CBT for Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence

The Instigating-Impelling-Inhibiting model of intimate partner violence (IPV) etiology, or ‘I3 theory’, is presented as an alternative to traditional treatment models for perpetrators of IPV. I3 theory is a meta-theoretical, process-interaction model of IPV risk that, when applied to IPV intervention programs, incorporates components of therapeutic CBT and motivational interviewing. In this chapter, we first briefly review the IPV literature and existing intervention models. Second, we review I3 theory and illustrate its promise as a guiding framework for understanding IPV risk, and its relevance to models of etiology and intervention. Third, we discuss the conceptual application of this framework to intervention with IPV perpetrators. Fourth, we identify specific intervention techniques aligned with each dimension in the I3 model. We conclude with the implications of this model for program development and batterer intervention program effectiveness research.