Global status report on violence prevention 2014
World Health Organization, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and United Nations Development Programme. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO, 2014
Report (292 pages); PDF
Summary: This report, which reflects data from 133
countries, is the first report of its kind to assess national efforts to address interpersonal violence, namely child maltreatment, youth violence, intimate partner and sexual violence, and elder abuse. The report reviews the current status of violence prevention efforts in countries, and calls for a scaling up of violence prevention programmes; stronger
legislation and... Read more


Investing in children : the European child maltreatment action plan 2015 - 2020
Regional Committee for Europe, 64th session, Copenhagen, 15-18 September 2014
World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, 2014
Action plan (9 pages); PDF
Summary: This action plan to prevent child maltreatment in Europe promotes both population-level actions and targeted, selective approaches for high-risk groups... Read more


National research agenda to reduce violence against women and their children
Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS). Alexandria, NSW: ANROWS, 2014
Research agenda (30 pages); PDF
Summary: The National Research Agenda will inform the development of the ANROWS Research Program as well as provide a framework for, and guidance on, priority areas of research and research themes for academics, researchers, organisations and governments across Australia... Read more


Second Action Plan 2013 - 2016 of the National Plan to reduce violence against women and their children 2010 - 2022. Moving ahead
Council of Australian Governments. Canberra, ACT: Department of Social Services, 2014
Action plan (58 pages); PDF & Word DOC version available
Summary: The Second Action Plan 2013 - 2016 was launched on the 27 June 2014. The Second Action Plan outlines how the Commonwealth, state and territory governments plan to move ahead in addressing the violent crimes of domestic and family and sexual assault... Read more


Prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence victimization : National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, United States, 2011
Matthew J. Breiding, Sharon G. Smith, Kathleen C. Basile, Mikel L. Walters, Jieru Chen, Melissa T. Merrick - Atlanta, GA.: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014
Mortality and Morbidity Weekly Review, 5 September 2014, 63(SS08): 1-18
Summary: These findings published in MMWR Surveillance Summaries are based on data from the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS). This report examines sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence victimization using data from the 2011 survey... Read more 

What works to prevent violence against women and girls? 

This is a global programme administered by a consortium led by the Medical Research Council of South Africa, in partnership with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Social Development Direct, on behalf of DFID. Its aim is to build knowledge on what works to prevent violence against women and girls. There are many forms of violence against women and girls, but the programme focuses on intimate partner violence (emotional, economic, physical, sexual), non-partner sexual violence, and child abuse (emotional, physical, sexual). The focus of the consortium is on identifying effective strategies for prevention - that is, preventing violence from ever occurring by addressing the root causes or established risk factors for violence. The following five papers are programme outputs. 

A summary of the evidence and research agenda for what works to prevent violence against women and girls? A global programme to prevent violence against women and girls. Annex C
Emma Fulu. Pretoria, South Africa: Medical Research Council, 2014
Short paper (12 pages); PDF
Summary: This paper provides a summary of evidence... Read more 

Evidence review of interventions to prevent violence against women and girls. Annex F
Emma Fulu, Alice Kerr-Wilson and James Laing. Pretoria, South Africa: Medical Research Council, 2014
Short paper (51 pages); PDF  
Summary: The purpose of this paper is to examine the evidence base for the effectiveness of interventions to prevent violence against women and girls. This rapid assessment, along with the other working group papers, is designed to: inform the development of the What Works research agenda... Read more 

Evidence review of the effectiveness of response mechanisms to prevent violence against women and girls. Annex H
Rachel Jewkes. Pretoria, South Africa : Medical Research Council, 2014
Short paper (44 pages); PDF
Summary: This paper reviews interventions that are designed primarily to respond to violence against women and girls (VAWG), but which have a secondary or parallel primary aim of preventing VAWG or targeting key risk factors that contribute to the perpetration (by men) or experience (by
women) of VAWG... Read more 

Evidence review of approaches to scale up VAWG programming and assess intervention cost-effectiveness and value for money. Annex J
Michelle Remme, Christine Michaels-Igbokwe and Charlotte Watts - Pretoria, South Africa : Medical Research Council, 2014
Short paper (55 pages); PDF
Summary: This evidence review was conducted to:
summarise some examples of entry platforms through which violence against women and girls (VAWG) programmes are being implemented... Read more 

What works to prevent violence against women with disabilities
Ingrid Van Der Heijden. Pretoria, South Africa: Medical Research Council, 2014
Short paper (10 pages); PDF
Summary: Key messages:
*Women with disabilities (WWD) are at increased risk for gender-based violence (GBV) due to the intersection of gender bias and disability stigma and discrimination.
*In order to develop appropriate responses and interventions to prevent violence and protect women with disabilities, we need to know the risk factors and context respond to them
accordingly.
*Some violence and abuse prevention interventions for women with disabilities (WWD) have been developed...

