{"id":125932,"date":"2015-11-03T19:32:16","date_gmt":"2015-11-03T09:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=125932"},"modified":"2020-11-09T18:15:14","modified_gmt":"2020-11-09T08:15:14","slug":"country-women-more-likely-to-experience-domestic-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2015\/11\/03\/country-women-more-likely-to-experience-domestic-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"Country Women More Likely To
Experience Domestic Violence"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
University of New England researcher Gina Dillon
(Photo: The Conversation)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

by Gina Dillon<\/a>
\nResearcher, University of New England<\/strong><\/p>\n

Women in regional and rural areas of Australia experience higher rates of violence from partners and spouses than women living in major metropolitan centres, new research has found.<\/p>\n

Researchers at the University of New England examined data from more than 14,000 women participating in the Australian Longitudinal study of Women\u2019s Health.<\/p>\n

While one in five women living in major metropolitan centres reported having been in a violent relationship with a partner or spouse at some time in their adult life, these numbers rose to one in four women from regional (24 per cent) and rural (26 per cent) areas.<\/p>\n

Increased Vulnerability<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Past research has shown that living in rural and remote areas increases women\u2019s vulnerability to partner violence.<\/p>\n

Compared with metropolitan areas, people living in Australian regional and rural communities have higher rates of alcohol misuse and increased access to firearms, both of which have been shown to increase the risks of partner violence in international studies.<\/p>\n

Living in rural and regional areas also restricts women\u2019s ability to leave violent relationships. Country women are more likely to be isolated and have to travel greater distances to get support from family and friends, and to access formal police and domestic violence support services.<\/p>\n

Access to medical assistance, health services and counselling services are all reduced in rural areas compared to major cities.<\/p>\n

Offenders or victims may be widely known in rural or regional communities. This can act as a barrier to reporting partner violence and seeking help. This is especially true if the perpetrator of the violence holds a respected position, or if victims have many roles within the community.<\/p>\n

Type Of Abuse<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The study also also compared the type of partner abuse women living in metropolitan, regional and rural areas faced over a 12-month period.<\/p>\n

Using detailed answers, the researchers noted the proportion of women experiencing physical, emotional, sexual abuse or harassment behaviours.<\/p>\n

Overall women from metropolitan, regional and rural areas reported the four types of abuse at very similar rates. In the past 12 months:<\/strong><\/p>\n