Promising Practice

Survey on Women’s Safety (violence against women survey)

The Survey on Women’s Safety is a sample survey dedicated to surveying women aged 16–75 years on several forms of violence (psychological, economic, physical, sexual, stalking), by partners (current and former) and non-partners. The survey covers several topics such as dynamics, causes and effects of violence against women.
Country
Italy
Type
Institutional and structural guidelines
Build up data hub
Operational guidelines
Ensure comprehensiveness
Ensure regular and timely data collection
Enhance validity and reliability
Ensure representativeness
Improve comparability
Category
Age
Disability
Sex
Includes multiple / intersectional discrimination

 


In this page:


Why was the practice needed?

Measuring violence against women is difficult, since it is mostly hidden. The number of undisclosed crimes is high, and it is not possible to know the extent of this phenomenon using only data from administrative sources, with the exception of femicide. For this reason, surveys on victimisation of women such as the Survey on Women’s Safety are crucial to provide the closest figures to the real picture, and they are indispensable for understanding the dynamics of violence.

The Survey on Women’s Safety was needed to measure the prevalence, volume and seriousness of violence against women. These data are essential to inform policies aimed at preventing and addressing violence against women: the dynamics of violence, the places where it occurs, its severity and consequences, and the huge number of crimes that are not reported to the police.

How was it implemented?

The National Statistical Office (Istat) has been engaged in measuring violence against women for a long time. The first survey completely and explicitly dedicated to this topic – named the Survey on Women’s Safety – was carried out in 2006 and the second edition was carried out in 2014. The survey was funded by the Department of Equal Opportunities and was the result of active collaboration with the specialist support services and contributions from some survivors of violence.

For the first time, Istat’s survey made it possible to describe the prevalence of physical, sexual and psychological violence and who are the perpetrators of such crimes. Istat also collects data on stereotypes about traditional gender roles and attitudes towards violence against women.

The Survey on Women’s Safety is a sample survey dedicated to surveying women who are between 16 and 75 years old on several forms of violence (psychological, economic, physical, sexual, stalking), by partners (current and former) and non-partners, including the causes and effects of violence.

The sample survey included 21,000 Italian and 4,000 foreign women, plus about 500 refugee women residing in Italy.

Outputs

  • Report published in 2015 with the main findings on violence against women in and outside the family.
  • Istat’s website with further data and survey results.

Key success factors

  • A good questionnaire.
  • A good qualitative phase to plan the survey.
  • Good training for female interviewers.
  • Support for interviewers during the fieldwork.
  • Attention to women’s safety and ethics.
  • Rigorous follow-up and monitoring in the field.
  • An interdisciplinary approach to the topic.

Technical information

  • Data sources covered: Household or individual surveys; Qualitative research
  • Areas of life covered: Employment; Education; Health; Access to goods and services; Others: Violence against women
  • Target audience: Women between 16 and 75 years old
  • Duration: About 5 months for data collection
  • Geographical scope: National
  • Leading institution: National Statistical Office (Istat)
  • Other organisations involved/consulted: Department of Equal Opportunities
  • Financial & human resources: Budget: About €1 million for the interviews and the postal services; Source of the budget: Data not provided; Staff: About 4 persons

Contacts

Maria Giuseppina Muratore

muratore@istat.it