Media

At least three decades of research on the intersection of substance use with domestic and family violence consistently shows the frequency, severity and impact of violence increases in the context of the perpetrator using alcohol and other drugs.

Australia’s opposition says early access to superannuation is an election policy for the party’s campaign. But we’ve already seen it makes women vulnerable to economic abuse.

The Australian state of Victoria must properly resource and implement policies to prevent child sexual exploitation.

Globally, women and children bear the brunt of family violence. A project in the Asia Pacific is working to make a difference.

Alcohol and other drug use increases the severity of violence towards victim survivors, but the drug and alcohol sector and the domestic violence sector remain stubbornly siloed

It should be exciting to say that cases of violence against women dropped during COVID, but we need to understand the big picture.

Psychological abuse is often ignored and assumed to be less severe than other forms of intimate partner violence.

Jesuit Social Services’ The Men’s Project, in partnership with the University of Melbourne, was pleased to recently launch a scoping study into the feasibility of a Stop it Now! service in Australia to prevent child sexual abuse and offending involving child exploitation material.

The number of people in Victoria’s prisons is soaring. In the past 10 years the state’s prison population has jumped by 80 per cent to 7666, and in the coming year the government will spend $1.8 billion on its prison system.

Young Australians – that is, those aged 16-24 – particularly young men, don’t fully understand sexual consent, think controlling relationships are normal and are less likely to act when witnessing sexism and abuse.

Sometimes it’s the vet who is the first medical professional to see the signs of family violence. The signs of deliberate injury to a pet are not hard to spot for an experienced veterinarian.

Three months ago, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse handed down its final report after five years. With over 8000 people sharing their stories…

Children of fathers who use violence want their dads to understand the significant impact that it has on their lives. A new study by a University of Melbourne researcher Dr Katie Lamb has led to children recording their stories, so they can be replayed to their fathers to get the message through.

Shortly before midnight on Tuesday Eurydice “Ridi” Dixon texted a friend to say she was almost home. The comedian had finished a gig at the Highlander Bar in the city and was making her way across Princes Park in Melbourne’s north.

The first study investigating domestic and family violence among female healthcare workers in Australia has found that almost half of them (45 per cent) have experienced family violence, including one in nine who had experienced abuse and violence by a partner during the previous 12 months.

In the wake of Samantha Frasers death on Phillip Island two weeks ago and the murder charges laid against her ex-husband, we asked an expert on family violence and child protection.

Violence against women hasn’t taken a break locally since Phillip Island mother of three, Samantha Fraser, was murdered two weeks ago.

Police in Victoria say they expect a potential 20% increase in family violence incidents on AFL grand final day, as a domestic abuse researcher warns that alcohol should not be blamed for the behaviour of people “who think it’s OK to be violent”.

Recent revelations about the gun lobby’s role in Australian politics raise profound concerns for those of us advocating for the prevention of family violence. If the lobby succeeds in having Australian laws loosened, we fear that guns will become more prominent in family violence incidents.

Programs working with men who perpetrate family violence are among projects to be discussed at a University of Melbourne-led conference this week.