s demographics, employment, relationship status, alcohol and drug use, past abuse and 

assault, prior social service and criminal justice contact, and the women’s perceptions of safety 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
38

and the likelihood of re-assault (see Table 10). These encompass variables that have been shown 

in previous program evaluations to be associated with program outcomes (Daly & Pelowski, 

2000; Tolman & Bennett, 1990). Many of the men’s past behaviors, including their violence and 

drinking prior to program intake, were also asked of the men’s partners during the initial phone 

interview with them (within two weeks of the man’s program intake). The women’s reports 

were used as controls in the multivariate analyses since they tend to be more reliable than the 

men’s reports on these particular behaviors (Heckert & Gondolf, 2000). 

 Heavy drinking and particularly drunkenness are highly associated with program 

outcomes (e.g., Jones & Gondolf, 2001). To more precisely assess this variable, the Short 

Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (SMAST; Selzer, Vinokur, Van Rooijen, 1975) was 

administered at program intake. The SMAST is a widely-used clinical screening instrument that 

identifies alcoholic tendencies. It uses 13 true-false items to detect possible drinking problems 

even amidst a high level of denial. A positive answer (SMAST>0) to any of the items is 

recommended as an indicator for “possible alcoholism” in clinical samples of heavy drinkers. 

Drinking and drug use were also assessed using men’s and women’s reports of the kind of 

substance, frequency of use, and frequency of “drunkenness” or “getting high.” In our previous 

research, we found that these reports were much stronger predictors of outcomes than the results 

of conventional screening tests or scales (Jones & Gondolf, 2001). 

One additional background variable was assessed during program intake: exposure to 

violence. After observing several group sessions, the culturally-focused expert recommended 

that the African-American men’s previous exposure to violence be assessed. His clinical 

conjecture was that the past exposure to violence could contribute to traumatic reactions in the 

men that adversely affected their response to counseling. A checklist of violent tactics towards 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
39

(or from) different categories of people was developed. It included observed and experienced 

incidents during pre-teen, teen, and adult periods of one’s life (see Figure 4). Incidents for the 

violent tactics, age period, and persons involved were tabulated and compared to the results of 

106 Caucasian program participants. These comparison men were the first 106 Caucasians 

entering the program during the middle of the subject recruitment period. 

FOLLOW-UP DATA COLLECTION 

Attendance Records

The outcome variable of program dropout was obtained from the computerized 

attendance records maintained by the batterer program on each program participant. The 

attendance at each session was recorded by the counselor and reported on a laptop computer and 

downloaded into a centralized database at the administrative office of the batterer program. As 

discussed in the section on “Setting,” the program director uniformly enforced the attendance 

and dismissal policy across all groups, although there was a revision in the enforcement during 

the subject recruitment. Two unexcused absences (e.g., excused = documented illness, court 

appearance, work overtime) resulted in an automatic dismissal and a return to court. To receive 

credit for attendance, the participant had to arrive by the designated start time of the session and 

stay for the full 11⁄2 hour period. 

Victim Reports 

The victim reports of re-assault were obtained through follow-up interviews at 3, 6, 9, 

and 12 months after an initial interview at the time of the men’s program intake. The follow-up 

interviews asked a combination of open-ended and closed-ended questions about the women’s 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
40

relationship status, abusive behavior and circumstances, and help-seeking and additional 

intervention. The interview format was developed to encourage the women to develop their 

“story,” rather than respond mechanically to an inventory (Heckert, Matula, & Gondolf, 2000). 

The women were first asked about how their relationship was going and prompted to elaborate. 

This open-ended questioning was followed by more specific questions that ended with items 

from the Conflict Tactics Scales (Straus, 1979). This procedure appears to increase rapport and 

disclosure of abuse, according to debriefing questions about the interviews at the conclusion of 

our previous multi-site evaluation of batterer programs (Gondolf, 2000c). The phone interview 

took from 10 to 20 minutes to administer with some interviews lasting 45 minutes if the woman 

has suffered severe abuse. 

 The follow-up intervals are selected for practical and conceptual reasons. The 3-month 

follow-up is soon enough after program intake to minimize loss of the women to change of 

residence or telephone. The 6-month interval helps to further establish rapport with, and tracking 

of, the women, and also captures the majority of first-time re-assaults. We found in our multisite evaluation that over two-thirds of the first-time re-assaults occurred within six months of 

program intake and continued to decline after that (Gondolf, 1997a, 2000a). The 12-month 

follow-up captures over 80% of first-time re-assault committed in a 2 1⁄2 year period (Gondolf, 

2000a). It also offers a cumulative period that is comparable to the majority of other batterer 

program evaluations. 

 Two research assistants tracked the women using the contact forms of names and address 

information obtained from the male subjects at program intake and updated with each follow-up 

interview. The women were informed about the study, explained safety measures, and asked for 

consent over the phone, as was done in our previous multi-site study. We acknowledge that 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
41

safety and ethical issues are involved in conducting follow-up interviews with a clinical sample 

of battered women and have worked to develop procedures for addressing these (see Gondolf, 

2000c). The women were paid $10 for each completed interview through a check mailed to an 

address they designated. The payment appears to improve the response rate, as well as offers a 

suitable compensation for the interviews. We also interviewed new partners when identified at 

program intake, but did not seek out new partners that the men may have picked up during the 

follow-up period. In our previous multi-site study new partners identified during follow-up 

increased the cumulative re-assault rates by less than one percent and of course required more 

time and expense to identify and track (Gondolf, 1997a). 

 A response rate of between 60% and 70% is generally considered necessary in order to 

establish a representative sample, and in our case sufficient to detect significant differences 

across the counseling options. A response rate of 65% would produce approximately 110 

respondents in each option from our total sample of 503 subjects. Projecting a cumulative reassault rate at 12-months of 35% to 40% based on previous outcome studies (Gondolf, 1997a), 

this response rate would give sufficient power (.77-.98) to detect a statistically significant effect, 

if the difference in re-assault rates between the options is at least 15 percentage points. A 

difference of less than 15% would arguably not be clinically and substantively important enough 

to merit policy recommendations in light of the additional costs necessary to provide culturallyfocused counseling. 

 The follow-up interviews were completed in July 2004 with a 66% response rate for the 

full 12-month period (0-12 months after intake; n=333), and 68% for the full 6 months after 

program intake (n=343). There were 34 new partners interviewed at the 6-month follow-up in 

addition to 328 of the initial female victims; and 31 new partners at the 12-month follow-up in 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
42

addition to 320 initial victims. When both an initial victim and a new partner were interviewed, 

their responses regarding re-assault were combined (i.e., any report of re-assault was counted). 

Initially, a female partner was interviewed for 399 of the male subjects at program intake (80% 

of the 503 sample). A total of 383 men had a partner interviewed at the 3-month or 6-month 

follow-up (76% of the 503 sample), and 396 men had an interviewed partner sometime during 

the 12-month follow-up period (0-12 months after program intake; 79% of the 503 sample). 

The analyses were conducted with both those women who were interviewed for the full 

follow-up interval (i.e., at each 3-month follow-up interval), and those who had been interviewed 

at least once during the follow-up period. The results were nearly identical with the rates of reassault varying 1-2 percentage points across the counseling options. Results for the more 

conservative set of respondents—those who were interviewed for the full follow-up period—are 

reported. 

Arrest Records

The re-arrests for domestic violence and other offenses were determined from arrest 

records obtained from the county police department thanks in part to the support of the Chief 

Administrator of the City Courts. The police department printed out and forwarded the arrest 

record for each of our subjects in its database after the completion of the follow-up interviews. 

We received arrest records for 491 men out of the 503 men recruited for our study. The 12 

missing cases were men who voluntarily participated in the program and had no arrest record, or 

men who were from other jurisdictions and without local records. 

As mentioned, the Pittsburgh police records currently indicate simple or aggravated 

assaults against a family member or known-partner as “domestic violence.” Admittedly this 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
43

designation may still miss some domestic violence incidents that are classified as non-specified 

assaults. The arrest records include arrests in the greater Pittsburgh area and may also miss some 

in other jurisdictions, but given the relative stability of the population and geographical isolation, 

the county arrest records are generally considered comprehensive for our type of sample. Even 

though the arrest records may under represent the actual number of domestic violence arrests or 

potential arrests, this would most likely produce random error that would not invalidate the 

comparison of re-arrests across the counseling options. 

ANALYSIS 

We first computed the percentages for the variables indicating the selected characteristics 

of the men in the sample, and compared these sample characteristics to other samples of AfricanAmerican men and Caucasian men to help assess the representativeness of the current sample. 

We also compared the characteristics of the men in the three counseling options to expose 

potential variations across the option sub-samples that might contribute to differences in 

outcomes. This was done for each of the contingency samplings discussed above (e.g., full 

recruited sample, no assignment change, 16-session mandates only, etc.). 

To test for the effect of culturally-focused counseling on the program outcomes, we 

computed cross-tabulations using Chi Square statistics (Х2

) for each outcome variable with the 

counseling options. (A significance level or p-value of .05 was used in interpreting the results.) 

The tabulations were repeated with various samplings that accounted for the randomization of 

implementation and program contingencies, discussed in the “Assignment Procedures” and 

“Setting and Context” sections (e.g., full recruited sample, no assignment change, stricter 

dismissal enforcement, 16-session mandates only, etc.). These samplings enabled us to inspect 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
44

further for differences in the outcomes of the various samplings which might suggest an impact 

of the implementation or contingencies. Three-way cross-tabulations, with the program outcomes 

and counseling options, were also computed using “high racial identification” as a control 

variable in order to test for a moderating effect on the racial identification of the outcomes. 

It is increasingly popular to also report a statistic for effect size because effect size is not 

as heavily influenced by sample size as Chi Square (see Cohen, 1994). Effect size was computed 

using the statistic Partial Eta Squared (ήp

2

) derived from a two-way analysis of variance 

(ANOVA). This statistic is used instead of other effect measures because it addresses singular 

factors (e.g., group assignment) distinct from possible controlling variables. The Partial Eta2

must be interpreted with caution, however, because it assumes an interval dependent or outcome 

variable, and our outcomes are categorical. Also, the conventional cutoffs with Eta2

 are 

generally .01 for small, .06 for moderate, and .14 for large, but they are less clear with Partial 

Eta2 and vary with the circumstances or issues in question. 

Next, we conducted confirmatory multivariate analyses to control for the possible 

influence of the sub-sample characteristics, randomization implementation, and program 

contingencies on the outcomes. Forward stepwise logistic regressions with the full recruited 

sample were conducted as follows: The subject characteristics were first entered into the 

equation as blocks for demographics, relationship status, past behaviors, past interventions, 

subject and partner perceptions, and study implementation (see Tables 6 and 10). Where several 

variables were available to indicate an influential factor, specifically alcohol use and previous 

violence or criminality, regressions were conducted with different variables and the regression 

using the most influential variable was reported. For instance, prior arrest for violence, any prior 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
45

arrest, the number of prior arrests, and prior arrest and incidence of violence reported by the man 

were tested for “past violence or criminality.” 

