Violence Terms

Family Violence: Family violence is when someone behaves abusively towards a family member (ie a partner, a sibling, a parent, a child, a relative). It is part of a pattern of behaviour that controls or dominates a person and causes them to fear for their own safety and wellbeing. Abusive behaviour can be physical, sexual, emotional, verbal, social, economic, psychological and spiritual. The most common form of family violence is intimate partner violence.

Intimate Partner Violence: Violence that occurs between two people who are in an intimate relationship and may or may not be living together. This could be a current or past relationship. For example, a current partner (living with), previous partner (lived with), boyfriend/girlfriend (living with) or ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend (never lived with). Intimate partner violence is the most common form of violence against women.

Domestic Violence: Like intimate partner violence, but the two people must also be co-habiting (or have co-habited). For example, husband and wife or a de facto relationship (current or past).

Violence Against Women: Any act of violence that causes harm or suffering to women. This includes threats or deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.

Gender Violence: Violence that is specifically directed at a person because of their gender, and derived from unequal power relationships, such as violence that is perpetrated against a woman because she is a woman, or violence that affects women disproportionately.

Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Prevention

Primary Prevention: Primary prevention includes practices that are used to prevent violence against women before it occurs in the first place. Promoting equality and respect between women and men is a key way to prevent violence against women. 

Secondary Prevention: Secondary prevention includes actions that are used to intervene early when there are early signs of violent behaviour.

Tertiary Prevention: Tertiary prevention includes support and treatment for individuals who have experienced violence.

Faith Terms

Faith communities: Refers to any community or organisation of people who share the same religious or spiritual faith.

Faith leaders: People within a faith community who are in positions of authority and decision-making. These may include authorised leaders such as priests, imams, rabbis, or non authorised (lay) leaders.

Faith organisations: Organisations that have an affiliation with a religious body based on religious beliefs, values or scripture.

Faith settings: This is inclusive of places of worship, faith communities and faith organisations.