Quote:“Instead of trying to get really confrontational with our clients and force them to change, we treat them with respect and allow them to talk about their experiences in an open way, so that they take ownership over their actions,” says Taft. For the most part, he adds, “Our clients want to change. They don’t want to be abusive; they don’t want to have these problems with violence and anger.”

The US courts’ long reliance on the Duluth curriculum and other interventions that aren’t evidence-based is dangerous, says Taft. “You have violent folks who are hurting or killing their partners and we’re sending them to programs with no demonstrated effectiveness.”