Campaign to Change Attitudes and Behaviour to Prevent Family Violence - Update

The Attitudes and Behaviour Change campaign, a project under the Taskforce for Action on Violence Within Families, has several streams of work well underway.

The campaign aims to increase awareness and understanding of family violence; increase the personal relevance of family violence; promote a greater propensity to act on family violence; and create a social climate that supports change. It includes three strands of work: community action, communication and research.

1. Community action

This will build on the work that is already happening in the community, as well as supporting new community-led action to prevent family violence.

The Community Action Fund, a pool of funding for local community-led projects, received 108 applications, and successful applicants will be informed early April. The next round for the fund will be the mid-year.

An important part of community action is media advocacy. The aim is to work with the media to support a change in public attitudes and behaviours. Current work involves media training for spokespeople and community groups, and family violence seminars in journalism schools. Information and awareness raising for working journalists is planned.

Partnerships will also be developed as the campaign progresses – at the moment a number of national NGOs are working with the campaign team. In the future partnerships with corporates, sport clubs, churches, and other communities will also be developed.

2. Communication

The campaign will promote key messages about family violence and healthy relationships. A mass media campaign will build awareness of the issues, the consequences of family violence, empower and affirm change. Resources will be developed to support mass media messages and community action. They will provide individuals with information and strategies for change.

The advertising and communication companies that will work on the campaign are soon to be announced.

3. Research and evaluation

Research and evaluation projects will guide and measure the campaign, and set a benchmark for current attitudes so that changes in attitudes can be measured.

The mass media component of the campaign will begin by addressing social norms, because research commissioned for the project has shown there is no common understanding of family violence. The first layer of mass media advertising will seek to reframe the issue of family violence to make people aware of the seriousness of family violence; put family violence on the national agenda and encourage a belief that, as a society, this is an issue that must be tackled; and create a belief that we CAN all do something about it.

Mass advertising will set a 'bottom-line' - family violence is never okay.

Next Steps

During March and April 2007:
• Community Action Fund funding will be allocated.
• Benchmark and media tracking research will get underway.
• Maori and Pacific advisory groups will meet.
• Creative concepts will be pre-tested with audiences.
• There will be ongoing consultation with the family violence sector.
• A resource audit will occur.
• The summary of research published.

Regular updates can be accessed through the New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse.

For more information about the project, please contact: Elizabeth Goodwin elizabeth.goodwin002@msd.govt.nz, or Nick Farland nick.farland@nzfamilies.org.nz