28/07/09
DOVE sent to tackle domestic violence in Europe
The reality of domestic violence for European women and men will come under scrutiny from two Faculty researchers who are part of a European consortium awarded €1 million of research funding.
Dr Eleni Hatzidimitriadou, Reader, and Jane Lindsay, Principal Lecturer, from the School of Social Work will be working to get a much clearer picture of the issues around domestic violence. The knowledge gained will eventually lead to improved EU health policies to help deal with the problem.
The project is for the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers and is known as DOVE, which stands for Domestic violence against women and men in Europe: Prevalence, determinants, effects and policies/practices.
Eleni and Jane will gather information on the size of the problem in the UK. They will find out the causes of domestic violence, what happens during violent incidents and how these incidents affect the health and quality of life of the people involved. They will compare their results with those gathered in other European countries and help analyse existing legislation and national policy and practice. The aim is to advance knowledge and promote links between policymakers and practitioners dealing with domestic violence at European Union level.
Eleni said, "Our study will provide much needed European data - ranging from prevalence and determinants of domestic violence to effects - that are vital for the development of effective policies and practices to manage victims and perpetrators, and that are more in line with the daily realities of European women and men."
The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Porto in Portugal is coordinating the project, which will last for 30 months.
DOVE partners:
- Faculty of Health and Social Care Sciences
- Mid Sweden University (Sweden)
- Evangelische Fachhochscule Reutlingen-Ludwigsburg (Germany)
- Ethniki Scholi Dimosias Ygeias (Greece)
- Magyar Tudományos Akadémia Szociológiai Kutatóintézet (Hungary)
- Universidad de Granada (Spain)
- Universiteit Gent (Belgium)
