newsletter - Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearing House

14
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE RESEARCH
AND RESOURCES DATABASE
Herrenkohl TI, Sousa C, Tajima EA, Herrenkohl RC,
Moylan CA 2008, ‘The intersection of child abuse
and children’s exposure to domestic violence’,
Trauma, Violence & Abuse, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 84-99
The authors of this article examine the overlap in
physical child abuse and domestic violence, the
prediction of child outcomes, and resilience in
children exposed to family violence. They explore
current findings within the context of other risk
factors, including community violence and related
family and environmental stressors. They find there is
overlap as well as compounding effects and possible
gender differences in outcomes of violence exposure.
Patrick R, Cook K, McKenzie H 2008, ‘Domestic
violence and the exemption from seeking child
support: providing safety or legitimizing ongoing
poverty and fear’, Social Policy and Administration,
vol. 42, no. 7, pp. 749-767
This article examines the Australian experience of lowincome
women on welfare seeking child support from
a violent ex-partner, and contrasting this with findings
from the United States and the United Kingdom.
The article explores the option of giving women an
exemption from seeking child support if this process
places them and their children at risk, and outcomes
of this policy. The authors argue that the needs of
women and their children can be compromised
by policy specifications and the way policies are
implemented.
Peri K, Fanslow J, Hand J, Parsons J 2008, Elder
abuse and neglect: exploration of risk and protective
factors: a report for the Families Commission,
Families Commission, Wellington [NZ]
This report looks at identifying risk and protective
factors surrounding the neglect and abuse of older
people. A range of older people, health professionals,
service providers and representatives of ethnic groups
and regions were sampled for qualitative information.
Data were collected through face-to-face, telephone
and focus group interviews. Risk factors for abuse
and neglect included isolation and increasing
physical (and sometimes mental) challenges
associated with aging, overburdened or greedy family
members, staffing issues in residential care settings,
undervaluing of older people in society, cost of living
and unavailability of care. Protective factors included
supportive families, well trained and well paid staff
in residential care settings and social connectedness.
Institutions like banks, lawyers, churches, faith
communities and police could also play a positive role.
Spangaro J, Zwi AB, Poulos R 2008, ‘The elusive
search for definitive evidence on routine screening
for intimate partner violence’, Trauma, Violence &
Abuse, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 55-68
Routine screening for intimate partner violence
(IPV) has been introduced in many health settings to
improve identification and responsiveness to IPV, amid
continuing debate. Three assumptions have impeded
progress in measuring the impact of screening: that
routine screening is a test only, and does not of itself
have an impact on patients; that it can be assessed
by evaluating interventions provided to women
after abuse is identified through screening, and that
there can be an agreed appropriate intervention for
IPV. In addition, there are significant impediments
to evaluating screening as an intervention through a
randomised control trial. These include identification
of the study group, isolating the control group from
the intervention, ethics, lack of baseline data and
recall bias. In researching this area, a range of study
designs is required and a rethink of assumptions is
needed.
Welsh K 2008, ‘Partnerships or palming off:
involvement in partnership initiatives on domestic
violence’, The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice,
vol. 47, no. 2, pp. 170-188
The author suggests that partnership initiatives are
largely driven by voluntary sector organisations
and that although some state agencies show a real
commitment to attending, involvement from other
state agencies is disappointing at best. The author
discusses what this reveals about who carries the
burden of partnership responses to domestic violence,
and what it suggests about the effectiveness of
partnership initiatives and whether such initiatives
are entitled to be afforded such significance in
government policy.
Looking for a researcher
Find Australian researchers working in the
field of domestic and family violence on the
Clearinghouse Researchers Database. You can
search for researchers by name, research area,
institution or by keywords.
If you want to be listed on the Clearinghouse
Researchers Database, please contact us:
clearinghouse@unsw.edu.au
newsletter 36