Family and Domestic Violence

Some abusive behaviours can be identified easily, while others are difficult to recognise. Many adult and child victims live with perpetrators who use coercive patterns of control and may not realise that what they are experiencing is family and domestic violence.

The term family and domestic violence most commonly refers to violence and abuse against an intimate partner (including same sex relationships and ex-partners) but can also occur between siblings, from adolescents to parents, or from family carers to a relative. It can include the abuse of children and young people, older people, people with a disability, and other family members.

Family and domestic violence may include:

• Emotional/psychological abuse: mind games, manipulation, insults, threats, verbal putdowns used to humiliate, degrade or embarrass and make the person feel worthless or no good.
• Physical violence: pushing, slapping, punching, choking, kicking, harming or threatening to harm pets or possessions, physical threats, using weapons and any other behaviour that is intended to cause harm.
• Sexual violence: forced sexual contact/activity. 'Forced' in this context refers to individuals who are physically coerced to participate or who are not in a position to say no as a result of fear, threats or intimidation.
• Social isolation: keeping the victim away from friends, family, work and/or other social opportunities.
• Financial abuse: controlling the money and decisions around its use, taking or limiting money, stealing.
• Technology-facilitated abuse: use of technology (such as mobile devices) to monitor and stalk, send abusive text messages/emails or make harassing phone calls or share or threaten to share intimate images without consent.
• Spiritual abuse: keeping someone away from places of worship or forcing them to participate in spiritual or religious practice that they do not want to be involved with.