Domestic Violence Update #2

Daniel Sonkin, Ph.D.

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How to complete this program

Just read the material online, save a copy to your computer or print out a copy.

You may have questions as you watch the program.  If so, just click on the highlighted “Contact Dr. Sonkin by email” link placed on many pages to contact me.

I hope you find the presentation useful in your clinical practice.

What will you learn in this training?

•   Legal Update

•   An overview of attachment theory

•   Attachment theory and domestic violence

•   Assessment of attachment

•   Psychotherapy and attachment theory

•   Clinical examples

Click on the link below to read the 2006 California Rules of Court:

http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/rules/titlefive/title5-1-286.htm

Bills signed into law in 2005

AB 141 - Cohn Domestic Violence Evidence Amends Section 1109 of the Evidence Code, relating to what prior domestic violence acts are admissible in a criminal domestic violence case, to include physical child abuse. Under this measure, trial courts retain discretion to limit or exclude unduly inflammatory or dated evidence. This bill is intended to assist in the prosecution of domestic violence against children by allowing in evidence of prior incidents of child abuse. Thus if a defendant is charged with battering his adult partner, but has a history of abuse against children, that evidence may be able to be brought in. Such evidence would still have to meet the balancing test for all evidence, weighing its probative value against the likelihood of it creating undue prejudice.

AB 283 - Campbell Claims Against the State: Appropriation Appropriates $2,017,905.90 from various specified funds to the Executive Officer of the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board to pay claims accepted by the board in accordance with a schedule that identifies the funds and accounts from which the payments are to be made.

AB 1108 – Bermudez Child Custody: Drug testing This bill adds Section 3041.5 to the Family Code, authorizing a court to require any parent who is seeking custody of, or visitation with, a child who is the subject of the proceeding, to undergo testing for the illegal use of controlled substances and the use of alcohol under specified circumstances (effective until January 1, 2008). The bill requires the court to order the least intrusive method of testing. The bill also requires that testing be in conformity with certain federal procedures and is confidential and maintained as a sealed record. A parent or guardian who is tested is permitted to contest the test results at a hearing. Civil sanctions of up to $2,500 are designated for any breach of the confidentiality of the test results. The bill also prohibits the release of the test results to any person except as specified or for any purpose except to assist the court in determining the best interest of the child and the content of the order or judgment determining custody or visitation. The bill also authorizes the court to order either or both parties to pay the costs of the testing.

AB 2010 - Hancock Alameda and Solano Counties: Domestic Violence This bill adds Sections 26840.10 and 26840.11 to the Government Code, Sections 103627 and 103628 to the Health and Safety Code, and Sections 18309 and 18309.5 to the Welfare and Institutions Code. This bill allows county supervisors in Alameda and Solano counties to increase fees for marriage licenses and other county services until 2007, with these proceeds going towards domestic violence services. Contra Costa County already has a similar program in effect, and this bill is extending that program to include Alameda and Solano counties.

AB 2018 - Chu Domestic Violence: Civil Damages Adds Section 2603.5 to the Family Code, relating to domestic violence. Existing law generally provides that all property acquired by a married person during the marriage while domiciled in California is community property. Upon dissolution of marriage or legal separation of the parties to a marriage, the court is directed to divide the community property estate pursuant to specified provisions. This bill provides, in any proceeding for dissolution of marriage, if there is a judgment for civil damages for an act of domestic violence perpetrated by one spouse against the other spouse, the court may enforce that judgment against the abusive spouse's share of community property.

AB 2148 – Diaz Family Law Proceedings Amends Sections 2030, 2031, 6340, 6341, and 6344 of the Family Code and adds Sections 3121 and 7605 to the Family Code. This bill seeks to ensure appropriate awards of attorney's fees and support in custody, support and domestic violence proceedings in response to research indicating that batterers continue to harass their victims after they leave the relationship by pursuing expensive and prolonged litigation against the victims in order to take custody of the children away from the victims who lack the financial resources to obtain legal representation. The bill authorizes the court, in specified custody, support, or marriage dissolution or nullity proceedings to order any party (except a governmental entity) to pay the attorney’s fees for the other party. The bill also provides that each party’s incomes and needs, as well as other factors, will be considered in the decision of whether one party will be ordered to pay reasonable attorney’s fees.

