Study Finds Link Between Floods And Violence

The Whakatane floods have provided important and intriguing information for a doctor’s thesis on domestic violence for Victoria University student Ros Houghton.

Ros started researching the effects of civil defence emergencies on domestic violence rates in 2005. “The study started as an honours thesis, looking at the 2004 flooding of the Whakatane district,” she said. “We found that domestic violence reporting increased markedly in the months after the flooding, and suggested there were some policy adjustments that could be made to address this increase.”

Ros is looking to speak to women who experienced domestic violence in the months following the July 2004 flooding. All information would remain confidential. Ros can be contacted by email on Ros.Houghton@vuw.ac.nz or by calling (04) 463 5361.

An article written on this research by the Whakatane Beacon can be found here