Book to help people and agencies seeking to reduce violence
university-of-canterbury
Mon Jun 03 2013 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Book to help people and agencies seeking to reduce violence
Monday, 3 June 2013, 4:14 pm
Press Release: University of Canterbury
New book to help people and agencies seeking to reduce violence in New Zealand
June 3, 2013
Violence continues to be the driving challenge for New Zealand communities with nearly half of all homicides in New Zealand resulting from family violence, University of Canterbury (UC) social work expert and researcher Dr Annabel Taylor says.
On average 14 women, 6 men and 10 children are killed by a member of their family every year. Police recorded 86,545 family violence incidents and offences in 2008. Dr Taylor says violence in New Zealand is getting worse.
She will launch a book later next month Understanding Violence Context and Practice in the Human Services which she has co-edited with Professor Marie Connolly from Melbourne.
Dr Taylor says the Canterbury University Press published book to be launched on June 27 aims to increase understanding of violence, its origins and practices that have developed in response to violence.
``This book reflects the work of UC’s Te Awatea Violence Research Centre researchers and includes a broad coverage of many types of violence and recent response initiatives.
``It will be an essential resource for family violence practitioners, police, shelter organisations and violence prevention programme providers, as well as students and academics.
``Gangs, elder abuse, sexual offending and social networking risks are some of the areas described. I hope this contribution to research and writing will help to inform the public about violence prevention and contribute to ongoing debate concerning effective responses to violence,’’ Dr Taylor says.
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Police are called to around 200 family violence situations a day - one every seven minutes and they estimate only 18 percent of family violence incidents are reported. At least 74,785 children and young people aged under 17 were present at family violence situations attended by police.
Half of all children killed by caregivers are Maori. Seven times more young Maori women and four times more Maori children are hospitalised from an assault compared to Pakeha women and children, Dr Taylor says.
``The economic cost of family violence was estimated at $1.2 to $5.8 billion per year by economist Suzanne Snively in 1994. In today’s figures that would rise to $8 billion.
``We have the fifth worst child abuse record out of 31 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries with on average, one child killed every five weeks.’’
Dr Taylor is a member of and assisting the Sir Owen Glenn National Think Tank Inquiry into child abuse.
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