AB 2431 - Steinberg Firearms Amends Sections 12028, 12028.5, 12028.7, 12030, and 12084 of the Penal Code, adds Section 12021.3 to the Penal Code, and repeals Section 8107 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to firearms. The bill adds requirements to the procedure for obtaining or disposing of firearms that are in the custody of a law enforcement agency or court. The person seeking the return of his/her weapon must file an application with the Department of Justice for a determination that he/she is eligible to possess a firearm. Knowingly omitting required information or furnishing fictitious information in connection with the application is a misdemeanor. Law enforcement agencies are required by this bill to determine if a firearm to be returned is stolen and are prohibited from releasing a firearm to an applicant unless certain criteria are met. The bill also authorizes the Department of Justice to charge a fee of $20 for firearms eligibility processing, and a fee of $3 for each additional handgun that is processed. It also authorizes a local government to set fees to cover the costs of the seizure, storage, and return of a firearm to a licensed dealer or owner.

SB 23 - Sher Budget Act of 2003 Adds Items 0690-490 and 0690-491 to Section 2.00 of the Budget Act of 2003 (Chapter 157 of the Statutes of 2003), relating to the support of state government. The bill reappropriates to the Office of Emergency Services the balance of certain appropriations, previously made to the former Office of Criminal Justice Planning, necessary for the Office of Emergency Services to take over certain functions of the former Office of Criminal Justice Planning. This bill also reappropriates a portion of the funds previously appropriated to the former Office of Criminal Justice Planning to the Office of Emergency Services to enable that office to perform specified accounting workload associated with grant activities therefore making an appropriation.

SB 58 - Johnson Police Reports: Confidentiality Adds Section 964 to the Penal Code, relating to police reports. This bill requires the district attorney and the courts in each county to establish a mutually agreeable procedure, as specified, to protect confidential personal information, as defined, regarding any witness or victim contained in a police report, arrest report, or investigative report that is submitted to a court by a prosecutor in support of a criminal complaint, indictment, or information, or by a prosecutor or law enforcement officer in support of a search warrant or an arrest warrant.

SB 631 - McPherson Restitution Amends Section 13903 of the Government Code, amends Sections 1202.4, 1202.45, 1214, and 2085.5 of the Penal Code, and adds Section 1202.44 to the Penal Code. These changes relate to the Victim Compensation Program with the purpose of recouping more restitution fines for the Restitution Fund. Specifically, the bill (among other things):

Requires a defendant who has an unpaid balance on a restitution order or fine 120 days prior to the time of his or her release from probation to complete a current financial statement at least 90 days before release, as specified. Makes it a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in the county jail or a fine not to exceed $1,000 for willfully making false material statements on the required financial statement.

Allows for a person to be prosecuted for the crime of perjury if applicable. Permits the victim and administrators to have access to both the initial financial disclosure statement and the current financial statement. Requires that a probation revocation restitution fine be assessed at the time the court imposes sentence and judgment, and provides that the probation revocation restitution fine shall become effective only at the time of probation revocation.

Provides that probation revocation restitution fines shall be waived or reduced only when the court finds compelling and extraordinary reasons, as specified. Adds references to fines ordered to the existing provision of law that states that judgments may be enforced in the manner specified.

Permits the Director of the State Department of Corrections (DOC) to deduct moneys from a ward transferred from the State Department of Youth Authority (DYA) to DOC and who had a fine assessed against him or her pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 730 et seq., as specified.

SB 914 - Bowen State Department of Health Services: domestic violence prevention grant program Amends Sections 13823.15, 13823.16, and 13837 of the Penal Code, relating to domestic violence. The Office of Criminal Justice Planning administered certain grant programs relating to victims of domestic violence and sex offenses but no longer exists. This bill establishes that victims' services programs that were administered by the Office of Criminal Justice Planning be temporarily redirected to the Office of Emergency Services, and that certain programs involving domestic violence and sexual assault be permanently consolidated and collaboratively administered by the Office of Emergency Services and specified advisory committees. The bill is already in effect, but the changes do not apply to grants approved by the Office of Emergency Services in the 2004-05 funding cycle.

SB 1262 - Sher Charitable Organizations – Fundraising Amends Section 17510.5 of the Business and Professions Code, amends Sections 12581, 12582, 12583, 12584, 12585, 12586, 12599, and 12599.1 of the Government Code, and adds Sections 12599.3, 12599.6, and 12599.7 to the Government Code, relating to charitable organizations. This bill, known as the Nonprofit Integrity Act of 2004, revises, recasts and adds to the law regulating charitable organizations, commercial fundraisers and fundraising counsel. It is the result of several high profile cases of fraud involving charitable giving. The bill provides a number of new rules for charitable organizations to follow in the fundraising process. These rules include, for example, that charitable organizations may only accept contributions for a charitable purpose that is expressed in the solicitation for contributions and that conforms to the charitable purpose expressed in the articles of incorporation and that the organizations must apply the contributions only in a manner consistent with that purpose.

