Targeting technology-facilitated abuse perpetration
Project Team
Project director:
Associate Professor Bridget Harris
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre
Project team:
Associate Professor Bridget Harris
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre
Dr Jasmine McGowan
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre
Dr Stefani Vasil
Australian Catholic University
Dr Cynthia Brown
Safer Families Centre of Research Excellence, University of Melbourne
Dr Renee Fiolet
Deakin University
Dr Irwyn Shepherd
Monash University
Project manager (optional):
Jess Woolley
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre
Project contact:
Jess Woolley
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre
Project Partners (optional):
No To Violence
About this project
This project targets men who have perpetrated TFA against women and children in the context of family violence through engagement with the perpetrator intervention sector. Specifically, the project will develop evidence-based resources on TFA for people who work with men using family violence, including for use in programs designed to prompt behaviour change. Attention will be given to different cohorts, including migrant and refugee and First Nations cohorts participating in programs.
The project will deliver revised curriculum and TFA-focussed activities for Men’s Behaviour Change (MBC) programs’ guides for sector workers; a virtual reality application on family violence and TFA; an interactive workshop webinar for those working in the perpetration intervention sector; a presentation at the national No To Violence conference; and a report/alternative resource guide to guide training and education for advocates and practitioners in the domestic, sexual, and family violence sectors. The project is led by Monash University in consortium with No To Violence (NTV).
Method
This project adopts a multi-phase methodology.
Phase 1: Embedding technology-facilitated abuse in core curriculum and practitioner guides
This phase involves integrating technology-facilitated abuse (TFA) into the Men’s Behaviour Change and Motivation for Change programs. It will address both specific forms of TFA such as stalking, doxing, image-based abuse, and unauthorised access to devices, and the broader use of technology in coercive control. Practitioner guides will support facilitators in recognising and responding to these behaviours.
Phase 2: Development of priority area content
Tailored content will be developed for key focus groups, in consultation with advisory boards for each group (containing survivor advocates, researchers, and DFV practitioners/stakeholders):
· First Nations peoples
· Migrant and refugee communities
· Children and young people
· Parenting
· Sexual violence
Phase 3: Creation of interactive activities
Innovative activities will be created to be used in Men’s Behaviour Change Programs with men who have perpetrated family violence. Such activities will include story completion activities to prompt reflection, and virtual reality (VR) scenarios.
Phase 4: Production of virtual reality scenarios
VR scenes will be filmed using actors. This will be done in collaboration with domestic and family violence services and media-trained victim-survivors from the Our Watch ‘Voices for Change’ program.
Phase 5: Pilot testing and evaluation
The revised curriculum and activities will be piloted across seven Men’s Behaviour Change and Motivation for Change groups, alongside three control groups.
Phase 6: Refinement of resources
Based on pilot findings, all materials will be reviewed and refined in consultation with NTV’s workforce development, policy, and research teams.
Phase 7: Promotion and practitioner support
To support implementation, an interactive webinar will be delivered and recorded. A short, sector-specific report on TFA in Men’s Behaviour Change and Motivation for Change programs will also be released. These resources will be developed in consultation with practitioners and policy officers, and shared internally to protect against misuse by perpetrators.
Project Outputs
This is an ongoing project. There are currently no research outputs.
Funding Acknowledgment
The research project is funded by the eSafety Commissioner.