Lastly, variables for the counseling options were directly entered into the regressions. In 

one regression model, the three counseling options were entered as dummy variables, and in a 

second model, the two specialized options (i.e., culturally-focused and conventional all-AfricanAmerican counseling) were combined and compared against the racially-mixed option. The 

latter model was used to examine whether specialized counseling in general (either the 

culturally-focused or all-African-American options) had an effect on the attendance outcome. 

Besides identifying factors that significantly influenced the outcomes, we also inspected the odds 

ratios of the counseling option variables to see if they were significant after controlling for the 

potential moderating, mediating, and confounding factors. Their significance would confirm our 

expectation or hypothesis that specialized counseling had an effect on program completion. 

 Additionally, the time-to-re-assault was also examined using Kaplan-Meier Survival 

Analysis and Cox regressions controlling for sample characteristics. This computation was done 

in order to take advantage of the longitudinal follow-up data, as opposed to the cumulative 

outcomes addressed in the cross-tabulations, and to test for an effect of the duration of nonviolence as opposed to just a re-assault sometime during the follow-up. In one instance where a 

counseling effect was detected, effect size was also computed using the Partial Eta Square 

derived in an analysis of variance (ANOVA) among the three counseling options. Further details 

of these procedures are incorporated into the presentation of the findings in the “Results” section. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
46

RESULTS 

SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS 

 We first examined the characteristics of the men recruited for our clinical trial. As shown 

in Table 2, over half of the African-American men sent to the batterer program were over 30 

years old (56%), not living with their partners (56%), not fully employed (60%), screened 

positive for alcoholism (57%), and had been previously arrested for violent crimes other than 

domestic violence (56%). As discussed in the “Methods” section, an inspection of characteristics 

across the counseling subsamples (i.e., culturally-focused all-African-American, and raciallymixed) suggests nearly equivalent groups of men. Men in the racially-mixed option were, 

however, significantly less likely to have scored positive on the SMAST for alcoholism, but were 

more similar to the other groups in the proportion of men who reported being drunk at least once 

a month. This distribution of characteristics remains constant when the non-random cases are 

deleted and cases that changed group assignment are deleted. These implementation 

contingencies do not appear to bias the sub-samples. 

In order to gain a sense of the representativeness of this time-bound and site-bound 

sample, we compared the characteristics of this current sample to African-Americans at this site 

in 1995 and at other previous research sites (see Table 3). Our current sample of AfricanAmerican men in Pittsburgh is less likely to be employed than the previous sample of AfricanAmerican men at the same site and almost twice as likely to not be fully employed as AfricanAmericans at other sites previously studied. These differences reflect the marked decline in 

Pittsburgh’s economy during the past five years. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

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47

Specifically, the current sample is more likely to be unemployed (46% vs. 31%), not 

living with partner (55% vs. 44%), and have been previously arrested (44% vs. 35%) than our 

previous 1995 sample of African-American men at the same site, but similar in other 

demographic and behavioral characteristics (see Gondolf, 1999b). The African-American men in 

Pittsburgh were, moreover, more likely to have lower socioeconomic status than AfricanAmerican men at the other sites in our previous study (i.e., Houston, Dallas, and Denver). They 

were significantly less likely to have some college education (25% vs. 37%), be fully employed 

(35% vs. 63%), and be married (28% vs. 49%). The Pittsburgh men were also significantly more 

likely to report being drunk in the previous three months (68% vs. 42%) and having used 

marijuana (31% vs. 16%), but were more similar in the proportion scoring positive on the 

SMAST (55% vs. 49%). The educational level and full-time employment rates of the current 

Pittsburgh African-American men were markedly lower than those of the Baltimore men in the 

attendance study mentioned in the introduction (Taft et al., 2001). 

A comparison of the characteristics of the African-American men in the current sample to 

Caucasian men entering the program at the same period (N=71) confirmed some expected 

differences but also exposed some broad similarities across the racial groupings (see Table 4). 

As in our 1995 study at the Pittsburgh site (Gondolf, 1999b), the African-American men were 

less likely to be married (34% vs. 54%; p<.05) and more likely to have children living with them 

(44% vs. 31%; p<.05). However, the two groups of men had similar levels of partner contact 

(e.g., “living with partner” and “see partner daily”). The African-American men were also more 

likely to report having used drugs in the past year (39% vs. 20%; p<.001), but less likely than the 

Caucasian men to report being drunk (32% vs. 41%; p=.16). The portion of African-American 

men asserting that their partner feels “very safe” is higher than the portion of white men (63% vs. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
48

49%; p<.05). The difference in marital status across the two racial groupings did not account for 

the difference in “very safe” ratings. Of particular interest is the fact that the two groups of men 

appeared very similar in the nature of their past domestic violence (e.g., “severity of assaults” 

and “partner also arrested”) and intervention against them (e.g., protection order, domestic 

violence arrest, currently on probation). The main differences to address in counseling might be, 

therefore, socioeconomic ones and the cultural issues raised by clinicians and previous 

researchers (see “Introduction” for a review of the cultural issues). 

VIOLENCE EXPOSURE AND PRIOR ARRESTS 

 As mentioned in the “Methods” section, we further examined the men’s previous 

experience of violence and arrests for prior crime because of the high association between these 

variables and future violence and crime and a suspicion that this previous violence might further 

distinguish the African-American men from Caucasian men in batterer counseling. According to 

the self-report checklist of exposure to violence, the vast majority of African-American men (85-

90%) had been exposed to interpersonal violence throughout the three periods of their lives (preteen, teenager, and adult). However, there was no significant difference in overall exposure 

between the African-American men and Caucasian men enrolled in the batterer counseling 

program. 

The African-American men were more likely to have been threatened with guns/knives or 

witnessed shootings/stabbings (e.g., Teenager—African-American: 54% vs. Caucasian: 30%; 

Х2

(2)=.14.36; p<.001; N=424; ήp

2

=.186). The exposure to gun violence was highest for the 

youngest adults in the counseling program (<30 years old: 50%; 30-39 years old: 36%; 40+ years 

old: 33%; p<.05; n=106). Both the African-American and Caucasian men were much more 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
49

likely to be exposed to non-family violence than family violence in the past. Approximately a 

quarter of the men were victims of family violence and a third witnessed violence among family 

members while they were children and teens. 

According to arrest records, the vast majority of men had been previously arrested for 

some crime. Over eighty percent (82%) had been arrested at least once prior to the current arrest 

that brought the men to the batterer program. Over half (59%) had 3 or more prior arrests, and 

over a third (37%) had 6 or more prior arrests. Nearly half of the men (45%) had been 

previously arrested for domestic violence or other violent crimes, and a fifth (21%) had been 

arrested 4 or more times for previous violence. A high portion of the men also had alcohol or 

drug related arrests: 60%. These high rates of prior arrests for violent crimes, not surprisingly, 

correspond to the men reporting that they were threatened with a knife or gun, or witnessed 

someone else being threatened, while a teenager (54%). We did not have prior arrest 

information for the Caucasian men assessed at the site for exposure to violence. 

PROGRAM DROPOUT 

Our first outcome of concern was program dropout and completion. The culturallyfocused counseling did not appear to improve program dropout as expected. As indicated in 

Table 5, approximately half (55%) of the men in each of the counseling options completed the 

minimum required number of 16 sessions regardless of the sampling (e.g., all recruited subjects 

or just those who maintained the random assignment)—and approximately half dropped out. The 

possibility of an effect of specialized counseling was tested further by collapsing together the 

culturally-focused and all-African-American groups. The program completion rate was 55% for 

the collapsed groups and the racially-mixed option. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
50

The overall completion rate for the current sample of African-American men is nearly the 

same as that of African-American men recruited at the same site in 1995 for our previous 

evaluation (n=105). In the previous study, the program completion rate for the previously 

required 12 group sessions was 56% (82% for the Caucasians; n=106). For those men who 

completed 12 sessions in the current study, the completion rate was 59% (N=503). 

We also tested for the possible influence of a major program implementation or context 

change: the stricter enforcement of attendance and payment policies. Prior to the stricter 

enforcement that began midway through the subject recruitment, the completion rates were 

slightly higher for the culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American options 

compared to the racially-mixed option (CF: 60% vs. AA: 62% vs. MX: 54%; Х2

(2)=1.40; p=50; 

n=238, ήp

2

=.004 and .007) but during the stricter enforcement, the culturally-focused and 

conventional all-African-American options had slightly lower completion rates (CF: 45% vs. 

AA: 49% vs. MX: 56%; Х2

(2)=.2.71; p=.26; n=268; ήp

2

=.013 and .005). As observed in our 

previous evaluations, the program’s stricter enforcement appears to have influenced the 

completion rates (Gondolf, 2000b). (Note: CF=Culturally-Focused Counseling; 

AA=Conventional Counseling in an all-African-American group; MX=Conventional Counseling 

in a racially-mixed group). 

There was some tentative support for our additional expectation or hypothesis that racial 

identification would have a moderating effect on program completion. The men with “very 

high” racial identification were 30% more likely to complete the culturally-focused and allAfrican-American options (CF: 63% vs. AA: 65% vs. MX: 48%; p=.15; n=159). These results 

were not, however, statistically significant at less than .05 according to the Chi Square statistic, 

in part because of the decreased cell size resulting from this three-way cross-tabulation (for a 

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and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
51

discussion of statistical power and significance levels, see Cohen, 1962, 1994). When the two 

specialized counseling options were collapsed to make a larger subsample, the moderating effect 

of racial identification was significant with a small effect size (CF/AA: 64% vs. MX: 48%; 

Х2

(1)=3.7; p<.05; n=159; ήp

2

 =.024). Conversely, those men with less than very high racial 

identification were less likely to complete the specialized counseling options (i.e., the culturallyfocused or conventional all-African-American groups) (CF/AA: 49% vs. MX: 58%; Х2

(1)=2.44; 

p=.12; n=324: ήp

2

=.008). While this latter finding is suggestive, it is not statistically significant 

and has a negligible effect size. 

Our multivariate analysis controlling for the potential differences in characteristics across 

the counseling options confirmed the findings of our cross-tabulations (see Table 6). After 

controlling for a variety of characteristics, the counseling options still did not significantly 

contribute to program completion. A few of the men’s characteristics significantly reduced the 

likelihood of program completion: some college education, highest fees (related to income), 

unemployment, and being on probation or parole. In short, men at both extremes of the economic 

continuum were at risk for dropout. As our previous research showed (Jones & Gondolf, 2001), 

drunkenness was also a strong predictor of program dropout, but not the results of the SMAST. 

However, racial identification, along with other measures of the men’s perceptions, was not 

significantly associated with the outcome. Only one of the study implementation or context 

controls (i.e., maintained random assignment; 32-sessions required, and recruited in second half) 

significantly contributed to program completion: being recruited in the second half of the study 

period when under stricter dismissal enforcement. The stricter dismissal enforcement reduced the 

likelihood of program completion, reinforcing the effect of program context on program 

completion rates. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
52

RE-ASSAULT 

 In terms of our second outcome, and one of greatest concern, there was again no evident 

benefit in assigning African-American men to culturally-focused counseling (see Table 7). 

Racial identification, as measured by the RIAS, also did not significantly influence the re-assault 

rates across the counseling options. The re-assault rate for the full sample of African-American 

men during the 12-month follow-up was 23% according to their partners’ reports. This rate is 

less than the re-assault rate of 30% for a 1995 sample of African-American men at the same 

program site (n=105 with a response rate of 75%) for the same time period. This difference may 

be attributable to the increased length of the program (formerly 12 weeks instead of 16 weeks) 

and the lower partner contact during the follow-up period (70% for current sample vs. 89% for 

the previous sample over the 12 months after program intake). 

