Premium
Indigenous women's experiences of domestic and family violence, help‐seeking and recovery in regional Queensland
Author(s) -
Meyer Silke,
Stambe RoseMarie
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
australian journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.417
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1839-4655
pISSN - 0157-6321
DOI - 10.1002/ajs4.128
Subject(s) - indigenous , domestic violence , project commissioning , social connectedness , face (sociological concept) , publishing , sociology , socioeconomics , economic growth , political science , suicide prevention , poison control , gender studies , psychology , medicine , social psychology , environmental health , social science , ecology , law , economics , biology
Indigenous women are disproportionately affected by the prevalence and severity of domestic and family violence (DFV) perpetrated by men against women in Australia. The impact of their experiences is further exacerbated by the level of social and cultural marginalisation affecting Indigenous communities, families and individuals along with regional, rural or remote living. The pervasive, ongoing impact of colonisation, dispossession and transgenerational trauma continues to shape the experiences of Indigenous women and their communities, including their help‐seeking decisions and opportunities, and their level of trust in and access to adequate and culturally sensitive support services. In this paper, we explore the experiences of Indigenous women affected by DFV in two regional Australian settings through face‐to‐face interviews with women ( n = 13) and community stakeholders ( n = 18). The findings of this study highlight the complex role of social and cultural marginalisation, spiritual (dis)connectedness and role of family as both a stressor and a protective factor. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.