Kubiak, S. P., Kim, W. J., Fedock, G., & Bybee, D. (2015). Testing a violence-prevention intervention for incarcerated women using a randomized control trial. Research on Social Work Practice, 25(3), 334–348. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731514534300

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 22

Population:

• Age — Mean=34 years
• Race/Ethnicity — 64% Black, 32% White, and 4% Other
• Gender — 100% Female
• Status — Participants were incarcerated females with violent offenses in the Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) unit of state prisons.

Location/Institution: Midwestern U.S.

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to assess Beyond Violence (BV) on the feasibility and efficacy of the intervention in a new setting (i.e., general population vs. specialized treatment unit). Participants were randomly assigned to treatment as usual (TAU) and the experimental condition (BV). Measures utilized include the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ), the Short Screening Scale for DSM-IV Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and the State and Trait Anger scale (STAXI-2). Results indicate that outcomes reveal positive changes for both groups. Significant between-group differences favor BV on measures of anxiety and anger. There were significant changes in depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms with moderate to large effect sizes across all women. Symptoms associated with all tested mental health disorders decreased significantly over time across interventions: depression (6.4 vs. 3.7), anxiety (5.3 vs. 3.4), and PTSD (6.0 vs. 3.4). The largest effect size was related to the change in PTSD symptoms (d = 1.30). Moreover, BV is cost-effective with only 20 sessions compared to 44 sessions for TAU. Limitations include small participant size, selection bias, and findings are specific to the population of this study (e.g., women who were convicted of violent offenses and were diagnosed to have substance abuse dependency by the SASSI).

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: None.

Kubiak , S., Fedock, G., Kim, W. J., & Bybee, D. (2016). Long-term outcomes of a RCT intervention study for women with violent crimes. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 7(4), 661–679. https://doi.org/10.1086/689356

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 35

Population:

• Age — Not specified
• Race/Ethnicity — 50% Black and 50% White
• Gender — 100% Female
• Status — Participants were incarcerated women serving life sentences.

Location/Institution: Not specified

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to focus on long-term outcomes, assessing whether Beyond Violence (BV) is more effective than the treatment-as-usual condition (TAU) in reducing recidivism and relapse and enhancing treatment admission one year after prison release. Participants were randomly assigned to BV or TAU . Measures utilized include two administrative data sets, as well as parole officer case notes to track outcomes related to recidivism, relapse, and treatment admission during the follow-up period. Results indicate that women who received BV were less likely to recidivate than those who received TAU. The odds of women in the BV condition recidivating decreased by 79% compared to the rate for women in the TAU condition. Although women in BV were less likely to relapse (26% vs. 50%), the difference was not statistically significant. Women in BV were less likely to be referred to treatment, but there were no differences in treatment admission. Limitations include small participant size, selection bias, and the variability in measurement is problematic and argues for a more objective measure of relapse.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 12 months.

Messina, N. P., & Calhoun, S. (2022). An experimental study of a peer-facilitated violence prevention program for women in prison. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(17–18), NP16130–NP16156. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605211022063

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 145

Population:

• Age — Mean=39 years
• Race/Ethnicity — 27% Black, 27% Hispanic, 27% White, and 20% Other
• Gender — 100% Female
• Status — Participants were incarcerated women serving life sentences.

Location/Institution: California

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to report the results of a peer-facilitated model of the Beyond Violence (BV) program implemented in a women’s prison. Participants were randomly assigned to either the 20-session BV condition or to a waitlist control (WC) condition. Measures utilized include the Conflict Tactics Scales and Abuse Behavior Inventory, the Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Subscale, the Patient Health Questionnaire—Anxiety Subscale, the Short Screening Scale for DSM-IV Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, the Buss-Warren Aggression Questionnaire (AQ), the Revised Instrumental and Expressive Representation Scales, and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS). Results indicate that the background characteristics and preintervention outcome scores showed no significant differences between the groups at Time 1, indicating that randomization was successful. Mental health was fully supported as the results from the ANCOVA showed that BV participants had significantly lower mean scores than the WC participants on the mental health measures that included validated scales to assess for depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Results also indicated that the BV participants had significant reductions in the majority of the outcome measures at the postintervention assessment when compared to the WC participants. Limitations include sample size was larger than those in previous studies however, it may not have been large enough to detect some effects of BV on some of the outcomes; study sample may not be representative of female prison populations nationally (or internationally); did not have access to objective measures to determine mental health diagnoses, to substantiate self-reported histories of victimization and violence, or to determine in-custody violations; the potential for a biased estimation resulting from sample attrition; unable to assess postrelease recidivism due to the lengthy sentences of participants for serious violent crimes; and lack of follow-up.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: None.