Read more 

Journal articles

Contact your local library for full text access to articles which are not freely available online.     

Child protection and vulnerable families : trends and issues in the Australian context
Elizabeth Fernandez.- 2014
Social Sciences, 2014, 3:785-808
Summary: This paper provides an overview and analysis of developments in child protection and out of home care in Australia... Read more 

Drowning the pain : intimate partner violence and drinking to cope prospectively predict problem drinking
Camilla S. Øverup, DiBello, Angelo M., Julie A. Brunson, Linda K. Acitelli, Clayton Neighbors. Elsevier, 2014
Addictive Behaviors, 2015, 41: 152-161
Summary: The present study examined the longitudinal association among drinking problems, drinking to cope, and degree of intimate partner violence (IPV). Two competing models were tested... Read more 

Women's experiences of the processes associated with the Family Court of Australia in the context of domestic violence : a thematic analysis
Donna Roberts, Peter Chamberlain and Paul Delfabbro. Taylor & Francis, 2014
Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 2014, online first
Summary: This qualitative study sought to address the paucity of knowledge in the domestic violence literature by identifying the psychological impact of the Family Court process in Australia on women who have left abusive relationships... Read more   

The Lancet Violence Against Women and Girls series

Prevention of violence against women and girls : what does the evidence say?
Mary Ellsberg, Diana J. Arango, Matthew Morton, Floriza Gennari, Sveinung Kiplesund, Manuel Contreras, Charlotte Watts. The Lancet, 2014
The Lancet, online 21 November 2014 (12 pages) .
Summary: In Series paper 1, the authors review evidence for interventions to reduce the prevalence and incidence of violence against women and girls... Read more 

The health-systems response to violence against women  
Claudia García-Moreno, Kelsey Hegarty, Ana Flavia Lucas d'Oliveira, Jane Koziol-MacLain, Manuela Colombini, Gene Feder. The Lancet, 2014
The Lancet, online 21 November 2014 (15 pages)
Summary: In Series paper 2, the authors review the evidence for clinical interventions and discuss components of a comprehensive health-system approach that helps health-care providers to identify and support women subjected to intimate partner or sexual violence... Read more


From work with men and boys to changes of social norms and reduction of inequities in gender relations : a conceptual shift in prevention of violence against women and girls
Rachel Jewkes, Michael Flood, James Lang. The Lancet, 2014
The Lancet, online 21 November 2014 (10 pages)
Summary: In Series paper 3, the authors discuss why the engagement of all men and boys in action to prevent violence against women and girls is theoretically important and
how prevention interventions have developed from treating men simply as perpetrators of violence against women and girls or as allies of women in its prevention, to approaches that seek to transform the relations, social norms, and systems that sustain gender inequality and violence... Read more


Prevention of violence against women and girls : lessons from practice
Lori Michau, Jessica Horn, Amy Bank, Mallika Dutt, Cathy Zimmerman. The Lancet, 2014
The Lancet, online 21 November 2014 (13 pages)
Summary: Series paper 4, describes programming to prevent violence against women and girls, and emphasises the importance of systematic, sustained programming across the
social... Read more


Addressing violence against women : a call to action
Claudia García-Moreno, Cathy Zimmerman, Alison Morris-Gehring, Lori Heise, Avni Amin, Naeemah Abrahams, Oswaldo Montoya, Padma Bhate-Deosthali, Nduku Kilonzo, Charlotte Watts. The Lancet, 2014
The Lancet, online 21 November 2014 (11 pages) .
Summary: Series paper 5 is a call to action to eliminate violence against women and girls. Governments need to address the political, social, and economic structures that subordinate women, and implement national plans and make budget commitments to invest in actions by multiple sectors to prevent and respond to abuse. Emphasis on prevention is
crucial. Community and group interventions involving... Read more