ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses traditional treatment approaches which are largely individual-focused and examines Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a male-perpetrated problem intended to maintain power and control over women. It presents evidence that couples therapy may be efficacious for couples experiencing bidirectional mild to moderate situational violence where both partners intend to remain in the relationship and neither lives in fear. The community and societal responses to addressing IPV have evolved throughout the years based on emerging views on stopping violence. The Duluth model is founded on sociological and feminist principles and endorses the assumption that IPV is the result of perpetuation of male privilege and patriarchal norms at the societal level. In addition to the Duluth model, cognitive-behavioural therapy approaches dominate the picture of IPV intervention. Dyadic concordance types are a classification tool for categorising relationships as a function of concordance/discordance between members of dyads in a selected behaviour or characteristic by cross-classifying the behaviour of the partners.
