New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 1999, 28(2): 68-78

This article reviews the literature around the effectiveness of stopping violence programmes. It highlights that there are a number of problems when assessing how effective a programme is in ending violence against women. The author discusses how various models and formats are used across treatment programmes, and how this diversity contributes to the conflicting evidence regarding the effectiveness of these programmes. It is pointed out that there are significant problems with many of the evaluation measures, for example, it is often difficult to tell what was evaluated, there are varying opinions as to what signifies 'success' and how this should be assessed, and the unreliability of self-reporting by the participants. Because of this, the effectiveness of a programme is often overrated. The article concludes by suggesting that there is a place for stopping violence programmes. However, they should be used in conjunction with other community-wide programmes aimed at protecting battered women.