Cognitive behavioral violence prevention (CB-VP) parenting groups are commonly used for the primary and secondary prevention of violence. These groups use persuasive messages that target violence-related attitudes and cognitions, with the expectation that this will result in behavior change. Despite their frequent use as family violence prevention strategies, little is known about the actual messages being exchanged in CB-VP groups and how participants perceive and recall these messages. This study analyzes messages aimed at changing behaviors as recalled by Hispanic participants in federally funded Fatherhood groups in Miami, Florida. Applying concepts from violence prevention, behavior change messages were classified by topic, type of behavior targeted, compliance gaining strategies (Marwell & Schmitt, 1967), and sources of influence Wheeless, Baraclough & Stewart, 1983). The most common topics reported by participants included parenting role, discipline, communication content and spending time with children. Over a third of the appeals targeted behaviors that were not observable actions, but rather cognitive acts such as thinking, reflecting, and paying attention. Reward and punishment were the most frequently used compliance gaining strategies, followed by moral and expertise strategies. Most appeals were based on the expected outcomes of the proposed behaviors as the main source of influence. The results of this study provide a greater understanding of the motivations used to support behavior change messages in violence prevention parenting groups.

Les faits de violences conjugales constituent un phénomène social d’importance. Les auteurs de ces faits ne sont la plupart du temps, ni des monstres, ni des pervers, ni même des malades mentaux. Nous avons constaté que trois sortes de facteurs sont déterminants dans la population étudiée, celle de 400 personnes mises en cause pour faits de violences conjugales. Ces trois catégories de facteurs étaient les suivants : sociaux et culturels, les attentes et les attitudes de chaque partenaire au sein du couple et enfin les facteurs intrapsychiques. Pour les facteurs sociaux et culturels, nous avons mis en évidence la notion de déprivation psychosociale. Quant aux attitudes du conjoint au sein du couple, elles s’articulent autour d’une double tendance indépendance-dépendance. Pour les conjointes, nous avons mis en évidence des attitudes de maternalité. Enfin, l’ensemble des processus psychiques des auteurs de violences conjugales rencontrés, s’ordonnent dans une polarité narcissique-identitaire. Face aux violences conjugales, la société met en œuvre un processus judiciaire obéissant à un arsenal juridique de plus en plus nourri. Depuis les années quatre-vingt-dix, sont nés des dispositifs de prise en compte de ces auteurs. Le dispositif VIRAGE, né en 2002 à Saint-Etienne (Loire) par la volonté de deux structures, une associative et l’autre hospitalière, est un de ceux-là. Quels sont les effets et limites des groupes mis en place par ce dispositif ? Si les effets de tels groupes sur la récidive ne sont pas probants, par contre ils s’avèrent pertinents sur l’expression, les représentations, la reconnaissance des faits, la compréhension de la sanction, le renouage des liens notamment avec les enfants, l’ouverture à d’autres modes de communication.Les limites sont celles d’un dispositif ayant pour intention des changements. Ce dispositif que nous avons qualifié d’encadrement social, selon un modèle psycho-éducatif, ne doit pas être assimilé à un processus judiciaire car il changerait fondamentalement de positionnement. Nous proposons à la fin de la thèse un programme de prévention tenant compte de ces acquis. / Marital violence is one really important social phenomenon. The perpetrators in these facts are most of the time, neither monsters, nor perverts, nor mental patients. We had concluded that three kinds of factor are determinative for the study population, which consists of 400 persons accused for marital violence. These three categories of factors were following: social and cultural expectations and attitudes of each partner and finally intrapsychic factors. For the social and cultural factors we have highlighted the concept of psychosocial deprivation. Regarding the attitudes of the spouse, they revolve around double tendency of independence-dependence. For the spouses, we have highlighted attitudes of “maternalité”. Finally, all psychic processes in the perpetrators of the marital violence, which we had met, are organized in a polarity narcissistic identity. The society faced with marital violence implements a judicial system which follows and give more and more resources to this legal arsenal. In the nineties, the programmes were born considering the perpetrators of the marital violence. The programme VIRAGE is among them, founded 2002 in Saint-Etienne (Loire), because of wish of two structures, one association and one hospital. What are the effects and the limits of the groups? The effects of such groups on the recidivism aren’t convincing, but it turns out that they are relevant for the expression, for the representations, for the reconnaissance of the facts, for the understanding of sanction, for the renewal of the relations with children, for the openness to the other modes of communication. Those limits are a programme with the intention of changing. This programme we have described as social support, according to a psycho-educational model, should not be comparable to a judicial system as it will change fundamentally positioning. We propose one program for prevention at the end of the thesis.