SB 1313 - Kuehl Child Abuse Reporting The bill amends the Penal Code and Welfare and Institutions Code relating to child abuse reporting. Among other provisions, this bill establishes that volunteers of public and private organizations whose duties include direct contact with and supervision of children are not mandated reporters but are encouraged to report instances of child abuse and neglect. For situations involving mandated reporters, employers are strongly encouraged to train those employees regarding these provisions. The bill also encourages public and private organizations to train their volunteers whose duties include direct contact with and supervision of children regarding identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect even if they are not mandated reporters. The bill also changes existing law so that a mandated reporter may make a report if he or she has knowledge of or reasonably suspects that a child is suffering serious emotional damage or is at a substantial risk of suffering serious emotional damage (without defining serious emotional damage). Previous law required a mandated reporter to make a report if he or she knows or reasonably suspects that unjustifiable mental suffering has been inflicted upon a child or whenever he or she has knowledge of or reasonably suspects that mental suffering has been inflicted upon a child or his or her emotional well-being is endangered. This bill also provides that no mandated reporter shall be civilly or criminally liable for any report authorized by these provisions. This immunity applies even if the mandated reporter acquires the knowledge or reasonable suspicion of child abuse or neglect outside of his or her professional capacity or outside the scope of his or her employment.

SB 1385 - Burton Battering & Its Effects This act amends Section 1107 of the Evidence Code and Section 1473.5 of the Penal Code, relating to battering. This bill replaces the phrase "battered women's syndrome" with "intimate partner battering and its effects." The bill also allows a writ of habeas corpus in specified domestic violence cases to be brought on offenses that occurred prior to August 26, 1996, rather than January 1, 1992. The preexisting law allowed inmates convicted of killing their batterers prior to 1992 to file a habeas petition seeking a re-trial or reduction in sentence. However, the law was unduly restrictive because it excluded many in the intended beneficiary class, including incarcerated survivors who were not able to use evidence of battering even though their crimes were directly related to their experience of being battered. This bill would permit habeas relief for more prisoners who were convicted of crimes before expert testimony about 'battering and its effects" was widely understood and used, and who were unfairly convicted as a result.

SB 1391 - Romero Domestic Violence Amends Sections 6240 and 6389 of the Family Code, and Section 13700 of the Penal Code, relating to domestic violence. Under existing law, a judicial officer could issue an ex parte emergency protective order if a law enforcement officer asserts reasonable grounds to believe that someone is in present danger of domestic violence or abuse. This bill extends the definition of a judicial officer to include a peace officer of the Department of General Services of the City of Los Angeles. The bill also includes a peace officer of the Department of General Services of the City of Los Angeles in the definition of law enforcement officer for provisions requiring the development of written policies and standards for officers’ responses to domestic violence calls, including the required arrest of an offender, absent exigent circumstances, if there is probable cause that a protective order has been violated. This bill also requires a respondent to relinquish any firearm in his or her possession or control within 24 hours of being served with a protective order (rather than 48 hours, as existing law required). The Judicial Council must also include a notice on all forms providing notice that a protective order has been requested or granted that the respondent is required to relinquish possession or control of any firearms upon service of the protective order.

SB 1441 - Kuehl Domestic Violence Victims Adds Section 679.05 to the Penal Code, relating to domestic violence. This bill provides that a victim of domestic violence or abuse has the right to have a domestic violence counselor and a support person of his or her choosing present at any interview by law enforcement authorities, district attorneys, or defense attorneys and shall be notified orally or in writing by the attending law enforcement authority or district attorney of that right prior to the commencement of an initial interview.

Attachment Theory and Domestic Violence Treatment

This section will provide you an overview of attachment theory and then will discuss it’s application to domestic violence.

Rationale for Attachment Theory

•    Violence occurs in the context of attachment relationships.

•    Anger and loss is integral to attachment theory.

•    Very high insecure attachment rates among batterers and victims of abuse.

•    Due to high re-offense rates (particularly non-physical violence), we may need to expand our treatment paradigm.

•   Attachment theory can be helping us understand why so many victims return to their abuser and ways to help reverse this pattern.

•   High rates of childhood trauma among perpetrators and victims of violence.

•   Attachment theory is a good lens through which to conceptualize parenting abilities.

Who is an attachment figure?

•    A caregiving figure who provides protection from danger or threat

–   In childhood, can be parents or parent figures

–   In adulthood, can be one’s spouse or partner

•    Humans form all types of attachment relationships throughout their life, but some are more significant than others.  In the first few years of life when children are learning about relationships, their primary attachment figures are parents and caregivers; in adulthood, that is usually a spouse or significant other.

