An interventional study of Strength at Home (SAH) and Treatment as usual for IPV in Intimate Partner Violence, sponsored by Boston University. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-06-23.
Sponsored by Boston University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
Intimate partner violence (IPV), specifically physical and psychological aggression toward an intimate partner, represents a public health crisis that affects millions of Americans each year. There currently exists very little evidence from randomized controlled trials for the effectiveness of abuser intervention programs designed to prevent and end perpetration of IPV in the general population. This is troubling considering that approximately half a million men and women are court-mandated to these programs each year.
The investigators will conduct a randomized controlled non-inferiority trial evaluating the effectiveness of the Strength at Home (SAH) intervention in reducing intimate partner violence (IPV). The overarching aim of this study is to determine whether outcomes achieved through SAH are non-inferior to those achieved through standard IPV interventions offered in the state of Washington (treatment as usual; TAU) among court-involved men who have used IPV.
The specific aims are:
1.1: Compare the frequency of physical and psychological IPV, the primary outcomes of interest, across conditions as reported by the male participants and their intimate partners across Time 1 (baseline) and four 3-month follow ups (Times 2-5). It is expected that reductions in physical and psychological IPV perpetration observed in SAH will be non-inferior to those observed in TAU over the course of the year.
1.2: Compare symptoms of PTSD, alexithymia, and alcohol use problems across conditions and assessment time points as reported by the male participants. It is expected that reductions in PTSD symptoms, alexithymia, and alcohol use problems observed in SAH will be non-inferior to those observed in TAU over the course of the year.
1.3: Compare treatment satisfaction across conditions as reported by the male participants across the four 3-month follow ups (Times 2-5). It is expected that treatment satisfaction in SAH will be comparable to or greater than treatment satisfaction in TAU.
2,682 studies on the registry are indexed under Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic; 601 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 800 is above the median of 69 across 2,196 interventional studies indexed under Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic.
Browse Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic studies →Boston University is the lead sponsor of 270 studies on the registry; 36 are open to participants now.
Of its 31 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 24 (77%) have results posted.
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Men:
Women:
Exclusion Criteria:
Participants randomized into this arm with receive a trauma-informed intimate partner violence (IPV) intervention program.
Behavioral: Strength at Home (SAH)
Participants randomized into this arm with receive a standard IPV intervention program in the state of Washington.
Behavioral: Treatment as usual for IPV
SAH is a group intervention that incorporates elements from interventions for violence and trauma. It is administered during 20 two-hour weekly sessions. The program uses a social information processing model based on the premise that trauma negatively impacts one's ability to interpret and respond to social situations effectively. It underscores the importance of cognitive behavioral strategies to monitor one's thoughts and responses to interpersonal situations.
Treatment as usual for IPV includes court-mandated interventions that require a minimum of 26 two-hour weekly sessions in Washington State and often extend substantially longer.
IPV assessment
The revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2), a 20-item instrument, will be used to assess IPV. The Physical Assault (12 items) and Psychological Aggression (8 items) subscales will be administered. Each of the 20 items is scored by the frequency of occurrence of the item with 8 choices 1-7 and 0.
Time frame: Baseline, 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Psychological IPV assessment
The 7-item Restrictive Engulfment subscale of the Multidimensional Measure of Emotional Abuse (MMEA) will be used as an additional measure of psychological IPV. Each item has 7 potential responses from 0=never to 6= more than 20 times. Scores can range from 0 to 42, with higher scores being associated with more psychological IPV.
Time frame: Baseline, 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms
The 20-item PTSD Checklist for DSM 5 (PCL-5) will be used to assess PTSD symptoms. It is a self-report measure. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale \[0 to 4\] and summed. Scores range from 0 to 80 with higher scores associated with more PTSD symptoms. A total score of 33 or higher may indicate severe PTSD.
Time frame: Baseline, 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Alcohol use
The 10-item Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) will be used to assess problem drinking behavior over the past six months, with higher scores reflecting greater alcohol misuse.
Time frame: Baseline, 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Alexithymia assessment
The 20-itemToronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) will be used to assess alexithymia. The TAS-20 uses cutoff scoring, with scores of 52-60 indicating possible alexithymia, and scores above 60 indicating alexithymia.
Time frame: Baseline, 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Treatment Satisfaction
Participants' satisfaction will be assessed with a 4-item measure used in a study conducted by the Treatment of Depression Collaborative Research Program.
Time frame: 3 months, 6 months. 9 months, 12 months
Plan to share: No
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Started Nov 2024 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Jul 2027, 32 months after the start.
Of 1,064 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, half reached primary completion within 35 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 17 and three quarters within 53. This study's planned 32 months is close to that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 1,092 studies reached it within 34 months; a quarter within 17 and three quarters within 53.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
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