Aboriginal Women's Perceptions and Experiences of a Family Violence Transitional Accommodation Service

Abstract

This article presents a qualitative study of Aboriginal women's perceptions and experiences of a transitional housing program in South Australia that was established to assist long-term homelessness and family violence. The aim of the study was to explore the experiences and service outcomes for Aboriginal women and their children and to identify both facilitators and barriers to the effective operation of the program. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 13 Aboriginal women and thematic analysis was used to report their collective stories. The women's stories showed individualised, flexible, and open-ended support as well as practical outcomes of stable, safe housing for themselves and their children were particularly valued. The women reported that these features of the program augmented feelings of strengthened confidence and self-efficacy. The authors argue the domestic and family violence sector has the opportunity to learn from the perceptions and experiences of Aboriginal women, particularly allowing time and commitment to working long-term with families.

本文对原住民女性所感受和经历的过渡性南澳居住计划做了定性研究，该计划用于解决长期的无房问题和家庭暴力问题。作者意在探讨原住民妇女及其子女的经历及服务结果，搞清楚哪些因素有助于、哪些因素有碍于计划的顺利实施。研究者对13位原住民妇女进行了面对面访谈，使用主题分析记述了他们的集体故事。这些女人的故事显示，个性、灵活、开放的支持和稳定、安全、实实在在的居所对于她们和孩子尤为重要。妇女们讲，居住计划的这些特点增加了她们的自信感和自立感。作者认为处理家庭暴力的部门可以从这些妇女的感受和经历中学到东西，要花时间和精力和这些家庭长期共事。

Keywords:

• Aboriginal Women
• Family Violence
• Transitional Housing

Acknowledgements

This research project was funded by the Commonwealth Government's Department of Family and Community Services, now Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA), and the South Australian Government's Department for Families and Communities (DFC), now Department for Communities and Social Inclusion. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect government policies.

Notes

¹ In colonised countries, Indigenous people have argued for an understanding which locates family violence in Indigenous communities within the historical context of colonisation, which has seen Aboriginal peoples (as individuals, families, and communities) subject to dispossession, disempowerment, poverty, and cultural, social, and geographic dislocation (Cheers, et al., 2006). As a result, the term “family violence” has been adopted with the intention of capturing the complex and interacting features of violence experienced by (predominantly) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and children. In this article, both terms are used in order to acknowledge the continuing currency of “domestic violence” as a descriptor for violence perpetrated by an intimate partner and “family violence” as a preferred term for many Indigenous people.

² The authors decided not to name the transitional housing program to protect those who participated in the research.

³ In 2010, the Gillard Labor Government launched its Indigenous Family Safety Agenda, which has been established through merging the Family Violence Partnership Program and the Family Violence Regional Activities Program.