Toward a socio-ecological understanding of adolescent violence in the home by young people with disability: A conceptual review.

Abstract

Adolescent violence in the home (AVITH) describes a range of violent, abusive and intimidating behaviours used by young people against family members, most commonly parents and siblings. It is increasingly recognised as a critical issue of concern for many families in Australia.<br/ ><br/ >While prior research has drawn attention to the urgent need to better understand the complexity and diversity of AVITH, there remain significant knowledge gaps.<br/ ><br/ >This report presents findings from Stage 1 of a larger project entitled “Building a framework to prevent and respond to young people with disability who use violence at home,” which aims to use multidisciplinary bodies of knowledge, and input from families, to develop a conceptual framework that examines and explains the intersection of AVITH, gender and disability.<br/ ><br/ >Spurred by a distinct lack of research exploring AVITH and disability, this first report is a conceptual review drawing on different disciplines to identify key concepts in understanding the intersections of gender, disability and AVITH.<br/ ><br/ >In this first report, the researchers found a distinct lack of research overall and the absence of research that considers disability differently to its construction as an individual-level risk marker for AVITH. This individual attribute approach to disability does not align with Australia’s international obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) or with Australian legislation, policy and planning frameworks in disability, including Australia’s Disability Strategy, 2021-2023.<br/ ><br/ >Research must explore the perspectives of young people and their families with an intersectional understanding that considers the robust set of social determinants that impact the lives of people with disability if we are to understand young people’s use of violence in the home. Currently, the knowledge on AVITH and young people with disability is inadequate for building a national evidence-based response.<br/ ><br/ >The second report in this project is an in-depth qualitative inquiry that will present the perspectives of families and key sector stakeholders. The second report will ensure lived experience informs a prevention and response framework.