Name and Qualifications of the Presenter:
Adwoa Akhu, Ph.D., is a New York State licensed clinical psychologist who has worked in various mental health and higher education institutions as direct practitioner, supervisor, and program/clinic director. She is the author of several books on domestic violence and stress management. Dr. Akhu maintains a private practice of psychotherapy and clinical supervision for social work and psychology students and professionals.
Throughout her career Dr. Akhu has also developed and taught professional development courses and workshops for social workers, psychologists, educators and others in the areas of adolescent development, adoption and foster care, domestic violence, suicide prevention, mental illness, and stress management.
Course Description:
Session amounts may vary based on the individual needs of the organization.
For individuals, please contact us for more information.
Misunderstanding domestic violence can lead mental health providers to inadvertently support abusive relationships and/or blame victims. This course will provide information that will assist participants in understanding as they help victims become safe survivors. Participants will learn how to appropriately intervene with families in which intimate partner abuse issues.
Participants will be expected to actively engage in exercises, to discuss reading assignments, and share personal experiences, insights and challenges relating to work with clients.
Course Goals and Objectives:
Goals:
- To help participants understand the different types of intimate partner abuse
- To help participants understand the complex dynamics of intimate partner abuse.
- To introduce participants to some of the issues that survivors struggle with.
- To help participants understand the effects witnessing intimate partner abuse can have on of children.
- To help participants to understand how intimate partner abuse impact the community
Objectives:
- Participants will understand the definition of intimate partner abuse.
- Participants will be able to name and define at least three specific types of intimate partner abuse.
- Participants will be able to discuss the dynamics that distinguish victim from abuser.
- Participants will be able to discuss the effects of DV on children.
- Participants will be able to discuss the impact of DV on the community.
- Participants will be able to name at least six specific issues survivors of domestic violence struggle with during the healing process.
- Outline of Content
Introduction
Domestic violence affects people of all races, income levels, and sexual preferences. The African American community, however, is disproportionally affected. African Americans suffer deadly violence from family members at rates decidedly higher than for other racial groups in the United States (Williams & Flewelling, 1998) Overall, African Americans were victimized by intimate partners at a significantly higher rates than persons of any other race between 1993 and 1998. Black females experienced intimate partner violence at a rate 35% higher than that of white females, and about 22 times the rate of women of other races. Black males experienced intimate partner violence at a rate about 62% higher than that of white males and about 22 times the rate of men of other races (Rennison & Welchans, 2000). In addition, approximately one in three African American women experience abuse by a husband or intimate partner in the course of her lifetime (U.S. Department of Justice, 2000).
Intimate Partner Abuse Definition – Intimate partner abuse is the systematic use of techniques to gain power and maintain control over another person. This abuse differs from other forms of violence because the abuser and the victim are in a relationship. Intimate partner abuse is insidious.
In other words, if you know what you are looking for you may see subtle signs at the beginning of a dating relationship but generally things are good in the beginning and become increasingly controlling and violent over time.
Review of various types of intimate partner abuse with clinical examples:
- Physical Abuse
- Sexual Abuse
- Psychological/Emotional Abuse
- Economic Abuse
- Review of the dynamics of Abusers
- Review of the dynamics of Victims
- Exploration of the reasons why victims do not leave abusive relationships
- Presentation of the various issues victims need to address during the healing process including interactive exercises that can be used with victims:
Depression
- Denial
- Grief
- Fear
- Shame
- Isolation
- Anger
- Forgiving
- Self-Esteem
- Review of the effects witnessing intimate partner abuse may have on child
- Review of the cost to the Community
Suggested Reading:
Akhu, A. (2011) Metamorphosis: Journaling the path from domestic violence victim to victor. New Rochelle, NY: Healer’s Circle Publications.
Akhu, A. (2013) Rebuilding: A men’s guide to healing from intimate partner abuse. New Rochelle, NY: Healer’s Circle Publications.
Bancroft, L. and Silverman, j. (2002) The Batterer as Parent. Sage Publications, Inc.
Bancroft, L. (2002) Why does he do that? Inside the minds of angry and controlling men. The Berkley Publishing Group.
Carter, J. (2003) Nasty People: How to Stop Being Hurt by Them Without Becoming One of Them. McGraw-Hill.
Carrillo, R. and Tello, J. (1998). Family violence and men of color: Healing the wounded male spirit, ed. New York: Springer Publishing.
De Becker, G. (2004) The gift off fear: Survival signals that protect us from violence. Dell Pub Co.
Evans, P. (1996) The verbally abusive relationship: How to recognize it and how to respond. Adams Media Corp.
Rennison, C. M., and Welchans, S. (2000). Intimate partner violence, U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ 178247
Sorenson, S.B. and Taylor, C.A. (2005) Female aggression toward intimate male partners: An examination of social norms in a community-based sample. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 29:78-96.
Williams K., and Flewelling, R. (1998). The social production of criminal homicide: A comparative study of disaggregated rates in American cities, American Sociological Review, 53, pp. 421-31.
U.S. Department of Justice, (2000). Extent, Nature and Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey, NCJ 181867.