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Violence, violence prevention, and safety: A research agenda for South Africa

Catherine L Ward, Lillian Artz, Julie Berg, Floretta Boonzaier, Sarah Crawford-Browne, Andrew Dawes, Donald Foster, Richard Matzopoulos, Andrew Nicol, Jeremy Seekings, Arjan B (Sebastian) van As, Elrena van der Spuy

Abstract


Violence is a serious problem in South Africa with many effects on health services; it presents complex research problems and requires interdisciplinary collaboration. Two key meta-questions emerge: (i) violence must be understood better to develop effective interventions; and (ii) intervention research (evaluating interventions, assessing efficacy and effectiveness, how best to scale up interventions in resource-poor settings) is necessary. A research agenda to address violence is proposed.

Authors' affiliations

Catherine L Ward, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town

Lillian Artz, Safety and Violence Initiative and Gender, Health and Justice Research Unit, University of Cape Town

Julie Berg, Safety and Violence Initiative and Centre of Criminology, University of Cape Town

Floretta Boonzaier, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town

Sarah Crawford-Browne, Safety and Violence Initiative and Primary Health Care Directorate, University of Cape Town

Andrew Dawes, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town

Donald Foster, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town

Richard Matzopoulos, Safety and Violence Initiative and School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, and Burden of Diseases Research Unit, Medical Research Council

Andrew Nicol, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Surgery, University of Cape Town

Jeremy Seekings, Safety and Violence Initiative and Centre for Social Science Research, University of Cape Town

Arjan B (Sebastian) van As, Safety and Violence Initiative and Department of Surgery, University of Cape Town

Elrena van der Spuy, Safety and Violence Initiative and Centre of Criminology, University of Cape Town

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Keywords

violence; prevention & control; safety

Cite this article

South African Medical Journal 2012;102(4):215-218.

Article History

Date submitted: 2011-12-20
Date published: 2012-03-07

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