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Do motivational interviewing behaviors predict reductions in partner aggression for men and women? Woodin, Erica M.; Sotskova, Alina; O’Leary, K. Daniel

Abstract

Motivational interviewing is a directive, non-confrontational intervention to promote behavior change. The current study examined therapist behaviors during a successful brief motivational interviewing intervention for physically aggressive college dating couples (Woodin & O’Leary, 2010). Forty-five minute motivational interviews with each partner were videotaped and coded using the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity scale (MITI; Moyers, Martin, Manuel, & Miller, 2003). Hierarchical modeling analyses demonstrated that therapist behaviors consistent with motivational interviewing competency predicted significantly greater reductions in physical aggression perpetration following the intervention. Specifically, greater reflection to question ratios by the therapists predicted reductions in aggression for both men and women, greater percentages of open versus closed questions predicted aggression reductions for women, and there was a trend for greater levels of global therapist empathy to predict aggression reductions for women. These findings provide evidence that motivational interviewing seems to have an effect on behavior change through therapist behaviors consistent with the theoretical underpinnings of motivational interviewing.

Item Metadata

Title
Do motivational interviewing behaviors predict reductions in partner aggression for men and women?
Creator
Woodin, Erica M.; Sotskova, Alina; O’Leary, K. Daniel
Date Issued
2011
Description
Motivational interviewing is a directive, non-confrontational intervention to promote behavior change. The current study examined therapist behaviors during a successful brief motivational interviewing intervention for physically aggressive college dating couples (Woodin & O’Leary, 2010). Forty-five minute motivational interviews with each partner were videotaped and coded using the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity scale (MITI; Moyers, Martin, Manuel, & Miller, 2003). Hierarchical modeling analyses demonstrated that therapist behaviors consistent with motivational interviewing competency predicted significantly greater reductions in physical aggression perpetration following the intervention. Specifically, greater reflection to question ratios by the therapists predicted reductions in aggression for both men and women, greater percentages of open versus closed questions predicted aggression reductions for women, and there was a trend for greater levels of global therapist empathy to predict aggression reductions for women. These findings provide evidence that motivational interviewing seems to have an effect on behavior change through therapist behaviors consistent with the theoretical underpinnings of motivational interviewing.
Subject
Motivational interviewing; Therapist competency; Partner aggression; Hierarchical linear modeling; Gender differences; Observational coding
Genre
Article; Postprint
Type
Text
Language
eng
Date Available
2013-05-09
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI
10.14288/1.0132698
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/44453
Affiliation
Non UBC
Citation
Woodin, E. M., et al., Do motivational interviewing behaviors predict reductions in partner aggression for men and women?, Behaviour Research and Therapy (2011)
Publisher DOI
10.1016/j.brat.2011.11.001
Peer Review Status
Reviewed
Scholarly Level
Faculty; Researcher
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Aggregated Source Repository
DSpace

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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International