Primary Prevention of Violence Against Women

What Is Violence Against Women?

Violence against women is a pervasive and serious human rights abuse that causes significant harm to individuals, families, communities and society.

In Australia, 1 in 3 Australian women have experienced physical violence since the age of 15.((Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2017. Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS.))
1 in 5 Australian women have experienced sexual violence since the age of 15.((Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2017. Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS.))
Intimate partner violence is the leading contributor to death, disability and ill-health for Australian women aged 18 – 44.((Webster, K (2016). A preventable burden: measuring and addressing the prevalence and health impacts of intimate partner violence in Australian women. ANROWS, Sydney. (Compass, 07/2016). ))
Nearly one woman a week is murdered by a current or former partner.((Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018. Family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia 2018. Cat. no. FDV2. Canberra: AIHW.))

These rates are much higher for women who face multiple and compounding forms of inequality.

What Drives Violence Against Women?

There is now a large body of evidence that shows that gender inequality is a necessary condition for violence against women to occur.

Our Watch defines gender inequality as:

The unequal distribution of power, resources, opportunity, and value afforded to men and women in a society due to prevailing gendered norms and structures.

Evidence shows that certain forms of gender inequality consistently predict higher rates of violence against women.

These expressions of gender inequality are referred to as the “gendered drivers” of violence. There are also “reinforcing factors” within the context of the gendered drivers that increase the frequency and severity of violence against women.

While gender inequality is a necessary condition for violence against women, it is not the only or necessarily the most prominent factor in every context.

Violence against women is often experienced in combination with other influencing or intersecting forms of systemic discrimination and disadvantage. For women who face multiple and compounding forms of inequality which can result in higher rates of violence, more severe and compounding consequences and barriers to getting help, we also need to focus on drivers of intersecting inequalities.

For example, we know violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women is also driven by racialised power inequalities and the ongoing impacts of colonisation.

What is Primary Prevention?

Primary Prevention is Stopping Violence Against Women Before it has a Chance to Happen

Primary prevention is a whole of population approach that seeks to prevent violence before it occurs – through addressing the social norms, practices and structures (key drivers) that cultivate violence against women or create the context for violence against women to occur.

Addressing the drivers of violence, prevents it from happening down the track. This is different from responding to violence after it has occurred, intervening early with at risk cohorts to course-correct / change the trajectory, or providing long-term support.

Prevention spectrum for violence against women

Upstream approach

Primary Prevention

Preventing violence before it occurs.
Whole of population approaches that address the primary drivers of violence.

Early intervention

Taking action on the early signs of violence to reduce risk of violence reoccurring or escalating.

Downstream approach

Response

Intervening after violence has occurred.
Supporting survivors/victims and hold perpetrators to account.

Post-crisis response

Longer term action to keep survivors/victims safe and and reduce risk of perpetrators reoffending.

To achieve any real change and see a long-term reduction in the prevalence of violence against women at a whole of population level, we must work across the entire prevention spectrum.

How Do We Prevent Violence Against Women?

International and national research conclude that to prevent violence against women before it occurs, action must be taken to address gender inequality.

International research shows us that countries with higher levels of gender equality have lower rates of violence against women.

To prevent violence against women, we must undertake key, mutually reinforcing actions that address the drivers of violence, across priority settings, using proven and promising techniques and tailored to the context and needs of different groups, so that we can reach everyone.

What About Violence Against Men?

All forms of violence perpetrated towards humans is unacceptable and must be taken seriously. There are specific gendered patterns in offending, experience of violence and impact, that need to be considered:

Women are more likely to know the person who is abusing them – it’s often a current or previous partner, and the violence usually takes place in their home.((Diemer, K. (2015). ABS Personal Safety Survey: Additional analysis on relationship and sex of perpetrator. Documents and working papers, Research on violence against women and children, University of Melbourne.))
Men are more likely to experience violence from men they don’t know and in a public place.((Diemer, K. (2015). ABS Personal Safety Survey: Additional analysis on relationship and sex of perpetrator. Documents and working papers, Research on violence against women and children, University of Melbourne.))
The overwhelming majority of domestic violence and sexual assault is perpetrated by men against women, and is likely to have more severe impacts on female victims.((Cox, P. (2016). Violence against women: Additional analysis of the Australian Bureau of Statistics' Personal Safety Survey, 2012. ANROWS, Sydney.))
Women are more likely than men to be injured, require medical attention or hospitalisation, or experience mental health impacts as a result of intimate partner violence, are more likely to experience sexualised violence, and to report fearing for their lives.((Swan, S. C. et al. (2008). A Review of Research on Women’s Use of Violence With Male Intimate Partners. Violence and Victims, 23(3), 301–314.))
Around 95% of all the victims of violence (both women and men), experience violence from a male perpetrator.((Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018. Family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia 2018. Cat. no. FDV2. Canberra: AIHW.))