What does it take to stop hitting home? Voices of family violence

Both family violence and suicide are significant and long-standing problems in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Information about what works to address their core determinants at the individual and family level is sparse. New approaches to intervention may be helpful, however key feasibility issues pose challenges to conducting trials for these problems with suicidal and vulnerable whanau. Following broad and in-depth consultation, this project seeks to interview individuals with lived experience of family violence and suicidal urges. The primary enquiry includes (1) their experience with family violence and suicidal urges, (2) their recommendations for solutions to this problem in New Zealand/Aotearoa, and (3) their recommendations for trialing those solutions here. We will recruit the following participant categories: 1. Up to 12 men aged 18 years and above who have both engaged in family violence and have a lifetime history of either suicide attempt, or significant suicidal ideation and self-injury. 2. Up to 12 adult victim-survivors of family violence from individuals who have been suicidal (i.e. attempted suicide, or hurt themselves on purpose and communicated suicidal urges, thoughts or threats) during the course of their relationship with that person. 3. Up to 32 young people aged 16-25 years who have a lifetime history of suicide attempt, or suicidal thinking and self-harm determined by the criteria above, as well as exposure to family violence. The project uses a mixed methods approach and addresses an important knowledge gap. Hearing from families with lived experience about engagement, effectiveness and uptake of family violence interventions for suicidal men who use violence in their homes in Aotearoa-New Zealand is fundamental to developing and evaluating interventions for change.