Working with Domestic Violence

Contexts and Frameworks for Practice

Deborah Walsh

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9781138939813
• eBook ISBN: 9781317379782
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Social Work

This textbook equips social workers and human services practitioners with the knowledge and skills to work effectively with both the victims and perpetrators of domestic violence.

Written to address the needs of the social work and human services student learner, the book covers a range of domestic violence issues that will prepare the student for practice. With an underlying structural feminist conceptual framework that works towards empowering service users whilst challenging the structures that perpetuate violence, Working with Domestic Violence includes:

• 18 chapters covering the broad spectrum of issues that arise from working with domestic violence
• A clear practice framework for applying theoretical knowledge when working with individuals and families in domestic violence contexts
• Practice tips, key facts, case examples, activities, and reflective questions designed to enhance the reader's engagement with the ideas, debates, and practice challenges introduced in the text
• An extensive index and glossary to support student understanding of the material
• A user-friendly and engaging style that will find application as an entire course book as well as for students or lecturers interested in selecting individual chapters for certain modules

Working with Domestic Violence is essential reading for students undertaking undergraduate and postgraduate coursework courses in social work and human services, and those completing a postgraduate counselling qualification. The book will also be a valuable resource for students of community work, youth work, education, nursing and other allied health courses, community services, disability, and welfare studies.

1Introduction

Domestic and family violence is a widespread, preventable and devastating set of social problems that occur within a context of broader patterns of social and gendered relations. To understand domestic and family violence you need a gendered lens. While men and women can be victims and perpetrators of violence – women and children are overwhelmingly the victims and men are predominantly the perpetrators. In saying that, it doesn’t mean that the majority of men are violent to women; in fact, many men treat women with respect and dignity. However, there are men who don’t, and frequently those men who are violent toward women have serial relationships harming a lot of women along the way, hence the statistic that 1 in 3 women will experience violence from an intimate partner during their lifetime (World Health Organization, 2013). The reality of why this has been allowed to occur is a symptom of long held entrenched gender inequality and sex role stereotyping that is evidenced in all aspects of our society. The National Council to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children (2009) states that the greatest risk factor for becoming a victim of domestic and family violence and sexual assault is to be a woman. This is a sad indictment on our society as a whole and something that many are striving to change.

A recent report published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW, 2018) found that in the two years from 2012–2013 to 2013–2014, on average, a woman is murdered by a partner or former partner every week. In addition, the report notes that 1 in 6 women – 15 years or over – have experienced physical or sexual violence which equates to 1.6 million women. Whereas, 1 in 16 men or 500,000 men are victimised (AIHW, 2018). We can conclude that statistically in the private domain, women and children are at much greater risk of victimisation than men. Based on the data, this book, in the main, focuses on domestic and family violence perpetrated by men against women. The statistical prevalence means that as social work and human service practitioners a female victim and a male perpetrator is what is likely to present in general clinical practice. Fewer areas of practice will address violence issues experienced by men as well as members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Queer (LBGTIQ) communities. Various risk assessment and safety planning frameworks used to complement effective and ethical practice are introduced as effective practice management tools for working with all victims of domestic and family violence.

The chapters introduce students to the issues associated with domestic violence that are important to know as you become practitioners. In every chapter there are additional readings listed that can be followed up, as well as activities to undertake that will further imbed the learning objectives for that topic. I encourage teachers and tutors to utilise the activities in class as they will enhance the learning outcomes of subjects that focus on domestic and family violence.

This book is divided into three sections so that students gain a solid knowledge foundation of the social and political contexts before focusing on the issues for population groups, the helping and legal system, and finally, practice frameworks. That is followed by a resource chapter (Chapter 18) with links to a range of resources that cover repositories for research articles in this area and agencies and organisations that work with domestic and family violence. As you graduate it will be important to become familiar with key agencies and organisations in your local area who specialise in working with this issue. Ongoing professional education is provided by key agencies that will keep practitioners up-to-date with changing organisations, practice and legislation. To keep up-to-date is vital to ensure you are able to provide the best possible support to your client base.