 The cumulative re-assault rates were also not statistically different across the options at 

the 6-month or 12-month follow-up. At the 6-month follow-up, the cumulative re-assault rates 

for the culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American counseling were actually 

slightly higher than the re-assault rate for the racially-mixed counseling (CF: 18% vs. AA: 19% 

vs. MX: 14%; Х2

(2)=1.79; p=.41; n=343; ήp

2

=.004). The men in the culturally-focused and 

racially-mixed options had nearly identical re-assault rates at the 12-month follow-up (program 

intake to 12 months after intake) and slightly lower rates than men in the conventional allAfrican-American option (CF: 21% vs. AA: 27% vs. MX: 19%; Х2

(2)=2.34, p=.311; n=357; 

ήp

2

=.001 for CF vs. MX; ήp

2

=.004 for CF vs. AA). There was, furthermore no significant 

difference in “severe” re-assault across the counseling options (CF: 17% vs. AA: 23% vs. MX: 

19%--overall 19%; Х2

(2)=612; p=.74; n=267; ήp

2

=.001 and .004). 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
53

We also examined the re-assault outcomes for the post-program period—that is, the 9-month 

period following treatment (3 months to 12 months after program intake). The outcomes during 

this period consider any benefits gained from full exposure to the counseling, whereas the full 

follow-up period beginning at program intake includes men who re-assault prior to exposure to 

the required program duration and men who dropped out of the program. The pattern of “no 

difference” persisted with all the subjects across the three counseling options (CF: 17% vs. AA: 

23% vs. MX: 17%; Х2

(2)=1.96, p=.38, n=366; ήp

2

=.006 for AA vs. MX) and with only program 

completers (CF: 14% vs. AA: 18% vs. MX: 17%; Х2

(2)=.55, p=.76, n=201; ήp

2

=.003 and .004). 

Other victim-reported outcomes (e.g., felt “very safe” at 12-mo. follow-up: CF: 84% vs. AA: 

72% vs. MX: 80%; Х2

(2)=3.67; p=.16, n=307; ήp

2

=.003 for CF vs. MX and ήp

2

=.019 for CF vs. 

AA) were overall very positive, but again showed no significant differences across the 

counseling options. 

Our expectation that men with high racial identification would have a moderating effect on 

the re-assault outcomes was also not supported. While the men with high racial identification 

were more likely to complete the culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American 

options, they were more likely to re-assault their partners than their counterparts in the raciallymixed option at 6-months after program intake (CF: 20% vs. AA: 21% vs. MX: 12%; 

Х2

(2)=1.47; p=.48; n=119; ήp

2

=.014) and 12-months after program intake (CF: 23% vs. AA: 

32% vs. MX: 17%; Х2

(2)=2.71; p=.26; n=130; ήp

2

=.006). 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
54

RE-ARREST 

Arrests During Follow-up 

 The findings for our third outcome of re-arrests also did not support our expectation for 

lower arrest rates with the culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American counseling 

(see Table 8). The re-arrest rate for domestic violence was overall relatively low—10% during 

the one-year follow-up (i.e., 12 months after program intake). However, over twice as many 

women reported being re-assaulted than had partners arrested for domestic violence (23% 

vs.10%). The re-arrest rate for any violent crime (i.e., domestic violence or other violence) rose 

to 18%. Nearly a third (32%) of the men were re-arrested for some crime. (Approximately 12% 

were arrested for alcohol or drug related crimes and another 13% for other non-violent crimes.) 

These re-arrest rates are comparable to those in our previous multi-site evaluation that included 

men recruited in 1995 at the Pittsburgh site. 

 A comparison of the re-arrest rates across the counseling options shows that the re-arrest 

rates for the culturally-focused option were no better than the rates for the other options. In fact, 

the men in the culturally-focused option were twice as likely to be re-arrested for domestic 

violence as the men in the racially-mixed counseling—a difference that was also statistically 

significant but with a relatively small effect size (CF: 15% vs. AA: 11% vs. MX: 7%; 

Х2

(2)=6.42; p<.05; n=484; ήp

2

=.019). The trend in favor of the racially-mixed option persists 

when controlling for program completion. In other words, the re-arrest rate for domestic 

violence among program completers (16 weeks of required group counseling sessions) is still 

lowest for men in the racially-mixed option. 

There is no significant difference in re-arrest for other crimes of violence (CF: 11% vs. 

AA: 9% vs. MX: 8%; Х2

(2)=6.11; p=.74; n=484; ήp

2

=.001 for CF vs. MX). The men in the 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
55

conventional African-American option were, however, much less likely to be re-arrested for 

alcohol/drug-related crimes than men in either of the other two options (CF: 14% vs. AA: 4% vs. 

MX: 17%; Х2

(2)=19.79; p<.001; n=484; ήp

2

=.047 for MX vs. AA and ήp

2

=.39 for CF vs. MX). 

This lower rate is reflected in the re-arrest rates for any crime during the follow-up. It is not a 

statistically significant difference but is still substantial: the conventional African-American 

option had an overall re-arrest rate that was 20% lower than the other two options (CF: 38% vs. 

AA: 30% vs. MX: 37%; Х2

(2)=2.23; p=.33; n=484; ήp

2

=.007). 

Prior Arrests and Re-Arrests 

Because of the known association between prior arrests and latter arrests in criminal 

justice studies in general, we examined the relationship of prior arrests to re-arrests during the 

follow-up of our study (see Table 9). Men with a high number of previous arrests were much 

more likely to be re-arrested following enrollment in the batterer program. For instance, men 

who had four or more prior arrests for violent crimes were 21⁄2 times more likely to be re-arrested 

for domestic violence than those with no prior violent offenses (18% vs. 7%.). Similarly, men 

with higher than 6 or more prior arrests for any crime were 21⁄2 times more likely to be rearrested for domestic violence (16% vs. 6%). Attending the batterer program and especially the 

racially-mixed option appeared, however, to reduce the re-arrests of even the men with multiple 

prior arrests. 

The re-arrest rates for domestic violence or any crime are nearly 50% lower for men who 

completed the required 16 weeks of group counseling sessions, as compared to those who 

dropped out (Domestic violence: 7% for completers vs. 13% for non-completers; Х2

(1)= .414; 

p<.05, n=484; ήp

2

=.010 and Any crime: 24% for completers vs. 42% for non-completers; 

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and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
56

Х2

(1)=18.11; p<.001; n=484; ήp

2

=.045). The apparent effect of program completion persists 

when controlling for prior arrests. Controlling for prior arrests also shows that the raciallymixed option had its greatest effect in reducing domestic violence re-arrests among the men with 

4 or more prior violence arrests (CF: 42% vs. AA: 28% vs. MX:10%; Х2

(2)=11.02; p<.01; 

n=103; ήp

2

=.143) or six or more prior arrests for any crime (CF: 28% vs. AA: 17% vs. MX: 8%; 

Х2

(2)=9.05; p<.01; n=183; ήp

2

=.070 for CF vs. MX). In sum, men with multiple prior arrests 

(e.g., the 37% with 6 or more prior arrests) are the most likely to be re-arrested regardless of the 

counseling option, but the batterer counseling, especially the racially-mixed option, appears to 

reduce the re-arrests for these men more than the other options. 

CONFIRMATORY MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS 

Logistic regression analyses were used to confirm the outcomes of the cross-tabulations 

with the three counseling options by controlling for possible differences in the characteristics of 

the program participants across these options. As explained in the “Methods” section, variables 

for demographics, relationship status, past behavior, prior domestic violence, past intervention, 

perceptions of safety, and program dropout were entered into the equation followed by the 

counseling option. The logistic regressions basically confirmed the results of the crosstabulations of both the cumulative re-assault and re-arrest outcomes (see Table 10). 

The culturally-focused and all-African-American options, compared against the raciallymixed option, did not significantly predict the re-assault reported by the men’s female partners 

during the 12-month follow-up. Less than daily contact (decreased likelihood), previous severe 

assault (increased likelihood), the man’s perception that the man’s partner felt “very safe” 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
57

(decreased likelihood), and program completion (decreased likelihood) were the only significant 

predictors of re-assault. 

The culturally-focused and the all-African-American options were significantly 

associated with the likelihood of domestic violence re-arrest. Specifically, men in the culturallyfocused group were 3.5 times more likely to be re-arrested than the racially-mixed group 

(Beta=1.25; p<.01; n=450) and the all-African-American group was 2.7 times more likely to be 

re-arrested than the racially-mixed group (Beta=.99; p<.05; n=450). However, the effect size of 

the culturally-mixed group was small (Partial Eta2 <.05), and the effect size of the AfricanAmerican group was negligible (Partial Eta2

<.005). The control variables that were statistically 

significant in predicting re-arrest were common arrest predictors in criminology research: 

younger age, unemployment, and any prior arrests. 

The regression analysis for re-arrest for any violence (domestic violence OR other 

violence) showed that men in the all-African-American option were more likely to be re-arrested 

(O.R.=2.14; Beta=.66; p<.05; n=469), and the regression analysis for re-arrest of any crime

showed no significant association for any of the counseling options. Program dropout however 

was a significant predictor of both categories of re-arrest. 

Proportional hazards analyses were computed to determine the cumulative probability of 

time-to-event for domestic violence reports by women over the 12-month follow-up period. That 

is, they tested for differences across the counseling options in terms of the duration of “no 

violence” following program intake. A Kaplan-Meier Survival analysis shows no significant 

difference across the cumulative curves for the time-to-re-assault in the three counseling options 

(Log Rank=1.97; p>.05; n=414). In other words, the time-to-re-assault by the African-American 

program participants is similar across the three counseling options. A Cox Regression controlling 

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58

for the men’s characteristics was used to confirm the survival analysis (which does not accept 

these controls). The only significant predictor in the analysis was program dropout (Beta=.466; 

p<.05). Even when we control for possible differences in individual characteristics, there is still 

no evidence of variation across the counseling options in the time-to-re-assault. 

WOMEN’S PROGRAM RECOMMENDATIONS 

The female partners of the African-American men were asked about their impressions of 

the batterer counseling in four open-ended questions at the 3-month follow-up (n=330). These 

open-ended questions aimed to explore women’s views on the operation and impact of the 

batterer counseling beyond the designated outcomes of dropout, re-assault, and re-arrest. The 

women’s comments were tallied and summarized by two coders who established an interrater 

reliability of greater than .80. 

The majority of the women appear to support or tolerate the batterer counseling with no 

recommendations or objections. Over eighty percent (82%) of respondents indicated the batterer 

counseling caused them no problems or particular difficulties (“In what ways has the program 

caused you any problems or difficulties?”). The women’s main concern was the cost of the 

program (10%), and a small portion of the women were troubled by blame from their partners, 

worsening attitudes, or continuing violence (6%). 

