A critical consideration of family violence approaches in Aotearoa/New Zealand: addressing help-seeking and support challenges facing ethnic womenvictim-survivors

Purpose Currently, there is a lack of evidence of culturally safe approaches for addressing family violence (FV) experienced by ethnic communities in Aotearoa–New Zealand. This paper aims to report findings that may help develop FV strategies specific to African, Middle Eastern and Latin American victim-survivors. The study is significant in light of the recent proposals that community-led and community-mobilising approaches would be most effective for addressing FV within ethnic communities. Findings from this study indicate that community-led approaches can only be safely used if and when the identified critical issues are addressed. Design/methodology/approach Narrative inquiry methodology guided the original study. This methodology effectively creates spaces where participants can narrate their lived experiences and “stories” from their perspectives. First-hand telling and hearing their stories is empowering, considering the many forms of social exclusion these communities face. Through semi-structured interviews, a space was created for the participants in this study to share their experiences of successfully or unsuccessfully accessing the victims of family violence visa policy. The stories shared included factors that made seeking help inside and outside their communities less or more challenging. Findings Findings from this study indicate that community-led approaches can only be safely used if and when the identified critical issues are addressed. The issues identified include the small and dispersed size of the communities, which impacts support networks and conditions created by immigration visa status, a critical factor linked to reporting, help-seeking and support offered to victim-survivors by the community members. Research limitations/implications The study sample focused on Middle Eastern, Latin American and African communities and only a small sample within these communities. Therefore, it cannot present information explaining all factors that could be considered in developing and implementing FV strategies for ethnic communities. FV is complex and often goes under-reported. The participants in this study were self-referred. The victim-survivors in this study had sought help, engaged with relevant support services, and were willing to share their experiences. These findings cannot be extrapolated to ethnic victim-survivors who have not sought institutional help or have access to advocacy services. Therefore, generalisations should be made with caution. Practical implications The evidence provided in this paper suggests that community-based approaches, including community mobilisation and current approaches using state-based legal tools, will not be effective unless the issues identified are addressed. The article suggests ways of addressing these issues to implement community-based strategies safely. Further research is needed with a large sample of ethnic victim-survivors from specific ethnic communities to gain further insight into the factors impacting these strategies’ effectiveness. Social implications As highlighted in the literature review section, some significant New Zealand Government initiatives increasingly call for community-led and culturally responsive FV strategies. Considering the findings from this study, some critical questions should be asked. The first is whether such strategies would be effective at all. The second is, if such strategies are to be implemented, how can this be done safely so as not to cause further harm to the victim-survivors? The findings also question whether current strategies, mainly those using the legal system as the main protection mechanism for ethnic victim-survivors, are enough. Originality/value Recent New Zealand Government-based studies investigating strategies that could effectively address FV experienced by ethnic communities have highlighted and proposed community-led and community-mobilising approaches for addressing FV with ethnic communities. However, a lack of evidence of culturally safe approaches was identified as a significant gap. This paper reports findings that may help develop FV strategies specific to African, Middle Eastern and Latin American victim-survivors. Findings from this study indicate that community-led approaches can only be safely used if and when the identified critical issues are addressed.