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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/21398
Record ID: c3564d20-ede8-4728-ba49-5ce312372741
Web resource: http://www.aic.gov.au/documents/3/8/C/%7B38CD1194-9CE2-4208-8627-7C32B4B238F2%7D2006-11-violenceAgainstWomen.pdf
Type: Electronic publication
Title: Community Attitudes to Violence Against Women Survey : A Full Technical Report
Authors: Taylor, Natalie
Mouzos, Jenny
Keywords: Community attitudes
Year: 2005
Publisher: VicHealth
Notes:  "Paper one of the Violence Against Women Community Attitudes Project"--Cover page.
General overview: The Social Research Centre and the Australian Institute of Criminology were commissioned to conduct a survey of the Victorian population on their attitudes to violence against women. This report includes a review of surveys of community attitudes to domestic violence, the questionnaire used for the current survey, and the results of the survey.

Objective: The survey was conducted to gauge community attitudes in Victoria and track changes in attitudes since the Office of the Status of Women’s 1995 survey, “Community attitudes to violence against women”. It also explores the factors leading to the formation of attitudes about violence against women and considers what strategies may foster attitudes that support freedom from violence.

Methods: 2000 randomly selected people (“the main sample”) and 800 people from Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian and Greek backgrounds (selected culturally and linguistically diverse groups, or “the SCALD sample”) were surveyed. They were asked about their attitudes to gender equality, their definition of domestic violence, and whether certain behaviours (such as hitting, forced sex, threats, and stalking) are serious. They were also asked if they agreed with certain statements about domestic violence, if there were circumstances where physical force may be justified and whether they would intervene in a domestic violence dispute.

Results: When asked about their attitudes to gender equality, women were more positive than men, and Australian born people were more positive than the SCALD sample. Pushing and slapping, forced sex, throwing and smashing objects, and threatening to hurt family members were nearly always seen as domestic violence. Behaviours such as yelling abuse, repeated criticism, controlling a partner’s social life by denying them money, and harassing by phone or email were “usually” or “sometimes” considered violence.

A majority of respondents considered domestic violence serious. More women than men, and more people from the main sample than from the SCALD sample, believed that violence against women is serious. A large proportion of the community believe that domestic violence can be excused if it results from temporary anger or results in genuine regret. Many also believe that women going through custody battles make up claims of domestic violence and that rape results from men not being able to control their need for sex. The vast majority disagreed that force could be justified in any of the scenarios presented. A majority claimed that they would be likely to intervene in a domestic violence dispute. About three quarters of respondents had recently seen, read or heard something in the media about violence against women.

Conclusions: While some acts are always regarded as violence, others (such as yelling abuse and criticising) were context dependent. There is widespread adherence to myths about domestic violence but negative beliefs are not held by the majority of the community. Respondents to the 2006 survey were less likely to hold beliefs supportive of violence than respondents to the 1995 survey but more likely to believe that men and women equally commit acts of domestic violence.
URI: https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/21398
Physical description: 164 p.
Appears in Collections:Online resource

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