It is important to state at the outset that men's behaviour change groups are not self-help groups.

They require trained facilitators with professional supervision and accountability, and should only occur in the context of a broader Men's Behaviour Change Program that meets NTV's Minimum Standards.

Men's Behaviour Change Programs are integral to a full community response to male family violence.

They offer men:

• immediate access to information, intervention and support about changing their behaviour
• access to intensive and structured education, and opportunities to be challenged
• long-term access to support that will assist them to consolidate their attitude and behaviour change
• encouragement, language, frameworks and opportunities to advocate for non-violence, and changed attitudes and behaviour towards women and children within the wider community.

Group work is a powerful tool for men's behaviour change and has been shown to be effective in a range of settings. It has many advantages. Some of these can be obtained only from group work, and others happen faster in group work.

In men's behaviour change groups, men:

• are able to meet other men in a similar situation
• are helped to identify their own violence by hearing other men doing so. It is also more difficult for them to resist acknowledging their own violence when they hear other men acknowledging theirs
• see that male family violence isn't a private matter
• learn through hearing the stories of other men. This encourages reflection upon and greater understanding of their own stories
• have opportunities to address socialisation and challenge the stereotyped ways that men frequently behave in groups
• have opportunities to experience ways of relating that are rare in other male gatherings. Men's behaviour change groups are about focussing on personal change. They involve less competition and more nurturing behaviour with other men, which are new types of intimacy for most participants
• witness male and female facilitators having open and honest discussion and sometimes even disagreement, in non-violent ways
• see other men go through the change process and learn from their experiences
• receive support and reinforcement from other men for changes they are making
• can be challenged by meeting a variety of different men. Their intellectual understanding and ways of thinking can expand from hearing a range of perspectives, which increases the possibility of choosing different perspectives and patterns of response
• can develop new support networks that can reduce isolation.

In the context of male family violence, sharing in group settings can break secrecy. Men's disclosures to other men in the group about their violent behaviour can lead to their wider disclosure and subsequent change. There is also more scrutiny — and therefore accountability — of the facilitators, and less chance of collusion between counsellor and client.

Some group-work practitioners feel that there is less likelihood of a stand-off between counsellor and client in group settings than in one-to-one work with men.

For more information about evaluating and measuring the effectiveness of Men's Behaviour Change Programs, we recommend visiting the website of the Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse.