A revolutionary program is being piloted in Victoria to help women who use force in their intimate relationships, says a spokesperson for family violence survivors.
Cathy Oddie, program facilitator and survivor advocate, says the Positive Shift (+SHIFT) program is the only program in Australia that targets women who use force in their intimate relationships.
“The majority attend voluntarily… as part of being referred on from other services they’ve interacted with and being told this is something that could benefit [them],” Ms Oddie said.
The program is an evidence-based program that addresses women’s use of force through a strength-based, trauma-informed and feminist framework.
Ms Oddie, who co-facilitates in-person group sessions for Berry Street’s program in Ballarat, says the program is based on an understanding that women use force for different reasons than men.
“Every woman is either a current survivor or they’ve come out of an abusive relationship. For women, one of the main reasons [they use force] is to protect themselves, their loved ones, or their dependent children.”
Though the first of its kind in Australia, this program’s unique approach to helping women who use force is based on the VISTA program in the US founded by prominent researcher and practitioner, Lisa Larance.
Larance co-wrote the VISTA program curriculum guide and implemented the program for Jersey Battered Women’s Services in New Jersey in 2002.
She also pioneered the Reflectively Embracing Nonviolence through Education for Women (RENEW) program in Michigan in 2007, which provides advocacy, support and interventions to women who use force their intimate relationships.
“Women charged with domestic violence offenses are often treated just like men, when in fact, effective intervention is a gendered issue that demands attention to the motivation, intent, and impacts of the actions used,” she said in a public statement.
Tricia Ciampa, Executive Officer at Women and Mentoring, says programs that develop strategies to better manage emotional regulation is key to supporting survivors and people who use force. Women and Mentoring is an early intervention program for women and non-binary people charged with a criminal offence.
“We hear from the women we work with that they don’t often have the tools or role-models to create the changes in their life that they need to improve their outcomes,” she said.
“A program like Positive Shift can provide a therapeutic approach to positively move forward.”
The program, which consists of a weekly two-hour group session run across 16 weeks, is delivering meaningful impacts for participants.
Cathie says one of the groups she’s currently facilitating has developed “a really lovely supportive space” where some members are “contacting each other outside of the group”.
She also says that the trauma-informed approach to running each session has helped members reflect on their actions and their current relationships, both with intimate partners and their loved ones.
“Ultimately this is about supporting the different groups of women that come through to have healthier lives, not only for themselves, but for their dependent children,” she said.
The Positive Shift program is being piloted as part of the Early Intervention Perpetrator Trials through the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).
In Australia, one in six women have experienced violence from an intimate partner, and so have one in sixteen men. Women are at greater risk of family, domestic and sexual violence, which is a leading cause of homelessness.
If you or someone you know is experiencing sexual abuse or family violence contact:
- National Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence Counselling Service 24-hour helpline 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732
- 24-hour Emergency Accommodation helpline on 1800 800 588
- Safe At Home helpline on 1800 633 937
Featured image: The Positive Shift program focuses on group members’ use of force as a response to feeling disempowered. Photo: Rosie Sun via Unsplash.
