Quote From: PleasanceMisconceptions about batterers and substance abuse.
Substance Abuse
The Batterer as Parent --- The Battering Problem
We believe that the available research on batterers and substance abuse indicates that the overlap between the two is NOT as great as many people have assumed.
Most incidents of Domestic Violence take place without the use of alcohol by the batterer and roughly 80 % of alcohol abusing men do not beat or batterer their partners (Kaufman Kantor & Straus, 1990)
Alcohol and most drugs do NOT have physiological effects that cause violence in those who believe that it will do so (Gelles, 1993) A large portion of our clients, including some who are highly physically violent show no signs of substance abuse (see also Zubretsky & Digirolamo, 1996) and those clients who do have addiction problems commit serious acts of abuse even when sober.
In cases where a battered partner reports that the man is violent ONLY when drinking, upon further questioning usually reveals that lower-level violence such as pushing and threatening has happened at other times...without substance.
Moreover any increases in violence associated with substance abuse should still be understood as a matter of choice: Our clients admit to us that they give themselves more permission to be violent when intoxicated (see also Edleson & Tolman, 1992) and reveal similar attitudes and decision-making processes regarding their violence whether or not they are under the influence.
Similar observations have also been made regarding lesbian batterers. Thus the particular constellation of attitudes and behaviors that typically accompanies battering cannot reasonably be attributed to an alcohol problem. (for similar conclusions, see Zubretsky & Digirolamo, 1996)
The impact on battering behavior of recovery from addiction is mixed. A fairly small but significant number of our clients become more dangerous and dictatorial when they stop abusing the substance, apparently because of their increased ability to closely monitor their partners behavior and their increased irritability.
We have observed another group of abusers who exhibit a period of substantial reduction in violence during roughly their first 4-12 months of sobriety, but as the batterer reaches a point of feeling more secure in his recovery and therefore less consumed by it, his abusive behavior tends to reemerge.
Indeed certain concepts that batterers learn in 12 step programs sometimes BECOME NEW WEAPONS integrated into their systems of verbal abuse..such as accusing their partner of "being in denial" about her own problems or labeling her "CODEPENDENT."
Clients in a final group, again FAIRLY SMALL, do appear to make lasting changes in battering behavior following recovery from addiction. However it is important to note that these are men who have been participating simultaneously in a specialized batterer program with a minimum duration of 11 months.
Reports of long-term improvements in overall abusiveness coming from addiction recovery alone are RARE (Bennett, 1995) and professionals should avoid suggesting to the family members of a batterer or to the batterer himself that his recovery will increase physical or psychological safety in the home.
Although substance abuse is not CAUSAL in Domestic Violence, it can contribute to a batterers frequency and severity of violence (Bennett 1995) and the most dangerous batterers have elevated rates of heavy substance abuse. (Websdale 1999; Campbell 1995) Substance abuse history is thus one important factor in risk assessment.
LUNDY BANCROFT
JAY G. SILVERMAN
THE BATTERER as PARENT ----- Addressing the Impact of Domestic Violence on Family Dynamics
With a Foreword by Peter Jaffe, Ph.D.
