Glossary

This is data generated by service providers on cases of VAWG that have been reported to them. It provides important information about incidents of violence and actions taken in response to support survivors. However, it does not provide an indication of the actual level (prevalence) of violence in a population, as most women and girls do not formally report violence that has occurred.

The 'Do No Harm' principle involves identifying actual and potential unintended negative impacts of programmes and developing strategies to mitigate against these impacts and to avoid or minimise harm.

These are the factors known to contribute to the perpetration of violence against women and girls. For example, a key driver of VAWG is the gender inequalities between men and women that exist at an interpersonal, household, community and societal level.

A gender transformative approach seeks to actively challenge gender inequalities by transforming harmful gender norms, roles and relations and working to redistribute power, resources and services more equally.

This form of analysis seeks to understand the prevalent attitudes, norms and behaviours related to gender roles and relations in a specific context and how they shape different social practices, phenomena and institutions.

This is a key principle of research and programming which means providing detailed information to participants about what their involvement in a research project or programme will entail - including possible risks and benefits - such that they can voluntarily take a informed decision about whether or not to participate.

An intersectional approach involves designing interventions and processes which explicitly recognise and address how different forms of inequality - such as gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class, caste, migrant status and civil status - intersect and result in specific dynamics and consequences for individuals and groups.

An intersectional gender analysis looks at gender intersects with other systems of inequality based on social categories and statuses - such as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class, caste, migrant status and civil status - and results in specific dynamics and consequences for individuals and groups. 

Intimate partner violence is physical, sexual, economic, and/or psychological violence perpetrated by a current or former spouse or partner in an intimate relationship against the other spouse or partner. The most common form of violence against women globally, IPV is best understood as a pattern of abuse in which women typically experience multiple, overlapping types of violence over time.

This principle involves understanding and addressing the reality that particular individuals and groups often face barriers in accessing the activities, resources and benefits provided by programmes. It means intentionally putting in place mechanisms and processes to dismantle these barriers and ensure the inclusion of all groups in society, especially the most marginalised.

Mandatory reporting is where persons working in specific professions with a duty of care (e.g. child protection, doctor, nurse, social worker, teacher) are obliged by law to report on observed and/or directly reported and/or suspected cases of violence or abuse against their patient, student or client. These provisions vary by context, but are most often applied in the case of children and child sexual abuse.

This support involves the application of medical and scientific methods as evidence in a legal case - for example, the use of forensic evidence in a case of sexual assault or rape.

These services usually provide acute, and often also long-term, mental health care to women, girls and sometimes men and people of other gender identities, who have experienced and survived violence and abuse. They seek to provide a comprehensive response through individual and/or group-based care.

Financial services offered to individuals or groups who lack access to traditional banking services. Support could be offered in the form of small loans, grants, insurance, or peer-to-peer lending.

A participatory approach to EVAWG programming involves programme beneficiaries (often women and girls) in the design, implementation and monitoring stages of the programme. It is important to engage with women and girls from diverse backgrounds to ensure the programme is informed by and responds to their diverse needs.

The prevalence of VAWG refers to the proportion of women and girls in a population who have experienced one or more forms of VAWG. It is measured by undertaking nationally or geographically representative surveys that have been specifically designed to collect data on violence. Prevalence rates can be measured for a specific form of VAWG and over different time periods - for example, over the preceding 12 months or in a women's lifetime.

Preventing violence against women and girls means stopping violence before it starts. It involves addressing the underlying causes of VAWG including gender inequitable systems, structures, norms, attitudes, practices, and power hierarchies.

These are factors at an individual, household, community or institutional level which may protect an individual from experiencing - or perpetrating - violence against women and girls. For example, we have evidence that good communication and conflict resolution skills between couples can be protective factors against intimate partner violence.

A referral mechanism sets out a clear process and procedures for VAWG survivors to receive the different services - health, psychosocial, justice, shelter, socio-economic assistance - which they need and want to heal and recover from violence in the shorter and longer-term. Each service provider needs to be clear about their own mandate and responsibilities and where and how to refer survivors to other services.

Responses to VAWG focus on providing survivors with services to address their immediate and longer-term needs with a view to supporting their physical and emotional recovery and reducing the negative effects of violence on them and those they care for and about.