Bethany Devenish
Deakin University, Australia
Title: Reducing acceptance of intimate partner violence in socioeconomically disadvantaged adolescents: evaluation of peace road for children.
Biography
Biography: Bethany Devenish
Abstract
Adolescents from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities are more likely to be accepting of intimate partner violence, in addition to being at increased risk of experiencing or perpetrating intimate partner violence. There is however a paucity of research evaluating the efficacy of programs designed to address acceptance of intimate partner violence. This study evaluated whether Peace Road for Children, a World Vision school based intervention, was more effective in reducing acceptance of wife beating than broader Child Protection activities alone, among 240 male and female adolescents aged 10-16 years of age in Armenia. Fisher’s z tests for two population proportions revealed that Peace Road for Children significantly reduced the number of children who became accepting of wife beating in comparison to the control group, however Peace Road for Children did not lead to a more significant reduction in acceptance of wife beating in children who indicated wife beating was acceptable at baseline. The findings highlight key considerations for violence prevention research, including the importance of early prevention in attitudes towards intimate partner violence.