Bowlby’s central proposition…

  ….that beginning in early infancy, an innate component of the human mind -- called the “attachment behavioral system” -- in effect asks the question: Is there an attachment figure sufficiently near, attentive and responsive?

If the answer is yes…..

…then certain emotions and behaviors are triggered, such as playfulness, less inhibited, visibly happier and more interested in exploration. In the Strange Situation, developed by Mary Ainsworth, these infants are distressed when the parent leaves the room, but eventual go back to playing with the stranger.  When the parent returns, these infants are distressed (protest) but will quickly settle down and return to playing and exploration.  These infants are securely attached.

If the answer is consistently no…

…a hierarchy of attachment behaviors  develop due to increasing fear and  anxiety (visual checking; signaling to re-establish contact, calling, pleading; moving to reestablish contact). If the set of attachment behaviors repeatedly fails to reduce anxiety (get the caregiver to respond appropriately) then the human mind seems capable of deactivating or suppressing its attachment system, at least to some extent, and defensively attain self reliance.  This leads to detachment.  In the strange situation, these infants seem to be not phased by the parent leaving and disinterested when the parent returns.  But when their heartbeat is measured, they are indeed quite anxious. These infants are anxious-avoidant.

If the answer is inconsistently no…

…the attachment behaviors described previously become exaggerated as if intensity will get the attachment figure to respond (which may or may not work). Like the dynamic between a gambler and the slot machine, the attachment figure will pay off or respond in sufficient frequency that the infant becomes preoccupied or anxious or hypervigilant about the attachment figure’s availability.  In the strange situation these infants are very distressed when the parent leaves the room, can’t settle down after the parent leaves and can’t settle down when the parent returns. These infants are anxious-resistent.

The Development of Attachment

Attachment disorganization

Originally attachment researchers described three attachment categories, secure, anxious-avoidant and anxious-ambivalent.  Later Main and colleagues discovered a group of infants who evidenced very distressing behavior upon the return of their attachment figure.  They might back into a corner with their hands stretched out.  Others would walk toward the parent and then collapse onto the floor.  Unlike the other categories, they didn’t seem to have an organized approach to attachment distress - hence this category was named disorganized.

It was later discovered that these infants were behaving this way because they were afraid of their caregiver.  In fact, many of these children experienced abuse at home.  The quandary these children experienced was they were distressed and wanting soothing, but the figure they turned to was also frightening to them. They experienced what Main referred to as “fear without solution.”

Assessing Infant Attachment: The Strange Situation

The ”Strange Situation" is a laboratory procedure used to assess infant attachment style. The procedure consists of eight episodes.  The parent and infant are introduced to the experimental room. Then the parent and infant are left alone. Parent does not participate while infant explores.  The stranger enters, converses with parent, then approaches infant. The parent leaves inconspicuously. During the first separation episode the stranger's behavior is geared to that of infant.

Assessing Infant Attachment:

The Strange Situation

During the first reunion episode the parent greets and comforts infant, then leaves again. During the second separation episode the infant is alone. During the second separation episode the stranger enters and gears behavior to that of infant.  At the second reunion episode the parent enters, greets infant, and picks up infant; and stranger leaves inconspicuously. The infant's behavior upon the parent's return is the basis for classifying the infant into one of three attachment categories.

Attachment Terminology

•    Status versus style:  In the child development field, researchers use the term “status” indicating that infants may have a different attachment to different caregivers, as well as may change over time.  Social psychologists who study adult attachment use the term “attachment style” to designate a person’s pattern of attachment in relationships.

•    Categorical versus dimensional: One of the controversies in the field is whether or not there are degrees of security and insecurity.  Social psychologists have addressed this issue by viewing attachment styles on a two dimensional grid, where a person can have degrees of a particular attachment style.  Developmental psychologists have identified a number of sub-categories of attachment status that suggests one can be secure, but have qualities of dismissing or pre-occupied.

Attachment Terminology

•    Secure versus insecure:  One way to break down attachment is simply to identify those who are secure and insecure.  Some researchers do not believe that it is fruitful to break down the insecure categories into different types.

•    Organized versus disorganized:  Individuals with secure, dismissing and preoccupied attachment status have a consistent strategy for dealing with attachment distress.  Infants who are disorganized and adults who are “Can not classify” (CC) use both dismissing and preoccupied strategies.. 

•    Earned autonomy:  A termed used for adults whose history leads one to expect that they would be insecure, but in fact are assessed as secure based on the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI).