 The women tended to identify the counseling objectives as the main ways their partner’s 

counseling participation benefited or helped them (“In what ways has the program been helpful

or effective for you?”). Nearly half of the women (45%) mentioned that their partner was less 

angry (17%), communicating better (14%), arguing less (4%), simply stopping his violence 

(4%), taking “time outs” (3%), or thinking more about his behavior (3%). About a fifth (21%) of 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
59

the women indicated the counseling had not been helpful at all. Their partners had continued 

their violence, dropped out of the program or become more hostile. Another fifth (22%) of the 

women had no response or nothing special to say. 

 Nearly two-thirds of the women (62%) had nothing to say when asked, “How the 

counseling program might be improved?” They did not know enough about the program to make 

a recommendation, or did not think any change was necessary. The main suggestions were to 

offer different kinds of counseling (e.g., individual counseling, couples counseling, alcohol 

counseling) (14%) or to change the program structure in terms of location, cost, or length (11%). 

In response to the question, “Should the batterer program do anything special or different 

with the African-American men sent to it?”, the majority of the women (82%) said “no.” A few 

of these women explained that there should be no difference between treatment of the races, and 

that domestic violence was a “man” or “human” problem—not a racial one. Only a small portion 

(8%) of the women mentioned something about the need to address cultural differences or use 

specialized counseling. The remainder of the women (10%) mentioned a variety of changes that 

went beyond racial differences: drug counseling, employment assistance, church involvement, 

and fee reduction. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
60

DISCUSSION 

SUMMARY 

Major Findings 

 The objective of this study was to test culturally-focused batterer counseling against allAfrican-American and racially-mixed groups of conventional batterer counseling. A clinical trial 

with randomized assignment of 503 men compared the outcomes of program dropout, re-assault, 

and re-arrests over a 12-month follow-up period starting at program intake. The three principal 

hypotheses were: 1) the culturally-focused counseling would produce more positive outcomes 

than the other two options of conventional counseling, 2) the conventional all-African-American 

counseling would have more positive outcomes than the conventional racially-mixed counseling, 

and 3) men with high racial identification would have more positive outcomes in the culturallyfocused counseling than in the other two options. That is, racial identification would have a 

moderating effect on the outcomes. 

 The findings show no apparent benefit from culturally-focused or conventional allAfrican-American counseling in terms of lower program dropout, partner re-assault, or domestic 

violence re-arrest rates. There are some variations within these outcomes, however, that warrant 

further consideration. Specifically, the dropout rates were equivalent across the three counseling 

options. However, the dropout rates during the first half of subject recruitment were lower in the 

culturally-focused and conventional all-African-American groups. After stricter enforcement for 

absenteeism and delinquent payment, the dropout rate slightly increased and equalized across the 

counseling options. This change suggests the effect that counseling context can have on 

counseling outcomes. It also suggests that the all-African-American groups were more 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
61

susceptible to the stricter enforcement. The program administration explained the 

disproportionate impact as the result of greater counselor lenience in the culturally-focused and 

conventional all-African-American groups. 

 The re-assault rates also did not significantly differ across the counseling options. The 

similarity in re-assault rates persists for a post-program follow-up period (3 to 12 months after 

program intake) for both the full sample (i.e., dropouts and completers) and just program 

completers. There was also no significant difference across the related indicators for severe 

assault and injury. The conventional all-African-American option, however, did show a slightly 

higher rate of re-assault than the other two options, and lower rates of women’s perceptions of 

safety. These differences were not statistically significant but warrant further attention in future 

research. That is, conventional all-African-American counseling should be used as a comparison 

group in additional studies. 

The domestic violence re-arrest rates for culturally-focused and conventional all-AfricanAmerican counseling were significantly higher than those of the racially-mixed group. This 

finding was confirmed in a logistic regression controlling for a variety of men’s characteristics. 

Interestingly, the lowest rates of domestic violence re-arrests were produced by the conventional 

racially-mixed option, where there is likely to be a more direct and emphatic message about 

stopping violence and the consequences for it. This effect is most noticeable for men with 

multiple prior arrests. These men may be more responsive to the structured counseling and 

uniform accountability offered in this option, despite their racial identity or cultural background. 

However, prior arrests are highly associated with re-arrests overall. As numerous criminal justice 

studies indicate, prior arrests are a decisive and readily available risk factor; consequently, men 

with multiple arrests appear to warrant more intensive counseling and extensive supervision. 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
62

The men in the conventional all-African-American groups did however have a 

significantly lower re-arrest rate for alcohol/drug-related crimes, and as a result a slightly lower 

re-arrest rate overall. This finding remained even after controlling for potential differences in 

alcohol use and previous arrests. The only speculation we have to offer in this regard is that 

maybe the conventional all-African-American group established a more decisive message about 

the likelihood and consequences of re-arrest in general. The large portion of men who had been 

previously arrested in both the all-African-American options (i.e., culturally-focused and 

conventional counseling) may have reinforced the undesirability of re-arrest, but the 

conventional counseling groups allowed less projection and excuses for it. 

 We did find tentative support for a moderating effect of high racial identification on 

program dropout. The men with high racial identification were significantly less likely to drop 

out of the culturally-focused or conventional all-African-American groups than the raciallymixed groups. These men were, however, more likely to re-assault after the culturally-focused 

or conventional all-African-American counseling. This latter finding was not statistically 

significant in the cross-tabulations of the options nor in the confirmatory logistic regression 

controlling for sample characteristics. Racial identification did not appear to influence the rearrest rates of any category of crimes. 

Confirmatory Analyses

 The results were confirmed in two analytical ways: One, the outcome comparisons were 

replicated in cross-tabulations using only the men who fully complied with the initially random 

assignment. That is, any overrides at program intake or reassignment during the counseling were 

removed from the sample, and the results were virtually the same. Two, logistic regressions 

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63

controlling for a variety of background characteristics also supported the initial findings of the 

cross-tabulation comparisons. The regressions were performed with and without the overrides 

and reassignments, and produced the same results. The nearly identical distribution of 

background characteristics across the full sample of counseling options, moreover, suggests that 

the subsamples of counseling options are equivalent—and approaching the goal of the 

randomized assignment. Consequently, we would assume that the results apply to all the 

African-American men enrolled in the Pittsburgh batterer program during the recruitment period 

in 2001 to 2003, and not just to an exceptional group that fully complied with the random 

assignment. 

 We also explored the representativeness of these men by comparing their characteristics 

and outcomes with African-American men in previous evaluations of batterer programs. The 

current sample of African-American men was lower in socio-economic status (e.g., employment 

and education) than the previous batterer programs’ samples of African-American men at the 

same site and at other sites, and than Caucasian men at the same site. They were also less likely 

to have contact with their partners at program intake and through the follow-up. We might 

expect that the lower socio-economic status would contribute to less favorable outcomes in the 

current sample of African-American men, and less partner contact would contribute to more 

favorable outcomes. The latter suggests less access and availability of the victim. 

 The program completion rates were similar for the current and 1995 samples of AfricanAmerican men in Pittsburgh (56% and 59% for 12 group sessions), but the re-assault rate for the 

current sample was somewhat lower (23% vs. 30%). This lower rate may be due to the extended 

program of 16 sessions versus 12 sessions for the 1995 sample, or to the lower contact with 

partners. The re-arrest rates were also slightly lower for domestic violence offenses in the 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
64

current sample at 10% versus 13% for the 1995 sample, and for any crime at 32% in the current 

sample versus 39% in the 1995 sample. We would have expected less favorable outcomes in the 

current sample given the significant influence of unemployment on program outcomes in 

previous studies (e.g., Monahan, 1996). The greater transience suggested in less partner contact 

may have offset the impact associated with unemployment, and the changes in the program 

length or police practices may have also contributed to the slightly improved outcomes. Since 

our previous study, the Pittsburgh police department was placed under a “consent degree” for 

police offenses against African-Americans and has experienced cutbacks as a result of city 

deficits. There is a public concern that these measures have reduced police arrests in general, but 

especially in African-American neighborhoods. 

QUALIFICATIONS

Implementation Issues 

 There are two additional threats to internal validity in clinical trials beyond the possibility 

of non-compliance to random assignment discussed above. These are treatment convergence or 

leakage, and counselor competence or compliance. That is, do the implemented treatments 

uniquely conform to their intended design, and do the counselors adequately fulfill their 

prescribed roles and interaction? In our estimation, the weight of the evidence on both of these 

implementation issues leans toward an adequate implementation of the counseling options, and 

relatively strong internal validity overall. Nevertheless, the construct validity of the culturallyfocused curriculum and the racial identity instrument raise some concern. Does the curriculum 

and instrument accurately represent their respective conceptions? 

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65

Treatment Integrity: Our monitoring of “treatment integrity” did find some evidence of 

treatment convergence. The men in the conventional African-American group had more 

discussion of African-American issues than the racially-mixed group despite the identical 

curriculum. This may in part be due to the fact that the racially-mixed groups consisted of 55% 

African-American men on average, and occasionally as high as 75%, because of attendance and 

enrollment cycles. As a result, the racially-mixed groups may have approached the “comfortlevel” found in the conventional all-African-American and culturally-focused groups. The 

debriefing interviews with the counseling participants also reported similar amounts of 

discussion across the counseling options. However, these interviews confirmed that the 

culturally-focused group was much more likely to address African-American issues, as it was 

intended to do. 

Counselor Competence: The variation in counselor training and skills also might have 

affected the outcomes. The counselors leading the racially-mixed groups may have been able to 

compensate for the lack of specialized counseling with their greater experience and training. 

Moreover, the counselor leading the culturally-focused group may have been deficient in group 

skills, as discussed in the “Methods” section. Both observers monitoring the counseling 

suspected that the culturally-focused counselor was not as consistent as the other counselors, and 

occasionally lapsed into a directive and condescending posture. However, the observers 

consistently rated the counselors in all the options at 80% or better in meeting the observers’ 

ideal, and substantially more men in the culturally-focused groups rated their counselor as “very 

effective.” 

Curriculum Content: We are left however with a more difficult question regarding the 

implementation of the culturally-focused curriculum. The expected effects of culturally-focused 

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66

counseling may have been offset by the different components in its approach. For instance, the 

domestic violence message may have been diffused amidst the discussion within the culturallyfocused groups, and as a result less explicit skill-building occurred (e.g., how to take “timeouts”). While skill-building was to be incorporated, the taped sessions suggest that the 

curriculum topics and encouraged discussion can turn the men’s attention toward their own 

personal needs or social excuses for their violence. Our consulting expert on culturally-focused 

curriculum later recommended that basic violence avoidance skills and the responsibility for 

violence be introduced in a separate orientation session in order to ensure that they receive full 

attention. 

 These considerations point to questions of content validity. Do the components of the 

culturally-focused counseling, as designed and implemented, adequately address the racial issues 

that contribute to counseling dropout and re-assault? The largely clinical assumption that more 

explicit attention to the specific topics of black manhood, racial discrimination, neighborhood 

crime rates, lack of resources, etc., or that more open discussion of emergent issues in the 

sessions will improve outcomes, warrants further examination. Perhaps some of these 

components were not as fully or clearly implemented as others, and the ones that matter most 

were neglected. Or a fuller discussion of the emergent issues may be what is crucial to the 

outcomes. According to the group monitoring, the discussion in the culturally-focused 

counseling was the least developed of the components. We do not know if a modification of the 

counseling components and their implementation—or a different culturally-oriented 

curriculum—would have improved outcomes. 

