This study explored the historical and philosophical foundations of invitational narrative practice and the principles and skills that practitioners use in their work.

The study was conducted in partnership with Uniting Communities in Adelaide, which has a strong, agency-wide commitment to invitational narrative practice and has maintained longstanding relationships with the Dulwich Centre. Uniting Communities works with men who use violence in men’s behaviour change groups and also in counselling. The agency also provides counselling and support to the partners/ex-partners of these men and their children.

This study contributes to the limited evidence available on how invitational narrative approaches are used in the domestic and family violence field.

The study sought to document:

• how invitational and narrative approaches have been taken up in the field of domestic violence;
• the journey of engagement from the viewpoints of men, women and practitioners; and
• invitational and narrative practice principles that enable behavioural and attitudinal changes in men.

The following research questions guided the study:

• How do invitational narrative ways of working engage men who use violence in their intimate relationships?
• How do invitational narrative ways of working understand men’s behavioural and attitudinal change?
• How do invitational narrative ways of working promote safety for women?
• How do invitational narrative ways of working support perpetrator accountability?
• What is it about invitational narrative approaches (when used with perpetrators of domestic violence) that work, for whom, and in what circumstances?