Violence

Challenges of Families Who Experience Domestic Violence

There is no way around it; all four functions of a family are put at risk in the sad situation of family violence, and to a large degree the risk factors are interrelated. Focusing first on Function One, family formation and membership, we can comprehend how the pervasiveness of family violence in Australia (which is a microcosm of the global picture) hugely distorts the capacity of the family to ... »

The Impact of Child Sexual Abuse

Child sexual abuse (CSA) has received increasing recognition as an important social issue over the past couple of decades (Webster, 2001). While reports of CSA are certainly increasing, it is unclear as to whether this is due to an actual increase in occurrence, or merely a greater awareness in the community and reporting to the authorities. The uncertainty surrounding reporting is not unique in t... »

Identifying Child Abuse

Child abuse is a phenomenon that is a universal and societal taboo. As reflected in numerous legislative acts and philosophy central to all child protection is that the welfare of the child is paramount. Whilst having regard for the view that the best place for a child to thrive is with his/her family, any allegation of abuse must be responded to by referral to the appropriate authority. »

A Case of Domestic Violence

The client, Gary, called to make his first appointment and said he was persuaded by "a mate" to attend counselling to control his anger. In short Gary was a perpetrator of physical abuse against his intimate female partner, Julie, who is 22 years of age. The couple have no children but his partner has recently expressed a desire to have a child with him. The client is 28 years old and a labourer b... »

Domestic Violence – Understanding the Situation

Around the world at least one woman in every three has been beaten, abused or coerced into sex during her lifetime. Most often the abuser is a member of her own family. The prevalence of domestic violence is difficult to determine for several reasons: it often goes unreported, and there is some ambiguity about what should be included in the definition of domestic violence. »