Racial Identity Measurement: Our study exposed a diversity of racial identification and 

cultural attitudes that needs to be considered in culturally-focused counseling and offers some 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

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67

support for the moderating effect of high racial identification on outcomes. The moderating 

effect of racial identity must be considered tentative, however, because of the small subsample of 

men with high racial identification, and in part because of limitations in the racial identity 

instrument. Racial identification is obviously a complex and dynamic concept, and one that was 

only crudely measured by the instrument used in our study. Moreover, we used a cut score on 

one of the subscales of the Racial Identity Attitudes Scale rather than subjectively interpret each 

clinical profile created by the instrument’s four subscales. 

 We cannot, nonetheless, assume that all or most African-American men have the same 

cultural experience or identification. Their response to similar cultural experiences may also 

vary. Men’s cultural experience is likely to differ across socio-economic classes and geographic 

regions. The curriculum in culturally-focused counseling does attempt to assert commonalities 

among African-American men who are referred to batterer counseling programs. It is safe to 

assume that most African-American men are at least aware of the cultural issues presented in the 

curriculum, if not directly affected by them. Consequently, the overwhelming recommendation 

within the fields of clinical psychology and counseling is that racial and cultural issues be 

recognized, discussed, and addressed in treatment and counseling. The question that remains is 

the degree to which the men with lower racial identification benefit from considering these issues 

in batterer counseling. 

Unidentified Counseling Factors 

 There are some additional issues regarding batterer counseling in general that might be 

weighed in interpreting the findings or our clinical trial. One possibility is that batterer 

counseling has little or no effect regardless of approach, as a meta-analysis of batterer program 

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68

evaluations suggests (Babcock, Green, & Robie, 2004). As mentioned in the “Introduction” 

section, we previously identified a moderate program effect in our multi-site evaluation using 

both instrumental variable analysis and propensity score analysis, and argue why this result 

might be more reliable than those of the experimental studies (Gondolf & Jones, 2001; Jones et 

al., 2004). Moreover, the logistic regressions applied to the current data showed that program 

completion was a significant predictor of partner re-assault and domestic violence re-arrest. 

 Another explanation within clinical trials comparing alternative treatments is the “dodo 

bird” effect. A longstanding tendency in clinical trials of psychotherapies or counseling 

approaches has been to produce similar outcomes across the different options (Luborsky, Singer, 

& Luborsky, 1975; Luborsky et al., 2002). The predominant explanation for this tendency is that 

the different options include similar components, structures, or interactions that supersede the 

differences in curriculum or approach. In our study, all of the counseling options had, for 

instance, a clear message of change, directions on how to change, and group support for change. 

 Furthermore, our options may have merely reflected the comparisons between process 

(i.e., discussion-oriented) and didactic (i.e., instructional) formats, or between dynamic and 

cognitive-behavioral modalities. Our culturally-focused counseling was very similar to the 

process and dynamic approaches, and our conventional counseling was aligned with didactic and 

cognitive-behavioral approaches. A smaller clinical trial of dynamic and cognitive-behavioral 

counseling with batterers in the early-1990s produced similar outcomes for both approaches in 

terms of re-assault and re-arrests (Saunders, 1996). Large clinical trials comparing different 

psychotherapies for depression and alcohol addiction have also found similar outcomes across 

approaches (Elkin, Shea, & Watkins, 1989; Project MATCH, 1997). 

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69

Additional Considerations 

 The strong endorsement of specialized batterer counseling by both clinicians and 

researchers alike (discussed in the “Introduction”) lead us to consider alternative explanations for 

the results. (Most of these are issues of external validity—that is, the ability to generalize our 

findings of “no effect” beyond our narrowly focused experiment.) As critics of clinical trials 

have argued (e.g., Dobash & Dobash, 2000; Pawson & Tilly, 1997; Van Voohis, Cullen, & 

Applegate, 1995), the clinical trial generally fails to account for the impact of program context 

on the outcomes. Our observations and staff feedback raised several concerns in this regard, but 

our research design did not specifically correlate these concerns with the outcome. They 

therefore remain speculative and in need of further research. 

 For one, the culturally-focused counseling was an appendage to a social service agency 

that exclusively relied on more conventional counseling and may not have been as supportive of 

culturally-focused counseling as an agency with a different approach. The court review and 

payment policies appeared, moreover, to neutralize the supportive intent of the culturallyfocused counseling, as well as motivate resistant men in the racially-mixed groups, as our 

findings regarding stricter enforcement of attendance and payment policies suggest. (Dropout 

rates were lower in the culturally-focused counseling when enforcement was more lenient and 

higher when it was stricter). 

Two, the close relationship of the program to the court and court review may also 

heighten the perception that the counseling, regardless of the approach, is an extension of the 

criminal justice system and to be viewed with suspicion. Perceptions may have been more 

positive and the men more responsive, if the culturally-focused counseling was embedded in a 

community-based organization. The culturally-focused curriculum does recommend active 

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70

linkages and collaboration with other African-American community organizations and services 

(e.g., Williams, 1999), but these were not developed in our clinical trial which focused on the 

group counseling. To further examine the impact of such community ties, we are completing a 

subsequent study that examines the additive effect of systematic referral of African-American 

men to other community services. 

There are several broader social and cultural considerations that go beyond the 

counseling implementation and its immediate context. The impact of the larger criminal justice 

system that disproportionately arrests African-American men compared to Caucasians remains a 

topic of concern and debate in criminological research in general (see Websdale, 2001). Policing 

tends to be more aggressive in predominantly African-American neighborhoods, and services 

and resources for dealing with family problems are much less available. As a result, family 

problems that might be resolved by voluntary counseling or other supports are more likely to be 

addressed by the police (Hutchinson, Hirschel, & Pesackis, 1994). The courts also may be more 

likely to send African-American men to counseling or jail, rather than order a fine or release. In 

our own study, 41% of the men indicated that they experienced discrimination in their arrest and 

court appearance (to “some” or “a great” extent). The apparent inequity of counseling referral, 

no doubt, adds to the resistance to batterer counseling. Ultimately, the criminalization of family 

problems may itself need to be addressed in order to improve counseling outcomes and reduce 

the levels of domestic violence in general (e.g., Richie, 2000). 

 The broader social backdrop of racism, discrimination, and prejudice in society at large 

arguably has a role in the living conditions of many inner city neighborhoods, the contentious 

relationships between the police and many African-American residents, and the perceptions of 

black males as “trouble makers” and police as brutal and racist. There is no doubt that racism in 

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71

these forms has been particularly visible in Pittsburgh. Within the last decade, the city was 

confronted with the highly publicized Johnny Gamage case in which a young African-American 

man was killed by police in a run-away car. The case opened a federal investigation into the 

police department that led to several reforms, but also reinforced the perception of a “racist” 

criminal justice system. Opinion polls at the time of the O.J. Simpson case exposed the national 

scope of such a divide. We can only speculate on the impact of racism on batterer counseling, 

but assume that it adds to resistance, resentments, and rationalizations that affect outcomes. It 

may therefore need to be more explicitly addressed through culturally-focused counseling or 

some other means. 

TREATMENT IMPLICATIONS

Conventional or Culturally-Focused Counseling 

 A study of this sort does not produce decisive recommendations for treatment and 

intervention. At face value, our clinical trial indicates no additive effect from culturally-focused 

counseling. However, the contextual qualifications raise limitations to the current 

implementation and possibilities for modifications of culturally-focused counseling. On the one 

hand, culturally-focused counseling might not seem worth the extra resources required to recruit 

and train appropriate African-American counselors, maintain specialized groups along with 

conventional counseling groups, and negotiate the intra-agency tensions that we observed from 

introducing culturally-focused counseling. There is likely to be some “backlash” as well to 

contend with. Two men in our study, for instance, protested to their probation officers for being 

assigned to the culturally-focused group. They claimed it was “racist” and were reassigned to a 

racially-mixed group. Very few women identified the need to address cultural or racial issues in 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
72

batterer counseling when asked, “Are there any special needs or issues that the counseling should 

address with African-American men.” Several women in fact asserted that domestic violence 

was a “human problem” and did not need any special treatment, except for an occasional 

mention of help with unemployment. 

 On the other hand, culturally-focused counseling was, for the most part, as effective as 

conventional batterer counseling. It might be offered at least as an option to which men might 

self-select rather than be assigned. The suggestive finding that racial identification contributes to 

the counseling outcomes supports this consideration. Culturally-focused counseling would not 

only accommodate men with high racial identification, but also send a message of 

accommodation that might help ease resistance and suspicion. It is an acknowledgement to the 

men and the community that differences in attitude, perception, and experience exist and will be 

considered. Moreover, introducing culturally-focused counseling enables more learning about 

counseling alternatives and further development of an alternative that might become even more 

effective with some modification. (The caveat here is that the men in the culturally-focused 

option were unexplainably more likely to be re-arrested for domestic violence despite the 

similarity in other outcomes.) 

 Our study exposes some modifications to consider. For one, the identification, training, 

and support of appropriate African-American counselors warrants more attention and resources. 

Particularly culturally-focused counseling, as well as conventional counseling with AfricanAmerican men, logically benefits from counselors who have counseling and group skills and 

with whom the counseling participants can relate. However, being a part of the lower-income 

neighborhoods where many counseling participants reside often means dealing with limited 

opportunities for professional education and experience, and having the needed professional 

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73

education and experience may bring some resentment or suspicion from some counseling 

participants. In our debriefing interviews with the African-American men, several men assumed 

that the counselor leading the conventional all-African-American group was from a suburban 

middle-class community, but he was actually from one of their neighborhoods. This counselor 

was also working as a store manager and staff trainer at a local business and had skills and 

demeanor associated with such work. 

 Another modification might be in the culturally-focused curriculum itself. As mentioned, 

more systematic review of violence avoidance techniques and the message of change needs to be 

included. This might be done through an extended orientation and explicit incorporation in the 

sessions to avoid diffusion or distraction from these fundamental aspects. The curriculum could 

be reinforced with more written assignments, visual aids, and video presentations, as 

recommended in the culturally-focused counseling manual. Perhaps most importantly, the 

cultural issues contributing to dropout and re-assault need to be more clearly distinguished 

empirically. The curriculum topics could then be directly tailored to the issues of known impact. 

 

Community Linkage and Association 

 The major modification to consider has to do with the program context. Our study 

exposed that the culturally-focused counseling was disproportionately affected by attendance and 

payment policies and also tensions with program administrators. Moreover, culturally-focused 

counseling was still relatively isolated from community supports and services that may have 

extended and reinforced its approach. As mentioned above, the culturally-focused curriculum 

calls for information about and linkages with resources and services in the African-American 

community. It recommends that men be informed about such resources and referred to them, 

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74

and that community services (e.g., church outreach, mentoring programs, and community-based 

alcohol treatment) be invited into the counseling process and the oversight of the batterer 

program. 

 This community involvement and association might be accomplished in two additional 

ways. One is to establish systematic assessment and referral at program intake that is monitored 

and updated during counseling. Some degree of “case management” seems appropriate given the 

deficits in education and employment, and previous arrests and alcohol problems of a high 

portion of the men court-mandated to batterer counseling. Case management is also a logical 

extension of the culturally-focused content itself. The culturally-focused curriculum raises 

discussion about employment, education, and living conditions. To merely discuss problems 

related to those and not pose some solutions for them could add to frustration and resentments. A 

structured way of making and ensuring referrals may help avoid this “dead-end” response, as 

well as ease some of the risk factors associated with re-assault. 

