1. Knowledge of violence against women
The majority of Australians have a good understanding of the problem of violence against women. Although more Australians are now aware of the many different forms violence against women can take, there is still more work to do to emphasise that it can be more than physical violence.
More Australians in 2017 than in 2013 recognise most of the behaviours constituting violence against women.
There has been an ongoing decline in awareness that men are more likely to commit domestic violence and that women are more likely to suffer physical harm from domestic violence.
Most Australians (81%) are aware that having non-consensual sex in marriage is illegal.
Although most Australians are aware that non-consensual sex in marriage is illegal, 12% mistakenly believe that it is not illegal, and a further 7% did not know.
Most Australians (72%) are aware that violence against women is common and this is higher than in 2013 (68%).
1 in 3 Australians are unaware that a woman is more likely to be sexually assaulted by someone she knows, than by a stranger. [efn_note]Cox, P. (2015). Violence against women in Australia: Additional analysis of the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Personal Safety Survey, 2012. Sydney: ANROWS.[/efn_note]
[efn_note]Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017). Personal safety, Australia, 2016. (Cat. no. 4906.0). Canberra: ABS.[/efn_note] Awareness of this fact has not improved since 2013.
This lack of awareness can lead to undue emphasis on preventing sexual assaults by strangers, rather than the more common problem of assault by someone known to the victim.
GO TO KNOWLEDGE OF THE GENDERED PATTERN OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE
Download the NCAS summary report
The National Community Attitudes towards Violence against Women and Gender Equality Survey
