Breanna Willoughby La Trobe University Heng Jiang La Trobe University Dan Anderson-Luxford La Trobe University Anne-Marie Laslett La Trobe University

Keywords: alocohol, violence, partners, family, prevalence

Abstract

Aims:  Alcohol is a risk factor for family violence that affects partners, parents, children and other relatives. This study aims to provide estimates of the prevalence of alcohol-related family violence reported in 2016 in Australia across numerous socio-demographic groups.

Methods:  This paper presents secondary data analysis of 23,749 respondents (10,840 men, 12,909 women) from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NDSHS). Alcohol-related family violence was measured by self-report as being physically or verbally abused or put in fear from a family member or partner deemed by the victim as under the influence of alcohol. Logistic regression was used to analyse which factors were associated with alcohol-related family violence.     

Findings:  Analysis revealed that 5.9% of respondents (7.7% of women and 4.0% of men) reported alcohol-related family violence in the past year from either a partner or another family member. Respondents who were women (vs men), within less advantaged (vs more advantaged) socio-economic groups, risky drinkers (vs non-risky drinkers), residing in outer regional areas (vs major cities), holding a diploma (vs high school education) and single with dependents, reported higher overall rates of alcohol-related family violence. In contrast, respondents aged 55+ had significantly lower odds of experiencing alcohol-related family violence than all other age groups.

Conclusions: Alcohol-related family violence was significantly more prevalent amongst respondents in a range of socio-demographic categories. Identification of these groups which are adversely affected by the drinking of family and partners can aid in informing current policy to protect those more vulnerable.

How to Cite

Willoughby, B., Jiang, H., Anderson-Luxford, D., & Laslett, A.-M. (2021). Alcohol-related family violence in Australia: Secondary data analysis of the National Drug Strategy Household Survey. International Journal of Alcohol and Drug Research, 9(2), 69-74. https://doi.org/10.7895/ijadr.343

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