Part I: The social and political context begins with Chapter 2 where a historical overview provides an understanding of where some of the origins of how we think and treat women have emerged. Violence against women is argued to be a symptom of gender inequality and has been documented since Roman times that women have been worth less than men. The history of patriarchal marriage outlines how violence against women was enshrined in a husband’s right to beat her. This was a legally sanctioned right and when challenged clear precedence reinforced the man’s role as the head of the household and women as possessions. This chapter also describes two examples of cultures where violence against women is not tolerated. It appears that the factors that contribute to this are that in these cultures women are valued and equal to men. The caring and nurturing roles in those societies are shared between men and women and are held in high esteem.

In Chapter 3 a range of theories that have been developed to explain the causes of violence is discussed. We find that no one theory emerges as having a satisfactory answer as all have limitations. While an integrated theoretical framework is presented that has been argued to provide the most comprehensive explanation as to the creation of an environment where violence against women flourishes, there doesn’t appear to be an adequate theoretical explanation as to why some men choose to use violence and others do not.

Chapter 4 deals with the contested issues surrounding the definitions of violence. Defining violence is contentious as it has the power to count and discount people’s experience. The chapter concludes with an operational definition of domestic and family violence that locates violence and abuse as coercive controlling behaviours that include a wide variety of tactics that are aimed at achieving and maintaining power and control.

The myths that abound about domestic and family violence are debunked in Chapter 5. These are important to know and understand as many of your clients will walk in the door believing some of these myths.

Many practitioners struggle with the fact that some women choose to stay in relationships where the partner is violence toward them. In some instances women will leave and then return to the violent partner many times. This issue can be the source of much frustration in practice if you don’t understand the context and the reality for women in these situations. Chapter 6 explores this issue and provides some clarity around why this occurs.

Chapter 7 addresses the topic of women’s violence against men. This is another very contentious issue with some arguing it occurs at the same rate as male violence against women. Many challenge this, arguing that there is no data to support this. When men are victims of women’s violence they are frequently marginalised and the issue trivialised with few men reaching out to access services. Practitioners need to understand how masculine socialisation impacts on the male victim’s experience in order to intervene effectively.

Part II: The issues, risks, and the legal context addresses the impact violence has on several victim populations and describes the helping system and the legal context. Chapter 8 covers the research that documents the impact violence has on women’s health and wellbeing. There is a wealth of research that has explored the health impact across the lifespan. This chapter will cover some of the contemporary research on these issues. The ongoing impact on women victims is far reaching. It has significant consequences on women’s physical and mental health and is the greatest reason for women’s and children’s homelessness.

Violence in lesbian relationships emerged as a social issue in the late 1980s and in other sexual minority groups much later. Chapter 9 will explore the issues facing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Queer (LGBTIQ) people, the barriers to help seeking and the lack of specialist services for these communities.

Chapter 10 explores the issues that women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and women on temporary visas, face when they are victims of domestic and family violence. Deceiving women about their immigration status is a powerful tool that establishes and maintains power and control over them, causing isolation and silence. There are many barriers to accessing support services for this vulnerable group and it is imperative that practitioners are aware of the specialist domestic violence services available in their area.

Chapter 11 discusses the impact that domestic and family violence has on children and young people. It has been found that exposure to domestic and family violence, from pre-birth right through to adolescence, can have deleterious effects on children and young people’s development and subsequent adult mental health.

Since the early 1970s, Australia has a proud history of providing safe and secure crisis accommodation to women and children who want to escape a domestically violent relationship. This system has been expanded to include a range of other services that compliment women’s refuges. In addition, Chapter 12 will provide critique of the child protection system’s response to domestic and family violence arguing that child protection has a unique opportunity to engage with the offender, instead the system focuses on the victimised mother and makes her responsible for protecting the children.

Chapter 13 outlines the legal system and where victims of domestic and family violence are likely to intersect with it. From state protection orders through to the Federal Family Court system, victims of violence can be involved with the legal system for many years post separation from a violent relationship. These systems are not always victim friendly. To have an understanding of these systems is critical for social work and human service practice.

