Understanding domestic and family violence to save lives

Primary Researchers: Professor Heather Douglas and Associate Professor Robin Fitzgerald

Institutions: The University of Melbourne and The University of Queensland

Domestic and family violence has a devastating impact on communities around the world, particularly for women, who are disproportionately affected. In Australia, up to three-quarters of women escaping domestic and family violence and residing in shelters have survived strangulation, or what is termed non-fatal strangulation (NFS), by their previous partner.

The University of Melbourne’s Professor Heather Douglas is continuing to lead ground-breaking research on NFS, which is at once extremely dangerous and a significant risk factor for later serious harm or death by the same partner.

In 2016, the Queensland Government introduced a new offence focused explicitly on domestic and family violence. The Queensland Parliament credited Professor Douglas’ own research on law and domestic violence, through a 2015 ARC Future Fellowships grant, for revealing ‘the full extent of this horrific but often hidden form of violence’ and leading to a change of law not just in Queensland, but across Australia.

Prior to the NFS offence, such incidents had been treated as common assaults, with a correspondingly lower penalty.

Now, through an ARC Discovery Projects grant awarded in 2020, Professor Douglas, along with her colleague Associate Professor Robin Fitzgerald, is conducting research to fill a gap in knowledge about the operation and stakeholder experiences of the NFS offence as a response to domestic and family violence.

‘Our research will inform the approach to NFS nationally and contribute to development of improved legal responses,’ Professor Douglas said.

Professor Douglas’ new findings, including a 2023 paper outlining the best way to collect evidence for prosecutions, will contribute to her already significant body of ARC-funded research into domestic and family violence. Much of that research has directly and positively influenced the way governments, police, services, and courts respond to domestic violence.

The next chapter in Professor Douglas’ research will include her role as a Chief Investigator and Deputy Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, established in 2023.

‘I am really looking forward to working with colleagues in the region to share what’s working well and to discover new and better ways to contribute to ending domestic and family violence.’ 

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