A Randomized Clinical Study of a Mind-Body Approach to Domestic Violence Offender Treatment

Study Description

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Brief Summary:

The focus of the present study is to examine the relative efficacy of a mind-body method, know as Mind-Body Bridging, of treating DV offenders as compared to a "treatment as usual" (TAU) approach. The study will be conducted on-site at ACES, a non-profit agency that provides licensed domestic violence offender and substance abuse treatment services in the Salt Lake City area.

Condition or disease	Intervention/treatment	Phase
Domestic Violence; Intimate Partner Violence	Behavioral: Mind-Body Bridging	Not Applicable

Detailed Description:

Mind-Body Bridging Program (MBBP) was developed by Stanley Block, M.D. over the last decade drawing from his more than 30 years of experience in clinical psychiatry and awareness training. In his book Come To Your Senses: Demystifying the Mind-Body Connection (Block & Block, 2005, 2007), he demonstrates how people can regulate their emotions through "bridging", a technique that brings one back to the present moment to experience and recognize thoughts, emotions and physical sensations. Bridging aims to reduce the impact of negative thought patterns that facilitate stress in the body. Bridging allows individuals to reconnect with a mind-body state that inherently relaxes and restores healthy natural functioning. MBBP is built on awareness practices that enable individuals to investigate their mental states at deeper levels for the purpose of calming their minds and relaxing their bodies. This can lead to reductions in activation of the stress system (stress is consistently implicated in the progression of many mental and physical diseases), with the prospect of potentially alleviating many detrimental health conditions. According to Block & Block (2005, 2007), the critical source of ill-being in humans is rooted in the "Identity System" (IS), which is composed of self-centered thoughts, beliefs and emotions. The IS emphasizes separation, incompleteness, and self-interest, creating an identity that lacks authenticity. In essence, the IS interferes with one's natural functioning in everyday life by effectively cutting one off from one's natural self-healing abilities, and this typically results in constricting and closing down the present-moment awareness that is provided by one's senses. MBBP teaches how using bridging techniques, one can identify and "rest" the IS with its associated negativity and bodily tension, thereby creating more opportunities for improving quality of life and for functioning more naturally.

Study Design

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Study Type :	Interventional (Clinical Trial)
Actual Enrollment :	100 participants
Allocation:	Randomized
Intervention Model:	Single Group Assignment
Masking:	None (Open Label)
Primary Purpose:	Treatment
Official Title:	A Randomized Clinical Study of a Mind-Body Approach to Domestic Violence Offender Treatment
Study Start Date :	September 2009
Actual Primary Completion Date :	September 2012
Actual Study Completion Date :	September 2013

Arms and Interventions

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Arm	Intervention/treatment
Experimental: Group Therapy; Group therapy following the Mind-Body Bridging program.	Behavioral: Mind-Body Bridging; 16 weeks of weekly Mind-Body Bridging group treatment lasting 60-90 minutes per session.

Outcome Measures

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Primary Outcome Measures :

1. Official Recidivism [ Time Frame: 12-18 months ]

Secondary Outcome Measures :

1. Quality of Life Measure- Form-36 (SF-36) [ Time Frame: 1 month ]

Eligibility Criteria

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Ages Eligible for Study:	18 Years and older (Adult, Senior)
Sexes Eligible for Study:	Male
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:	No

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Court ordered to completed domestic violence offender treatment

Exclusion Criteria:

• Do not speak English

Contacts and Locations

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Locations

United States, Utah
ACES
Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, 84115

Sponsors and Collaborators

University of Utah

More Information

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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Responsible Party:	University of Utah
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT00983593 History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers:	34135
First Posted:	September 24, 2009
Last Update Posted:	June 21, 2017
Last Verified:	June 2017

Keywords provided by University of Utah:

Mind Body Bridging; Domestic Violence Offender Treatment; Batterer Treatment