Advancing Corrections Journal - Edition #16 - Reforming Corrections Through Technology (ACJ16-A008)

Rehabilitation of intimate partner violence is an important topic within correctional services and initiatives to improve its effectiveness are needed. Effectively rehabilitating perpetrators of intimate partner violence is critical for prevention and therefore there is an urgent need to enhance the efficacy of these initiatives. We have integrated ad hoc designed immersive virtual reality as a tool to support rehabilitation programmes for men convicted of crimes of gender violence and this has been introduced in probation and prisons in Catalonia for more than three years now. Our results support the conclusion that these tools can be effective and have great potential. This article explores the use of Immersive Virtual Reality in Rehabilitation Programmes for intimate partner violence (IPV). We will first discuss the current approaches to rehabilitation of IPV in prison settings and refer to Catalonia’s own intervention model in this field. We will then consider the use of VR in therapeutic intervention for Gender Violence and we will specify how Catalan prisons use this methodology to enhance traditional rehabilitation of gender violence. We will conclude with some proposals for the future to integrate virtual reality into rehabilitation strategies in the field of gender violence and in prison settings in general.

 

Please log in to download the full article. Access is available exclusively to ICPA Full, Staff, and Professional Members.