Intimate partner violence, also referred to as domestic violence, is an adverse and extensive challenge. IPV occurs in a wide range of contexts, in different social backgrounds, religious beliefs, and ethnic identities. A majority of the burden across the world resulting from IPV is experienced by members of the female gender, and a majority of perpetrators of violence against this population are their male intimate partners (Huff et al., 2020). However, women that have experiences of IPV typically do not perceive themselves as being under any form of abuse. Due to being in abusive environments, sometimes, they fail to notice that they are being abused. IPV has significant long-term impacts on women’s mental and physical health. A study by Levy-Peck (2013) establishes that women have a greater likelihood to report depression and report feeling anxious if they have experienced violence. Due to this, it is essential that women have an understanding of what this violence entails and the resources that they can access for assistance.
While most individuals link IPV with the experience of physical harm, it can be observed in a variety of ways. One of these ways is in the form of emotional violence, which involves the victim being humiliated, insulted, and criticized and may have an adverse impact on the sense of self-worth of an individual. Sexual violence, a separate manifestation of IPV (also known as IPSV), is highly common within relationships (Huff et al., 2020). Sexual violence may occur if the victim experiences unwanted touches, is sexually harassed, or is sexually assaulted. Another way that sexual violence takes place is when the partner attempts to control the reproductive choices of the other through actions such as forcefully restricting the utilization of birth control. Finally, financial violence takes the form of financial restriction. An individual may make an attempt to control the finances of their partner or their access to needed institutions. Through these actions, the partner can influence their partners into becoming entirely dependent on them.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
IPSV has become a highly common phenomenon and widespread across different relationships. Bagwell-Gray (2020) states that 1 in 5 women have been sexually abused by partners within their lifetime. IPV makes up for 15% of all violent crimes, and at least 50% of women and men within the country have made reports of psychological abuse by their partners. Survivors of IPSV have all forms of effects on the women that are involved. Some of these effects include injury or death, chronic pain, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. IPSV has numerous mental health effects on the women that are affected. These consequences involve depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and low self-esteem (Levy-Peck, 2013). For survivors, there exists a need to mitigate these consequences and enhance the quality of life that they experience.
In order to mitigate the effects, it is essential to have an understanding of these effects and structure treatment modalities that provide better service to females that have experienced IPSV. As sexual violence is not often viewed as a form of domestic violence, survivors of IPV may feel out of place in a group of individuals that have experienced domestic violence. While the secrecy and shame that surrounds being physically victimized are considerable, the humiliation associated with sexual violence in a relationship can increase the difficulty for a survivor to open up about their experiences. Psycho-educational groups are essential mainly because they minimize the sense of isolation and self-blame within survivors. Through the provision of a group that has a specific focus on their issues while including information and acknowledgment of IPSV, these survivors can be helped in the development of an understanding of their own experiences and their contribution to their healing journey.
The Group Concept
The support group will mainly involve a 12-session group therapy model with a focus on psychoeducation information in the treatment of trauma. The main purpose of this support group is to present the members with further information concerning their experiences. Participants will be provided with more information concerning the normal reactions they may possess to the events they have experienced and the effects that these reactions have on their daily living. The provision of clients with knowledge is focused on assisting them with their recovery process. Levy-Peck (2013) observes that after an assault takes place, the survivor may exhibit and report similar symptoms, feelings, and unsafe coping mechanisms to other survivors, along with the need for support. The main outcome expected from participation within the group will be the decreased severity of psychological distress experienced by the survivor.
All goals, objectives, processes, and handouts within the curriculum of the group are structured to support the education of the survivor. At the end of the entire model, survivors will be provided with a handout that will cove information on different topics associated with sexual assault. The sessions will educate the survivors on topics that they may not be aware of while also validating some of the common symptoms and reactions that they may be experiencing (Huff et al., 2020). In this way, the responses of the survivors in regards to the sexual assault will be normalized. The information discussed during sessions by the group members will be reviewed for future reference.
The Group & Its Fit within the Agency Context
As already stated, one of the requirements for entry into the group is that participants must already be undergoing individual counseling sessions within the agency due to their experiences with IPSV. Therefore, the proposal for the group will be communicated to the staff through a formal meeting that will include the employees. This meeting will outline the purpose of the group, its place within the treatment of a patient, the expected outcomes, and the roles and responsibilities that the staff will have. The main issue that the staff may have concerning this new group will be their roles and responsibilities within the group. This concern will be addressed by providing each employee with their expected role in the group. To establish confidentiality within the group to other staff at the agency, only the needed staff will have access to the information concerned with the group members. As clients will be in individual counseling within the group, the staff involved will have a meeting every week to ensure effective communication. The only support that will be required from the agency will be in the form of the space in which the meetings will be carried out.
