Elizabeth Keneski

Breaking the Mold: Evaluating a Non-Punitive Domestic Violence Intervention Program

Individuals convicted of committing domestic violence are often court mandated to attend a Batterer Intervention Program (BIP). Evidence of the effectiveness of these programs, however, is inconclusive largely because of the diversity in approaches used by BIPs. In a pre-test/post-test design, the current study assessed outcomes associated with one specific BIP: a counseling-based, non-punitive psychoeducational program designed to treat both male and female domestic violence offenders. A sample of 149 clients completed a comprehensive survey both prior to and upon completion of the BIP. Participation in this BIP fostered attitudes known to be associated with nonviolence, including perceptions of accountability, anger management, indications of safety planning, and reported desire for change. Additionally, self-reported levels of psychological and physical violence decreased from pre- to post-treatment. Theoretical and therapeutic implications for BIPs are discussed.

What Do Short-Term and Long-Term Relationships Look Like? Building the Relationship Coordination and Strategic Timing (Recast) Model

Close relationships research has examined committed couples (e.g., dating relationships, marriages) using intensive methods that plot relationship development over time. But a substantial proportion of people’s real-life sexual experiences take place (a) before committed relationships become “official” and (b) in short-term relationships; methods that document the time course of relationships have rarely been applied to these contexts. We adapted a classic relationship trajectory-plotting technique to generate the first empirical comparisons between the features of people’s real-life short-term and long-term relationships across their entire timespan. Five studies compared long-term and short-term relationships in terms of the timing of relationship milestones (e.g., flirting, first sexual intercourse) and the occurrence/intensity of important relationship experiences (e.g., romantic interest, strong sexual desire, attachment). As romantic interest was rising and partners were becoming acquainted, long-term and short-term relationships were indistinguishable. Eventually, romantic interest in short-term relationships plateaued and declined while romantic interest in long-term relationships continued to rise, ultimately reaching a higher peak. As relationships progressed, participants evidenced more features characteristic of the attachment-behavioral system (e.g., attachment, caregiving) in long-term than short-term relationships but similar levels of other features (e.g., sexual desire, self-promotion, intrasexual competition). These data inform a new synthesis of close relationships and evolutionary psychological perspectives called the Relationship Coordination and Strategic Timing (ReCAST) model. ReCAST depicts short-term and long-term relationships as partially overlapping trajectories (rather than relationships initiated with distinct strategies) that differ in their progression along a normative relationship development sequence.

The Importance of a Few Good Friends: Perceived Network Support Moderates the Association Between Daily Marital Conflict and Diurnal Cortisol

This study examined whether the extent to which spouses feel they have available and satisfying support outside their marriage buffers spouses from the potential negative physiological effects of conflict inside their marriage. Newlywed couples (N = 214 spouses) reported occurrences of marital conflict in a daily diary and concurrently provided morning and evening saliva samples for the calculation of daily diurnal cortisol slopes. Extending prior work demonstrating links between marital conflict and acute cortisol responses in laboratory settings, results revealed that spouses exhibited flatter (i.e., less healthy) diurnal cortisol slopes on days of greater marital conflict. Although the quantity of spouses’ support network connections was not associated with physiological responses to conflict, the quality of perceived network support attenuated the association between daily marital conflict and diurnal cortisol slopes. Thus, maintaining a satisfying network of social connections outside a marriage may protect spouses’ well-being during periods of marital difficulty.