•    AAI (Adult Attachment Interview): A twenty-question interview that is recorded, and transcribed. The transcript is assessed for coherence (this will discussed in detail later) of the narrative.  The final classification may be secure, dismissing, preoccupied, unresolved or can not classify.

•    Self-report measures of attachment:  Any one of a number of questionnaires that are used to assessed adult attachment.  The questions are usually answered directly by the subject.  Attachment is deconstructed differently on a two dimensional continuum depending on the scale (will describe two different scales later).  The final classifications may be secure, dismissing, preoccupied or fearful.

Neurobiology of attachment

What mental capacities result from infant secure attachment relationships that lead to an ability to tell a coherent life story (via the AAI) as an adult?  Daniel Siegel describes these capacities in his book, The Developing Mind.

–   Autonoetic consciousness: Knowing oneself over time.

–   Social cognition: Empathy and the ability to look into the minds of others.

–   Self reflection:  Ability to look into your own mind.

–   Emotion regulation: Ability to soothe oneself and be soothed by  others

–   Response flexibility:  Weigh options before acting.

“In childhood, particularly the first two years of life, attachment relationships help the immature brain use the mature functions of the parent’s brain to develop important capacities related to interpersonal functioning.  The infant’s relationship with his/her attachment figures facilitates experience-dependent neural pathways to develop, particularly in the frontal lobes where capacities such as social cognition (the ability to put yourself into the mind of others), response flexibility (being able to weight different options, problem-solving), emotion regulation, reflective-function (the ability to reflect on ones own experience) and autonoetic consciousness (the ability to have an autobiographical sense of self over time - past, present and future) are wired into the developing brain.”

“When caretakers are psychologically-able to provide sensitive parenting (e.g. attunement to the infants signals and are able to soothe distress, as well as amplify positive experiences), the child feels a haven of safety when in the presence of their caretaker(s).  Repeated positive experiences become encoded in the brain (implicitly in the early years and explicitly as the child gets older) as mental models or schemata of attachment, which serve to help the child feel an internal sense of what John Bowlby called “a secure base” in the world. These positive mental models of self and others are carried into other relationships as the child matures.”

But how does this attachment develop?

John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth believed that secure attachments developed due to maternal or paternal sensitivity and cooperation.

Sensitivity

This involves the caregiver’s ability to perceive and to interpret accurately the signals and communications implicit in the infant's behavior, and given this understanding, to respond to them appropriately and promptly. Sensitivity has four essential components:

(a) awareness of the signals;

(b) an accurate interpretation of them;

(c) an appropriate response to them; and

(d) a prompt response to them.

Cooperation

The extent to which the parents interventions or initiations of interaction break into, interrupt or cut cross the child’s ongoing activity rather than being geared in both timing and quality of the child’s state, mood and current interests.

What helps a parent to be “psychologically-able?”

•    What allows a parent to have the capacities of sensitivity and cooperation?

•    With a better understanding of adult attachment and brain research, it has now been shown that the most robust predictor of attachment of a child is the state of mind of attachment of the caregiver vis-a-vis their own parents.

•    Let’s look at the research first before exploring the reasons for this phenomenon further.

Parent-Infant Attachment Correspondence

A meta-analysis was conducted of 13 studies using three major categories.  They found that:

•    75% secure vs. insecure agreement: If a parent was secure as assessed by the AAI, there was a 75% chance that their child would be securely attached. This was true for insecure parents as well.

•    70% three-way agreement:  When taking into account all three organized categories (secure, dismissing, preoccupied), there was a 70% prediction of the attachment of the child based on the parent’s attachment status.

•    Prebirth AAI show 69% three-way agreement: When pregnant parents’ attachment status was assessed, researchers were able to predict the attachment status of their children by age 12 months with 69% certainty.

A meta-analysis of 9 studies using all four major categories found:

· 63% four-way agreement.  Which means that the researchers could predict with 63% certainty whether the infant will be secure, avoidant, ambivalent or disorganized, based on the attachment status of the parent (secure, dismissing, preoccupied or disorganized) using the AAI. 

· •    Prebirth (similar to last slide) the AAI showed 65% predictability based on all four attachment categories.

What does these data suggest?

The attachment status (or state of mind regarding attachment) of the parent, is going to have a direct effect on the attachment of the infant to that parent - as high as 75% predictability. In other words, secure adults engender security in their children, dismissing adults tend to engender avoidant relationships with their children, pre-occupied adults engender ambivalent attachment in their children and adults with unresolved trauma or disorganization may act frightening or confusing with their children, causing disorganized attachment in their children.

Link between caregiver attachment status and infant attachment status