 A second way to increase community involvement is by embedding culturally-focused 

counseling in a community-based agency. Pittsburgh, for instance, has several agencies and 

programs operated primarily by African-Americans and for African-Americans. These 

community-based agencies offer a variety of services from alcohol and drug treatment to 

unemployment assistance. Not only might some agencies offer more support and better 

accommodation of culturally-focused counseling, but they might also help diffuse the perception 

that batterer counseling is a part of the criminal justice system to be resisted and even opposed. 

Such agencies tend, furthermore, to have established affiliate services and referral sources that 

might more readily supplement batterer counseling. 

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75

Culturally-Sensitive Counseling 

A final treatment consideration is the implication of our findings for other ethnic and 

racial groups beyond African-Americans. The clinical and research recommendations calling for 

culturally-focused counseling for African-Americans usually extend these recommendations to 

Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, and other men of color as well (e.g., Carrillo & Tello, 1998). 

There men often have even more pronounced differences in communication styles, relationship 

patterns, family structures, police contact, and employment opportunities that need to be 

addressed. Consequently, they may benefit even more than African-American men from 

culturally-focused counseling, especially given the indications that racial identification may 

influence counseling outcomes. 

Is it practical, however, to have separate culturally-focused counseling groups for each 

racial or ethnic category? A few programs, such as Emerge in Boston, do manage to have a 

variety of racial and ethnic groups for the men who want them. Others may approximate the 

effect of such groups with culturally diverse staff or staff trained in cultural sensitivity. Some 

previous research suggests that the counselor’s cultural sensitivity has some impact, regardless of 

the counselor’s race (e.g., Parham & Helms, 1981, Pomales & Williams, 1989), and that cultural 

inclusiveness can be achieved in racially-mixed groups (Davis, 1984). In both cases, the 

principles of culturally-focused counseling are at least partially adapted and employed.

 The main features of culturally-focused counseling in all-African-American groups and 

conventional batterer counseling in racially-mixed groups might be combined. So-called 

“culturally-sensitive” counseling strives to do this combining (Williams, 1994). This approach 

alleviates the resource issue of establishing and supporting separate groups for African-American 

men, and asserts more directly the message of responsibility, non-violence, and change. It may 

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been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
76

reduce as well, the “backlash” to culturally-focused counseling observed in our study, and 

accommodate a broader range of men. The implementation of culturally-sensitive counseling 

depends heavily on a counselor who has group skills and domestic violence knowledge, but also 

is particularly adept in identifying and responding to cultural issues as they emerge. These 

criteria require exceptionally experienced, skilled, and trained counselors. An increasing number 

of practitioner conferences are offering various forms of training in culturally-sensitive 

counseling that may help to develop such counselors. 

 Even culturally-sensitive counseling within a free-standing batterer program may still 

require some means of linkage and association with racial and ethnic communities. As 

mentioned in the “Introduction,” such linkage and association are featured in a “culturallycompetent” agency, but are lacking in most batterer programs (Williams & Becker, 1994). 

Cultural competence is the structural and organizational component that helps to ensure ethnic 

and racial representation in the administration, staffing, and approach of the program. These 

features include ethnic and racial diversity on the board of directors, in the administration, and 

among the group counselors and office staff, as well as in the counseling approach. It may also 

include an advisory committee from community-based organizations and services and more 

direct involvement of agency staff in the community itself. The idea is that this sort of diversity 

and inclusion will foster interactions that increase awareness and responsiveness to cultural and 

racial issues. 

 

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77

RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS 

Clinical Trial Replication

 Our findings and qualifications have some obvious implications for further research. The 

most immediate need is for replication of our clinical trial at other sites and in different settings. 

As we have discussed, the African-American men in our study were not necessarily 

representative of other cities especially in terms of socio-economic status. Also, racial 

discrimination in the criminal justice system may be more acute in Pittsburgh than some other 

cities, given the recent investigation into and reforms of its police department. The largely 

segregated neighborhoods may also produce different levels of racial identification and criminal 

reinforcement than neighborhoods that are more integrated and better serviced. 

 Replications also need to address counselors’ experience, training, and skills in order to 

ensure that culturally-focused counseling is fully and ideally implemented, and need to offer the 

same degree of support and supervision that other counseling options receive. Our study may 

have some deficiencies in this regard. Ideally, multiple counselors might be used to deliver each 

counseling option in order to help expose any counselor effect on the outcomes and to more 

clearly attribute outcomes to the counseling approach. As we experienced, however, recruiting, 

training, and supervising counselors can be a difficult and time consuming task—and therefore, 

require a substantial increase in resources. 

 The content of culturally-focused counseling may, as suggested above, warrant further 

development and investigation. The identification of the cultural issues specifically related to 

violence and non-violence needs to be more clearly established conceptually and empirically. 

Research that focuses on the most effective counseling techniques for presenting these issues 

would also help to refine and justify the culturally-focused approach. What are the potential 

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78

mediating and moderating factors that might help explain the nature of this relationship, as well? 

Currently, the role of instruction, discussion, assignments, exercises, visual aids, and community 

contacts in improving outcomes is unclear. Would additional content or different techniques be 

more appropriate and effective? Different culturally-based curriculum and approaches are also 

emerging that could be contrasted to the one tested here. 

 Evaluation of culturally-focused counseling might also be extended to consider the 

impact of the counseling and program context. The culturally-focused counseling might 

incorporate linkages and associations with the neighborhoods’ services and programs, as 

recommended by the developers of the curriculum. As mentioned, we are completing a study of 

the additive effect on outcomes of systematic assessment and referral with African-American 

men that will be completed in August 2005. Our preliminary results with a six-month follow-up 

of the men and their female partners show outcomes equivalent to batterer counseling only, but 

difficulties in implementing and gaining useful referral services (Gondolf, 2004) may account for 

these results. 

Considering Counseling and Program Context 

The influence of counseling or program context on counseling outcomes also needs to be 

tested or at least addressed. A clinical trial might be implemented in a community-based agency 

or organization, rather than as an appendage to an existing batterer program agency. This might 

bring greater support, more experienced staff, and additional resources to the “experimental” 

culturally-focused counseling and thus increase its effectiveness. Another way to address the 

context influence would be through measuring the cultural competence of programs including 

their community linkages, associations, and resources. These measurements could then be used 

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79

to compare clinical trials across multiple sites, batterer programs, or community-based agencies. 

Would the same culturally-focused curriculum have better outcomes in a community-based 

setting or culturally-competent agency? 

 Culturally-focused counseling also needs to be tested with other racial and ethnic 

groupings and ideally compared against the culturally-focused counseling with AfricanAmerican men. Racial or cultural identification might be more extensively and precisely 

measured than in our study in order to better capture and calibrate its influence. If the culturallyfocused counseling is more effective with other groupings or with other measures of cultural 

identification, it may help reinforce the need to screen men for such counseling in order to make 

the specialized counseling more effective. Finally, culturally-sensitive counseling in raciallymixed groups needs to be tested against conventional batterer counseling and culturally-focused 

counseling. Does its combination of the culturally-focused and conventional approach improve 

outcomes? If it does, culturally-sensitive counseling would offer an alternative requiring fewer 

resources, minimizing backlash, and accommodating a greater diversity of men. 

CONCLUSION 

 The culturally-focused counseling tested in our study did not improve program outcomes 

over conventional batterer counseling in either all-African-American or racially-mixed groups. 

Simply addressing cultural issues in a counseling group may not in itself improve outcomes. 

Some preliminary evidence suggests, however, that culturally-focused counseling may benefit 

men who highly identify with African-American culture (in our study, about a third of the men). 

These findings may be used to argue against culturally-focused counseling especially 

considering the additional resources and support it requires in these times of financial 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
80

constraints. They may also be used to refine and develop culturally-focused counseling, rather 

than dismiss it. Men with high racial identification might be screened or self-select into 

culturally-focused counseling. Culturally-focused counseling may also show improved outcomes 

through linkages, referral, and association with community-based services and organizations. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
81

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93

FIGURES AND TABLES 

FIGURE 1: SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH REVIEW 

FIGURE 2: BATTERER GROUP MONITORING FORM 

FIGURE 3: MEN’S RATINGS OF BATTERER COUNSELING 

FIGURE 4: PAST EXPERIENCES OF VIOLENCE 

TABLE 1: MEN’S RATINGS OF BATTERER COUNSELING (PERCENTAGES) 

TABLE 2: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN PROGRAM 

PARTICIPANTS 

TABLE 3: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF CURRENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN VS. 

1995 AFRICAN-AMERICAN PROGAM PARTICIPANTS AT SAME-SITE 

TABLE 4: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF CURRENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND 

CAUCASIAN PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS 

TABLE 5: PROGRAM COMPLETION (16 WEEKS) FOR COUNSELING OPTIONS BY 

VARIOUS SAMPLINGS 

TABLE 6: ODDS RATIONS FOR STEPWISE LOGISTIC REGRESSIONS OF PROGRAM 

COMPLETION 

TABLE 7: RE-ASSAULT AND RELATED OUTCOMES BASED ON WOMEN’S REPORTS 

TABLE 8: RE-ARRESTS DURING ONE-YEAR AFTER PROGRAM INTAKE 

TABLE 9: ARRESTS PRIOR TO PROGRAM INTAKE (PERCENTAGES) 

TABLE 10: ODDS RATIONS FOR STEPWISE LOGISTIC REGRESSIONS OF REASSAULT AND RE-ARREST 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
FIGURE 1: SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH REVIEW 

Cultural Issues and Counseling in General 

• Clinical explanations from social work and psychotherapy suggest that cultural 

differences contribute to African American’s dropping out of counseling. 

• African-American men tend: 

 1) to draw on a more personalistic approach to relationships and be reluctant to 

disclose to a group of strangers. 

 2) to view some of the behaviors they are asked to change as normative or essential 

to survival in their neighborhoods. 

 3) to be suspicious of social services in general because they are dominated by 

whites with different values and experience than theirs. 

• Cultural assessment, cultural competence, and culturally-focused counseling are 

recommended to address these cultural issues. 

• Culturally-focused counseling includes a curriculum that identifies specific cultural topics, 

counselors that respond to emergent cultural issues, and racially-homogenous groups that 

encourage disclosure. 

Outcome Research 

• A relative few outcome studies of conventional counseling for mental health and 

addiction suggests that African American men may do slightly worse than Latinos, Asians, 

and whites. 

• The limited research on African-American-only group and racially-matched counselorand-client counseling has produced inconclusive results. 

• Cultural attitudes appear to be associated with clients’ response to raciallyhomogeneous counseling. 

Batterer Counseling Outcomes 

• In many urban areas, African-American men comprise at least half of the men arrested 

for domestic violence. 

• A multi-site evaluation of conventional batterer counseling showed African-American 

men to be much more likely to dropout and over twice as likely to be re-arrested for 

domestic violence than white men, but re-assault rates reported by women did not 

significantly differ. 

