Steven Stosny is the founder of Compassion Power in suburban Washington, DC, and the author of several books on improving relationships. He has taught at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

, and

St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's College of Maryland (SMCM) is a public liberal arts college in St. Mary's City, Maryland.Maryland State Archives, Online Manual, "St. Mary's College Of Maryland: Origin & Functions" http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/25univ/stmarys ...

. Stosny argues that

marriage counseling Couples therapy (also couples' counseling, marriage counseling, or marriage therapy) attempts to improve romantic relationships and resolve interpersonal conflicts. History Marriage counseling originated in Germany in the 1920s as part of the eu ...

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

anger management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

, and abuser treatment often makes relationships worse because among other things, the therapists make women feel ashamed of their natural feelings of guilt; requiring a great many weekly one-hour sessions; and because in their efforts to build working alliances with reluctant male clients, counselors reinforce that the husband has been mostly right and the wife mostly wrong. Stosny argues, "Abuser groups fail because they focus on negative attitudes, rather than the core hurts that cause them."

Stosny model

Stosny is the creator of the Stosny model of

behavioral intervention program Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...

s for

intimate partner abuse Intimate partner violence (IPV) is domestic violence by a current or former spouse or partner in an intimate relationship against the other spouse or partner. IPV can take a number of forms, including physical, verbal, emotional, economic and s ...

rs. Its focus is on nurturing compassion, in contrast to the

Duluth model The Duluth Model (also known as Domestic Abuse Intervention Project or DAIP or Pence's model) is a program developed to reduce domestic violence against women. It is named after Duluth, Minnesota, the city where it was developed. The program was ...

, whose focus is on getting offenders to embrace

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

principles. Stosny's program seeks to use tools such as the Stosny-created 20-minute video "Shadows of the Heart". Stosny's research shows that

self-esteem enhancement Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Mackie (2007) d ...

during treatment for partner violent men is correlated with violence reduction, and does not increase the risk for subsequent relationship aggression.

Bibliography

Stosny is the author and coauthor of several books, as well as a blog in psychology today. His books have been translated into Spanish, Italian, and German. * ''Soar Above: How to Use the Most Profound Part of Your Brain Under Any Kind of Stress'' * ''Empowered Love: Use Your Brain to Be Your Best Self and Create Your Ideal Relationship'' * ''Love Without Hurt: Turn Your Resentful, Angry, or Emotionally Abusive Relationship into a Compassionate, Loving One'' (this book has also been released under the title ''You Don't Have To Take It Anymore'', with the same subtitle. * ''Living and Loving after Betrayal: How to Heal from Emotional Abuse, Deceit, Infidelity, and Chronic Resentment'' * ''The Powerful Self: A Workbook of Therapeutic Self-Empowerment'' * ''Treating Attachment Abuse: A Compassionate Approach'' * ''The Laws of Emotion and Meaning'' * ''How to Improve Your Marriage Without Talking About It'' (with coauthor

Patricia Love Patricia is a female given name of Latin origin. Derived from the Latin word ''patrician'', meaning "noble"; it is the feminine form of the masculine given name Patrick. The name Patricia was the second most common female name in the United State ...

) * ''Why Women Talk and Men Walk'' (with coauthor

) * ''A Man Who Thinks He Knows Who Really Killed the President: A Novel''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stosny, Steven Living people Date of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American psychologists American businesspeople Year of birth missing (living people)