Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health problem. Men of color are at increased risk of engaging in IPV due to higher rates of unemployment, poverty, exposure to family and/or community violence, as well as internalized and institutional racism. Traditional relationship violence intervention programs (RVIPs) are based on social learning and/or feminist theories, and utilize psychoeducation and cognitive behavioral strategies. However, these RVIPs have minimal impact on IPV, and are particularly ineffective for men of color. Current practices of RVIPs may even cause more harm for men of color, due to their high rates of drop-out from these programs. There is an urgent need for more research to guide RVIP innovation and for evaluation of new approaches that are culturally responsive to the needs of men of color. The PI and community partners have developed a new RVIP called ProACTIVE, utilizing community-based participatory research. The purpose of the current project is to examine the initial effectiveness and feasibility of this novel RVIP for men of color using a mixed methods approach. Participants will be 90 men of color who have recently engaged in IPV and voluntarily take part in the 12-week ProACTIVE program. The proposed study will collect pre, post, and follow-up data. These data will examine the feasibility and acceptability of the ProACTIVE intervention, including participant retention and reports of working alliance. We will also assess any changes in participants’ self-reported IPV behaviors.
Currently, this novel RVIP is being developed with stakeholders/community partners (The Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, survivors of relationship violence, providers of intervention programming, non-profit agencies, community leaders, and others) that meet monthly with the researchers to discuss issues related to the implementation of ProACTIVE with men of color.