Description and Design of the Group
The intended audience for the group will be female survivors of a sexual assault who are 18 years and older. While the curriculum will be focused on women, the information will also be essential and be transferable to make survivors. Survivors taking part in the group may have had experiences of sexual abuse as children but must also have experienced sexual abuse as adults. The curriculum of the group will be designed to encompass survivors of a variety of ethnicities, cultures, and sexual orientations, and socioeconomic status. It is best that the survivor is or previously has been involved in individual counseling with a focus on sexual assault. A group should be made up of a minimum of 3 individuals and a maximum of 11 individuals. A closed group format will be applied in order to present the group members with the best opportunity to establish trust and cohesiveness within the therapeutic environment. Therefore, members will only have the ability to join the group at the start date, with new members being required to join the group at a later date.
New members will mainly be recruited through referrals from the agency. If a flyer were to be used in the recruitment process, it would detail the need for group support therapy for IPSV survivors and the prevalence of this challenge. Selection will be conducted based on the set criteria already established to ensure relevance to the group. The facilitators will mainly be responsible for this selection. Group sessions are structured to be conducted in a room spacious enough to hold the individuals within the agency. The group will have one session every week, and each session is expected to last about one and a half hours. Food will be served within the session as a way of increasing the familiarity of the participants and give them an opportunity to interact with each other. Individual interviews will not be conducted for new members, as members will be selected solely based on the suggestions of their counselors.
Contract
A formal written contract will be utilized in the group, and the women involved will be required to sign the contract. The participants will only be required to sign the contract after they have extensively reviewed the terms and regulations defining the group that is included within the contract. There will be three non-negotiable rules that will be set in place. These rules will include;
All participants must protect the confidentiality of the meeting location along with the personal information of other group members.
Attendance under the influence of substances and the use of violence will not be allowed within the group. These behaviors that have been restricted will not be allowed within the group.
As the focus of the group is on changing abusive patterns, the use of abusive language and attitudes within the setting of the group will not be tolerated. At the first session, members will be invited to provide suggestions on how this behavior can be prevented and challenges throughout the sessions.
The participants will be required to arrive on time, attend regularly, and contact the facilitator if they are unable to attend meetings. If they make the decision to leave the group, they will be required to provide an explanation of their reasons.
There will be no fees for participation. As the sessions will be mandated along with the individual counseling session that the participants will already be attending, no additional fee will be required to engage in the support group. As engagement will also be voluntary, making it free will also increase its accessibility to the participants with the willingness to engage in it. A majority of the negotiable rules will revolve around group norms, such as whether to utilize code names or the real names of those involved. The introduction of negotiable rules is expected to establish an environment in which participants can attain goals that they would not be able to achieve on their own. The group members will be involved in the development of these guidelines in the first session as a positive and empowering exercise. Through their involvement, members will become more invested and committed to following them.
Outline Plan for Group Sessions
The group curriculum will be based on the curriculum presented by the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault programs. Each session will follow the outline below. By having an established outline, the members of the group can grow accustomed to the format and enjoy the familiarity that it presents;
The goal of the session
There will be a clear outline of the goal for each session which will be carefully structured to be in alignment with the development of the group.
Check-In
In this section of the session, the facilitators of the group will ask every participant to provide a brief response to a prompt. This acts as an opportunity for acknowledging every individual and setting the framework and tone for the session. In this section, it is essential that there is an emphasis on the lack of commenting by other participants or interactions.
Learning and Discussion
The facilitators will then encourage a discussion among the participants and help them in connecting information concerning their own lives and situations. The group members should be identified as the experts on the subject of the IPSV. The group will present them with an opportunity to integrate their experiences with more extensive knowledge of their topic.
Activities
Based on the topic being addressed, there may be more than one activity in a session. The inclusion of activities will act to enhance the cohesiveness of the group and further engage participants in active learning. Activities are also aimed at making sessions more interesting and enjoyable for the participants.
Check-out
As taking part in a group with a focus on sexual violence is difficult, participants will require time to decompress before leaving the group every week. This section will assist participants in making the transition back to their lives through the provision of positive suggestions. Participants should be provided with an opportunity to make brief comments in turn while teaching them realistic setting of goals.
References
Bagwell-Gray, M. (2020). The SAGE Handbook of Domestic Violence . SAGE Publications
Huff, S., & Rappleyea, D. L. (2020). Understanding and responding to victims of interpersonal sexual violence and sexual assault within committed relationships. The American Journal of Family Therapy , 48 (1), 107-125.
McOrmond‐Plummer, L., Easteal, J., & Levy‐Peck, J. Eds.) (2013). Intimate Partner Sexual Violence: A Multidisciplinary Guide to Improving Services and Support for Survivors of Rape and Abuse . Philadelphia, PA: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
