Intimate Partner Violence among current and ex-serving ADF personnel and families
Studies suggest that Intimate Partner Violence is a significant concern for military and veteran families and refers to any behaviour within an intimate relationship that causes:
- physical,
- psychological or
- sexual harm
Intimate Partner Violence can include:
- acts of physical or sexual aggression
- psychological abuse
- controlling behaviour
Projects:
Understanding encounters with Intimate Partner Violence among Australian veterans and families: a preliminary study of service providers in a veteran-specific mental health support service
DVA commissioned Phoenix Australia – Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health to investigate how intimate partner violence is addressed within veteran support services.
This project included:
- a survey of Open arms Counsellors, clinicians, and peer workers about their encounters with intimate partner violence, and
- follow-up interviews with clinicians to explore key themes from the survey results.
This project was completed in 2021:
- read a summary of findings (PPTX 683KB) or the full report (PDF 1.4MB)
- read more on how Open Arms responds to Domestic and Family Violence (PDF 205KB)
Intimate Partner Violence among current and ex-serving Australian Defence Force personnel and families: Transition and Wellbeing Research Programme Data Analyses Project
DVA has commissioned Phoenix Australia – Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health to examine the rates of intimate partner violence among current- and ex-serving ADF personnel, using data from a large-scale study of current and recently transitioned ADF personnel and their families.
The Transition and Wellbeing Research Programme data was used to:
- determine the rates of intimate partner violence within the Australian veteran community,
- identify vulnerable groups, and
- provide an understanding of the implications of intimate partner violence on help-seeking and service utilisation.
This project, due for completion in December 2022, will provide insight to the extent and implications of intimate partner violence in Australian serving and ex-serving communities to inform new policy and program initiatives to help address this issue.
Project findings will be publicly available in early 2023.