Season 6 Episode 3: Rethinking Gender-Based Violence Prevention: A Call to Action with Jess Hill and Michael Salter

About This Episode

“Single mothers are essentially the unofficial reserve army of prevention agents in this country and around the world.” –Jess Hill

In this episode, David and Ruth speak with Australian experts Jess Hill and Professor Michael Salter about their groundbreaking paper challenging current approaches to preventing gender-based violence. With Australia’s commitment to end gender-based violence within a generation, yet concerning increases in sexual violence and domestic homicides, this timely discussion explores why traditional prevention strategies focused on changing social norms and attitudes have fallen short.

Key points include:

• The limitations of measuring prevention success through attitude surveys rather than actual reductions in violence

• Why structural interventions and accountability are essential alongside education efforts

• The need to focus resources on high-risk scenarios and populations, particularly traumatized youth

• How systems often fail to provide practical help when survivors, especially young people, disclose abuse

• The importance of shifting from “calling out” to “calling in” approaches when addressing harmful behaviors

• Why prevention efforts must acknowledge the reality that most people have been impacted by violence rather than assuming a “clean slate”

Related Episodes

• Season 2 Episode 12: How Coercive Control Harms Child Safety & Well-Being: An Interview with Dr. Emma Katz

Additional Resources

• See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Abuse by Jess Hill

• Childlight Research Centre - University of New South Wales

• David Mandel’s book Stop Blaming Mothers and Ignoring Fathers: How to Transform the Way We Keep Children Safe from Domestic Violence

• Safe & Together Institute’s domestic abuse–informed trainings

• Safe & Together Institute’s upcoming events