• One small, preliminary evaluation of culturally-focused batterer counseling showed men 

in a culturally-focused group to be more likely to not feel alone with their problems, to feel 

comfortable talking in the group, and to feel more positive about the counselor. 

Implications for Practice, Policy, and Research 

• Clinical trials comparing culturally-focused batterer counseling to conventional 

counseling are ultimately needed to test the effectiveness of one approach over another. 

• Cultural attitudes need to be assessed with existing validated scales, since they may 

have a moderating influence on African-American’s response to batterer counseling. 

• Linkages with the community, specialized case management, and collaboration in social 

change efforts are also needed to broaden the scope and impact of the counseling. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
FIGURE 2: BATTERER GROUP MONITORING FORM 

Group Date: _____________ Group Type: Mixed AA CF 

Group Leader: ______________________ Observer:___________________________ 

No. of Men Attending: _______________ No. of AA men: ______________________ 

CURRICULUM SESSION TOPIC 

Curriculum Session Topic: ___________________________________________________ 

 

 Very great great some little none 

The session topic was clearly and explicitly 5 4 3 2 1 

explained near the beginning of the session 

Session topic was accurately and completely presented? 5 4 3 2 1 

Materials (e.g., video, handouts, etc.) for the topic 5 4 3 2 1 

were made available and used properly 

Percent of sessions devoted explicitly to the topic _____ 

 

How might the topic presentation be improved? ____________________________________ 

ISSUES FROM GROUP PROCESS 

Three Main Issues that emerged from the group process: 

Characterize the nature of the issues (What broader themes did they point to?): 

To what extent did the leader turn each of these issues into some discussion? 

 Very great great some little none NA 

 Issue #1 5 4 3 2 1 9 

 Issue #2 5 4 3 2 1 9 

 Issue #3 5 4 3 2 1 9 

Percent of session devoted to discussion of issues: ____ 

Comments (strengths and weakness): ____________________________________________ 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
2

GROUP LEADER Excellent Very-good Good Fair Poor Mixed NA

Leader Style 

Clear and organized presentation 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

Enthusiastic and energetic style 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

Confronts rationalizations/blaming 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

Sensitive and caring response to men 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

Preparation 

Prepared outline of curriculum topic, 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

and activities for the session (i.e., a 

lesson plan) 

Sets up chairs in circle without table and 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

positions rules and other aids 

Starts on time with no interference 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

from money and attendance problems 

Closes with ritual and affirmation that engages 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

the men 

Group Procedure 

Implements group protocol (e.g., opening, check-in, 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

objectives) 

Enforces and affirms group rules 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

(e.g., no side conversations, speak from “I”, etc.) 

Relates emerging topics to African American 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

experience 

Links group information to real life situations 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

Group Interaction 

Encourages a balanced participation 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

(e.g., dominating speakers stopped, others invited 

to speak) 

Redirects conflicts, resistance, or issues to the 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

participants for a response 

Identifies and summarizes main learning points 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

of group discussion 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
3

Acts a model or guide, rather than an enforcer or 5 4 3 2 1 0 9 

probation officer. 

Comments (strengths & weaknesses): __________________________________________ 

MEN’S PARTICIPATION 

 Very great great some little none NA 

Men in the group spoke more than once 5 4 3 2 1 9 

during the session 

Men disclosed personal information and 5 4 3 2 1 9 

experience (beyond abusive act) 

Men asked questions about the topic or 5 4 3 2 1 9 

issues (not out of spite or deflection) 

Men interacted with one another during 5 4 3 2 1 9 

the session 

OVERALL RATINGS Excellent very-good good fair poor 

Curriculum presentation 5 4 3 2 1 

Issue identification/discussion 5 4 3 2 1 

Group leader abilities 5 4 3 2 1 

Men’s participation 5 4 3 2 1 

Comments on ratings: ___________________________________________________________ 

COMPARISON (answer below)

How does this session compare to the most recent session of the opposite approach (i.e., 

conventional DACC approach or culturally-focused approach) that you observed? How was this 

session similar (put under a heading “SIMILARITIES”), and how was it different (put under a 

heading “DIFFERENCES”)? 

NOTE: The format of the form has been condensed to save space. More space was provided for 

responses to open-ended questions on the original form. 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
FIGURE 3: MEN’S RATINGS OF BATTERER COUNSELING 

NOTE: Format has been revised to save space. Response areas for opened questions have been deleted. 

ID#: __________ Group: CF AA Mixed 

Interview Date: ____________ RA Initials: _______

Man’s Name: ___________________________________________________ 

PROGRAM COMPLETION 

1. Did you complete the program? ____ 0) No ____ 1) Yes 

1a. How many session did you attend? _____ 

1b. If NO: why didn’t you complete the program? 

____ 1) cost 

____ 2) not need it anymore 

____ 3) didn’t help men/didn’t apply to me 

____ 4) transportation/location to far 

____ 5) didn’t like the counselor 

____ 6) other: _________________________________________________ 

____ 7) other: _________________________________________________ 

____ 99) don’t know 

1c. If YES: Some men don’t finish the program. Why did you stay in and complete it? 

____ 1) court made me 

____ 2) didn’t what to go to jail 

____ 3) keep my partner 

____ 4) for the sake of the kids 

____ 5) wanted to learn something 

____ 6) help me make some changes in myself 

____ 7) liked the counselor 

____ 8) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 9) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 99) don’t know 

PROGRAM LIKES/DISLIKES 

2. What did you like best about the program group sessions? 

____ 0) nothing 

____ 1) curriculum (things taught/learned) 

____ 2) topics/discussion 

____ 3) counselor/group leader 

____ 4) other men 

____ 5) how it helped me 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 7) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 99) don’t know 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
2

3. What did you like least about the program sessions? 

____ 0) nothing 

____ 1) cost 

____ 2) location 

____ 3) curriculum/topics 

____ 4) counselor 

____ 5) other men 

____ 6) didn’t help me/didn’t need it 

____ 7) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 8) other: __________________________________________________ 

____ 99) don’t know 

4. What would you most like to see changed or improved? 

5. How helpful would you rate the program overall? 

____ 1) great extent/very helpful 

____ 2) some extent/somewhat helpful 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent/a little helpful 

____ 5) no extent/not helpful 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

PROGRAM IMPACT 

6. What idea, topic, saying, or skill do you remember most from the program? 

7. Do you think differently or do things differently now as a result of the program? If so, what? 

8. How much did the program change or affect you (positively), if at all? 

____ 1) great extent 

____ 2) some extent 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent 

____ 5) no extent 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

CURRICULUM/CONTENT

9. Did you feel you were able to bring up personal problems, opinions, or issues? If so, how 

much? 

____ 1) great extent 

____ 2) some extent 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent 

____ 5) no extent 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
3

10. To what extent did the group sessions specifically address special issues that AfricanAmerican men face? 

____ 1) great extent 

____ 2) some extent 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent 

____ 5) no extent 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

11. Did they do this enough, not enough, or too much? 

____ 1) too much 

____ 2) enough 

____ 3) not enough 

____ 99) don’t know 

12. If issues of African-American men were addressed, what were a few of the main AfricanAmerican topics that you can recall? 

13. What additional issues or topics should they address in the groups? 

14. How helpful was the curriculum or content (topics or subjects)? 

____ 1) great extent/very helpful 

____ 2) some extent/somewhat helpful 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent/a little helpful 

____ 5) no extent/not helpful 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

COUNSELOR 

15. What did you like best about the counselor? 

16. What did you like the least about the counselor? 

17. How effective was the counselor or group leader? 

____ 1) great extent/very effective 

____ 2) some extent/somewhat effective 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent/a little effective 

____ 5) no extent/not effective 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
4

DISCUSSION 

18. What did you think about the amount of discussion by or from the group members? Was it 

(read list): 

____ 1) too much 

____ 2) about right 

____ 3) not enough 

____ 99) don’t know 

19. How helpful were the comments or discussion from other men? 

____ 1) great extent/very helpful 

____ 2) some extent/somewhat helpful 

____ 3) uncertain/don’t know 

____ 4) little extent/a little helpful 

____ 5) no extent/not helpful 

____ 6) other: __________________________________________________ 

OVERALL 

(NOTE: Please determine which question #20 needs to be asked and ONLY ask that question. 

Example: CF or AA group would be asked only question A, Mixed would be asked only 

question B.) 

20. A). If you were in a group with all African-American men, would you have rather been in a 

mixed group of men? 

____ 1) yes 

____ 2) unsure/don’t care 

____ 3) no 

____ 4) other: __________________________________________________ 

20. B). If you were in a racially mixed group of men, would you have rather been in a group 

with all African-American men? 

____ 1) yes 

____ 2) unsure/don’t care 

____ 3) no 

____ 4) other: __________________________________________________ 

21. Do you have any other comments or suggestions? 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
FIGURE 4: PAST EXPERIENCES OF VIOLENCE 

Many men who join DACC—and men in general—have been victims of violence themselves or observed violent 

incidents. On the next 3 pages, please check the violence done to you or you have seen in the past—but not from 

your wife or female partner and not from just from “playing around.” Each page is for a different time in your life. 

Put an “X” in the box under the type of person who did any of the following violence. 

Leave box blank if answer is No. 

 

 WHEN YOU WERE UNDER 13 YEARS OLD. 

by Family Member 

or Relative 

by Friend or 

Acquaintance 

by Stranger or 

Enemy 

Done to you: 

 

punching, choking, kicking 

attacking with an object (chair, 

lamp, stick, and so on) 

threats with a gun or knife 

shooting or stabbing 

You saw happen: 

punching, choking, kicking 

attacking with an object (chair, 

lamp, stick, and so on) 

threats with a gun or knife 

shooting or stabbing 

NOTE: This chart was followed by an identical chart for “When you were a teenager” and “When 

you were 20 years or older.” 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
TABLE 1: MEN’S RATINGS OF BATTERER COUNSELING (PERCENTAGES) 

Counseling Group 

Topic of Ratings 

CF 

(n=27)

AA 

(n=27)

MX 

(n=46) 

Total 

(n=100) 

How helpful was program overall (very helpful) 70 59 61 63

How much did program change you (great extent) 48 39 38 41

How effective was the counselor/group leader 

(very effective) 

84 67 64 70**

How helpful was the curriculum (very helpful) 52 50 46 48

How helpful were comments from other men

 (very helpful) 

68 48 58 58

What about the amount of discussion

 Too much 8 8 5 6

 Enough 76 68 80 76

 Not enough 16 24 16 18

How much bring up personal problems, opinions, 

issues (great extent) 

56 58 57 57

How much special issues of African Americans

addressed (great extent) 

77 39 11 37*

Were these (African-American) issues addressed 

enough 

 Too much 12 8 2 6

 Enough 77 73 67 71

 Not enough 12 19 32 23

Would you rather be in another kind of group (CF/AA 

to MX and MX to CF/AA) (Yes) 

67 80 30 51*

* p<.001; ** p=.08 (Fisher’s exact test) 2x2 CF vs. AA & MX 

NOTE: CF=Culturally-Focused with all African Americans; AA=Conventional with all African Americans; 

MX=Conventional with mixed racial group. Responses were in a 5-point Likert scale (i.e., great extent, some 

extent, uncertain/don’t know, little extent, no extent), unless indicated (i.e., too much, enough, not enough or 

yes/no). 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
2

TABLE 2: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN PROGRAM 

PARTICIPANTS (PERCENTAGES REPORTED BY MEN; N=503) 

