Transnational Foundations for Ethical Practice in Interventions Against Violence Against Women and Child Abuse

dc.contributor.authorKelly, Liz ; Meysen, Thomas
dc.date.accessioned2015-09-30T15:20:28Z
dc.date.available2015-09-30T15:20:28Z
dc.date.issued2019
dc.description.abstractIncreasing recognition of the private spheres of family, sexuality and interpersonal relationships as sites for violence has led to transformations in law and policy at national and international levels. There is now a broad consensus in Europe that the state has responsibilities to protect children and women from violence. To enter these arenas, however, is to encounter complex intersections of power relations with respect to gender, generation, race/ethnicity, nationality and faith: a matrix of rights and responsibilities which professionals have to navigate. In this paper we use the overarching concept of intervention, drawing on its etymology: venire – to go, inter – in-between or inside. Professionals are stepping into the lives of others, which raises a set of ethical issues and dilemmas which also are linked to power: of the state, of belonging and knowing. Intervention as used here includes assessment, investigation, and legal measures alongside support, advocacy and counselling. Introducing ethics brings the word moral into play: the foundations we offer encourage a reflective questioning of what ethical practice in interventions against violence comprises and at the same time advises against an attitude where moral judgements are made based on stereotypes. Agencies have different roles and responsibilities: some have legal powers to intervene (the police, courts and child protection) others have duties of care (health, counselors) and still others are community based and offer, as far as possible, confidential spaces in which the meaning and impacts of violence can be explored (helplines, advice centres, shelters, specialist women’s organisations). Inter-agency work needs to recognize and respect these differences. This framework draws on the work of the CEINAV project which focused on three forms of violence (child physical abuse and neglect, intimate partner violence, trafficking for sexual exploitation) in four countries (England/Wales, Germany, Portugal, Slovenia). We conducted multi-disciplinary focus groups with professionals, individual interviews with women and young people from minority communities who had experienced the three forms of violence and an art work process involving survivors and professionals. The project explored not only when intervention is justified but also the orientation of professionals, how they approach those they are offering support/help and what kinds of intervention make a difference for women and young people. (Author Introduction)en_US
dc.identifier.citationKelly, Liz ; Meysen, Thomas. (2019). Transnational Foundations for Ethical Practice in Interventions Against Violence Against Women and Child Abuse. In: Carol Hagemann-White ; Liz Kelly ; Thomas Meysen (eds.). (2019). Interventions Against Child Abuse and Violence Against Women: Ethics and culture in practice and policy. Verlag Barbara Budrich. pages 256-268.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/23742/1/1006402.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11212/2529
dc.language.isoEnglishen_US
dc.publisherVerlag Barbara Budrichen_US
dc.subjectchild abuseen_US
dc.subjectpreventionen_US
dc.subjectlawen_US
dc.subjectInternational Resourcesen_US
dc.titleTransnational Foundations for Ethical Practice in Interventions Against Violence Against Women and Child Abuseen_US
dc.typetexten_US
dc.typebook chapteren_US
dc.typeen_US

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