National Institute of Justice Study: “Intimate Partner Violence and Custody Decisions: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Outcomes from Family Court, Shuttle Mediation, or Videoconferencing Mediation”
This study is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of family mediation cases with levels of intimate partner violence (IPV) that are so high or concerning that they usually would be considered inappropriate for joint mediation (i.e., mediation in which both parties sit in a room together with the mediator, raising concerns about intimidation, coercion, and victim safety). If parties agree to study participation, these cases are randomly assigned to: traditional court-based litigation (i.e., sent back to court, which is what would usually happen to these cases) or shuttle mediation (parties sit in separate rooms and a mediator shuttles back and forth between them), or videoconferencing mediation (parties sit in separate rooms but see and hear each other via video). The aim of this study is to determine whether, and how, these different dispute resolution processes help protect the safety and interests of separating and divorcing families reporting IPV. This study is being conducted at the Washington D.C. Superior Court’s Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division.
Delaware County Online Parent Program Comparative Effectiveness Study
This study is a randomized controlled trial of two popular online parent programs: Two Families Now and Children in Between. We are evaluating the effectiveness of these programs, compared to each other and to no program, within a sample of divorcing parents with children as well as a sample of unmarried parents seeking custody and parenting time arrangements for their children. This study is just beginning and takes place in the Delaware County, IN (Muncie) Family Courts.