 Group Assignment 

Characteristics

CF 

n=165 

AA 

n=152 

MX 

n=186 

TOTAL 

N=503 

DEMOGRAPHICS 

 < 30 years old 46 40 44 43 

 Some college 23 22 32 26 

 Unemployed (other) 58 63 60 60 

RELATIONSHIP STATUS 

 Married 33 38 32 34 

 Living with partner 40 48 44 44 

 See Partner Daily 49 54 50 51 

 Children Living with 41 40 48 43 

PAST BEHAVIOR 

 Parent hit parent 26 28 29 28 

 Used drugs (past year) 35 42 41 39 

 Possible Alcoholism (SMAST>0) 57 66 48 57* 

 Drunk monthly or more (past year) 26 33 37 32 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

 Threats (past 3 mos.) 21 17 27 22 

 Severe Assaults (ever) 21 27 22 23 

 Bruised (current incident) 39 40 43 41 

 Partner also arrested 

 (current incident) 

11 9 13 11 

PAST INTERVENTION 

 Protection Order (ever) 23 30 23 25 

 DV arrest (ever) 29 26 28 28 

 Batterer Counseling (ever) 16 14 16 16 

 Non-DV arrest (ever) 48 40 43 44 

 Probation/parole (current) 35 33 32 33 

PERCEPTIONS 

 Racial Discrimination 

 (in arrest or court) 

42 41 42 42 

 Very unlikely to hit again 72 72 75 73 

 Partner feels very safe 67 64 60 64 

 Racial Identification “Very High” 38 31 30 33 

CF=culturally-focused, AA=all African-American, MX=racially-mixed; *p<.05 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
3

TABLE 3: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF CURRENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN VS. 1995 

AFRICAN-AMERICAN PROGAM PARTICIPANTS AT SAME-SITE 

(PERCENTAGES REPORTED BY MEN) 

Characteristics

Current 

n=503 

1995 

n=106 

DEMOGRAPHICS 

 < 30 years old 43 44 

 Some college 26 26 

 Unemployed (and other) 46 31* 

RELATIONSHIP STATUS 

 Married (present) 34 28 

 Living with partner (present) 44 55 

 See women several times/wk or more 62 74* 

 Children living with man 43 63* 

CONTACT WITH PARTNER (daily)* 

 At program intake 66 - 

 At 3-mo. follow-up 50 58 

 At 6-mo. follow-up 49 67 

 At 12-mo. follow-up 39 52 

PAST BEHAVIOR 

 Parent hit parent 28 33 

 Used drugs (past year) 61 68 

 Possible Alcoholism (MAST>0) 57 55 

 Drunk 1 or 3 times/mo or more 43 49 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

 Severe Assaults (ever) 23 29 

 Caused bruises (ever) 48 45 

PAST INTERVENTION 

 Non-DV arrest (ever) 44 35 

 Protection Order (ever) 25 26 

PERCEPTIONS 

 Unlikely to hit again 85 82 

*p<.05 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
4

TABLE 4: SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF CURRENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND 

CAUCASIAN PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS (PERCENTAGES REPORTED BY MEN) 

Characteristics

AfricanAmerican Men

N=503 

Caucasian 

Men 

N=71 

 

 TOTAL 

 N=574 

DEMOGRAPHICS 

 < 30 years old 43 34 42 

 Some college 26 31 27 

 Unemployed (other) 60 41 58* 

RELATIONSHIP STATUS 

 Married 34 54 37* 

 Living with partner 44 47 44 

 See Partner Daily 51 47 50 

 Children Living with 44 31 42* 

PAST BEHAVIOR 

 Parent hit parent 28 23 28 

 Used drugs (past year) 39 20 37** 

 Possible Alcoholism (MAST>0) 

 Drunk monthly or more (past year) 32 41 34 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

 Threats (past 3 mos.) 22 30 23 

 Severe Assaults (ever) 23 16 22 

 Bruised (current incident) 39 38 39 

 Partner also arrested 

 (current incident) 

11 13 11 

PAST INTERVENTION 

 Protection Order (ever) 24 23 24 

 DV arrest (ever) 28 25 27 

 Batterer Counseling (ever) 16 14 15 

 Non-DV arrest (ever) 44 52 45 

 Probation/parole (current) 33 32 33 

PERCEPTIONS 

 Very unlikely to hit again 73 83 74 

 Partner feels very safe 63 49 62* 

 *p<.05; **p<.001 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
5

TABLE 5: PROGRAM COMPLETION (16 WEEKS) FOR COUNSELING OPTIONS BY 

VARIOUS SAMPLINGS (PERCENTAGES) 

Counseling Option 

Sampling 

CulturallyFocused 

All 

AfricanAmerican 

RaciallyMixed Total 

Total Recruited Sample (N=503) 54 55 53 55 

Randomly Assigned (n=435) 52 57 55 55 

No Change in Assignment (n=433) 51 54 55 54 

16-weeks Requirement Only (n=451) 52 56 54 54 

Random/No Change (n=372) 52 53 54 53 

Random/No Change/16-Weeks (n=335) 52 52 54 53 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
6

TABLE 6: ODDS RATIONS FOR STEPWISE LOGISTIC REGRESSIONS 

OF PROGRAM COMPLETION 

Model 

Characteristics 

1 

Culturally-Focused 

OR All-African 

American 

2 

Culturally-Focused 

AND All-African 

American 

DEMOGRAPHICS 

Age 

 30 to 39 years old 

 over 40 years old 

Some college education .421*** .421*** 

Unemployed .527** .527** 

Program fees 

 $6 to 10.99/session 

 $11 to 20.99/session 

 $21 to 40/session .348** .348** 

RELATIONSHIP STATUS 

Married 

Living with partner 

See partner daily 

Children living with man 

PAST BEHAVIOR 

Parent hit parent 

Used drugs (past year) 

Possible alcoholism (SMAST>0) 

Drunk monthly (past year) .577* .578* 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

Any threats (past 3 months) 

Severe assaults (ever in past) 

Caused bruised (current incident) 

Partner also arrested (current incident) 

PAST INTERVENTION 

Protection order (ever) 

DV arrest (previously in past) 

Batterer counseling (previously in past) 

Non-DV arrest (ever in past) 

Probation/parole (currently) .496** .496** 

PERCEPTIONS 

Racial discrimination in court 

 (great or some extent) 

Very likely program be helpful 

Very unlikely to hit again 

Partner feels very safe 

Racial identification: very high (RIAS) 

 (continued) 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
7

STUDY IMPLEMENTATION 

Random assignment 

No change in assignment 

32 sessions required 

Stricter dismissal enforcement .568** .566** 

COUNSELING GROUP 

Culturally-focused counseling 1.045 

All African American--conventional 1.076 

Culturally-focused or African-American 1.062 

Model chi-square 67.475*** 67.464*** 

Degrees of Freedom 11 10 

Cox & Snell R Square .138 .138 

Nagelkerke R Square .184 .184 

 *p<.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
8

TABLE 7: RE-ASSAULT AND RELATED OUTCOMES BASED ON WOMEN’S REPORTS 

(PERCENTAGES) 

Counseling Option 

Sampling 

CulturallyFocused All AfricanAmerican RaciallyMixed Total 

RE-ASSAULT: 6 & 12 MO. FU 

 Any re-assault—6-mo. FU (n=343) 19 19 14 16 

 Any re-assault—12-mo. FU (n=333) 21 28 20 23 

 Severe re-assault—12 mo. FU (n=333) 18 22 17 19 

RE-ASSAULT: POST-PROGRAM 

(3-12 mo. after intake) 

 Any re-assault—all subjects (n=366) 17 23 17 19 

 Any re-assault—program completers (n=201) 14 18 16 16 

WOMEN’S PERCEPTIONS: 12 MO. FU 

 Victim feels “very safe” (n=308) 84 72 80 79 

 Life overall “better” (n=308) 71 72 77 74 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
9

TABLE 8: RE-ARRESTS DURING ONE-YEAR AFTER PROGRAM INTAKE 

(PERCENTAGES) 

Counseling Option 

Type of Arrest 

Culturally 

Focused 

All AfricanAmerican Racially -

Mixed Total 

Domestic Violence 15 11 7 10* 

Domestic Violence or 

 Other Violence 23 17 14 18 

Alcohol or Drug Related 14 4 17 12** 

Other Crimes 11 12 15 13 

Any Crime 38 20 37 35 

Any Crime: 2-6 arrests 17 10 14 13 

*p<.05; **p<.001; N=491 

TABLE 9: ARRESTS PRIOR TO PROGRAM INTAKE (PERCENTAGES) 

Counseling Option 

Type of Arrest 

Culturally 

Focused 

All AfricanAmerican RaciallyMixed Total 

Domestic Violence or 

 Other Violence1

47 43 48 46 

Alcohol or Drug Related 62 57 61 60 

Other Crimes 66 59 60 62 

Any Crime 83 77 85 82 

Any Crime: 6 or more arrests 35 34 42 38 

1

 Excludes the domestic violence arrest that led to referral to the batterer program; “Domestic 

Violence” and “Other Violence” are combined since some domestic violence arrests were classified 

as general violence in the past; N=491 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
10

TABLE 10: ODDS RATIONS FOR STEPWISE LOGISTIC REGRESSIONS 

OF RE-ASSAULT AND RE-ARREST 

Model 

Characteristics Re-Assault 

Domestic Violence 

Re-Arrest 

DEMOGRAPHICS 

Age 

 30 to 39 years old .213*** 

 over 40 years old .299** 

Some college education 

Unemployed 1.482* 

Program fees 

 $6 to 10.99/session 

 $11 to 20.99/session 

 $21 to 40/session 

RELATIONSHIP STATUS 

Married 

Living with partner 

NOT see partner daily .515* 

Children living with man 

PAST BEHAVIOR 

Parent hit parent 

Used drugs (past year) 

Possible alcoholism (SMAST>0) 

Drunk monthly (past year) 1.692* 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

Any threats (past 3 months) 

Severe assaults (ever in past) 1.431* 

Caused bruised (current incident) 

Partner also arrested (current incident) 

PAST INTERVENTION 

Protection order (ever) 

DV arrest (previously in past) 

Batterer counseling (previously in past) 

Non-DV arrest (ever in past) 

Probation/parole (currently) 

Multiple Prior Arrests (>5 times) 5.164* 

PERCEPTIONS 

Racial discrimination in court 

 (great or some extent) 

Very likely program be helpful 

Very unlikely to hit again 

Partner feels very safe* .501* 

Racial identification very high (RIAS) 

 (continued) 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. 
11

STUDY IMPLEMENTATION 

Random assignment 

No change in assignment 

32 sessions required 

Stricter dismissal enforcement 

COUNSELING GROUP 

Program Completion (16 sessions) .530* .519* 

Culturally-focused counseling .744 3.503** 

All African American--conventional 1.284 2.695* 

Model chi-square 27.640*** 43.272*** 

Degrees of Freedom 9 12 

Cox & Snell R Square .090 .092 

Nagelkerke R Square .135 .188 

 *p<.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001; n=469 

 

This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not 

been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) 

and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.