Part III: Social work and human service practice has five chapters that directly relate to practice in this area. Chapter 14 details a risk assessment framework and safety plans for when practitioners are confronted with a disclosure of domestic and family violence. Risk assessment is an important part of practice when working with someone who has disclosed they are experiencing domestic violence. A risk assessment assists the practitioner in organising and classifying information so that decision-making about the prioritisation and allocation of resources is specific to the needs of the individual person. An important feature of practice is that people’s choice and self-determination take priority over the practitioner’s ‘assessment’ of the situation.

Chapter 15 will discuss some of the practice issues that workers in this area need to be aware of. The level of trauma experienced by women as a result of domestic violence is frequently case specific and related directly to what types of violence were experienced, the duration of the exposure and whether there was trauma history prior to the relationship. There is a growing body of evidence to support the fact that domestic violence is detrimental to women’s and children’s long-term health, and mental health so social workers and human service practitioners need to have the tools to work with women who disclose they are currently – or have – experienced domestic and family violence.

Chapter 16 discusses the approaches used to work with men who choose to use violence. It is widely recognised that domestic and family violence is not about anger; instead it is about power and control which is why the interventions using anger management as the central intervention is such a spectacular failure. More recent approaches to men’s violence intervention have been male behaviour change programs which are based on a psycho-educational and therapeutic intervention models informed by a feminist conceptual understanding of coercive control. However, these programs are plagued with issues that include no uniform approach to standards for the programs; no consistency about length of time programs should run; inconsistent links to mental health, criminal justice, and women’s services. The chapter concludes by presenting a whole system model developed by the Centre of Innovative Justice in 2015 that would address some of the critiques raised in this area of practice.

Working with vulnerable and at risk populations takes its toll on workers so it is important to include a chapter on self-care, frameworks for practice, and supervision. Chapter 17 will discuss burnout and compassion fatigue and ways to avoid this in practice.

The final chapter is a resource chapter that will provide links to publication clearinghouses¹ that are a repository for publications relating to this area of practice and a range of national organisations whose focus is on research in this area. In addition, there are links to domestic and family violence services in each state and territory in Australia and New Zealand. Once students graduate and begin working as practitioners it is vital that you build your own local knowledge about the domestic and family violence services and worker networks surrounding the organisation you work for so you are well equipped for when you are confronted with clients experiencing domestic violence in your practice.

Working in the domestic violence sector is not for everyone. To do this specialised work one needs a fire in one’s belly about the issue because it not only requires you to undertake working with victim/survivors or with perpetrators, it also requires ongoing advocacy and systems change. For those of us who work in the industry it becomes who we are and we love it. After building knowledge and skills in this area it is important to be alert in all areas of practice for the signs of domestic and family violence, this is referred to as case finding and is a critical part of effective assessment. Depending on the organisational context it is likely the clients will referred onto specialised services and that will be as far as you need to go. For others, work in this area will be the focus of your practice. In any field of human service practice there will be domestic and family violence and this book will give you the foundational knowledge and skills to work with it.

Note

1A clearinghouse is a repository for research relating to particular topics.

References

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2018). Australian’s Health 2018. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

Ki-moon, B. (2011). Secretary-General’s remarks at Event to Commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. United Nations Secretary General.

The National Council to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children (2009). Time for Action: The National Council’s Plan for Australia to Reduce Violence Against Women and Their Children, 2009–2021. Canberra: The Commonwealth of Australia.

World Health Organization (2013). Global and Regional Estimates of Violence Against Women: Prevalence and Health Effects of Intimate Partner Violence and Non-Partner ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• 1 Introduction
• PART I The social and political context of domestic violence
• PART II Issues, risks, and the legal context
• PART III Social work and human service practice
• 15 Working with women who have experienced domestic and family violence
• 16 Working with offenders/perpetrators
• 17 Self-care and frameworks for practice
• 18 Resources
• Glossary of terms
• Index