Violence and Injury Prevention

This month, NASW's social work research pages address violence and injury prevention. Given the broad scope of this area, the information provided here is not intended to be a comprehensive review of social work research relating to violence; instead, it targets child maltreatment and domestic violence.

Research in this area is funded by a number of governmental sources, including:

• National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Bureau of Maternal and Child Health
• Children's Bureau

Much of the information presented results from, and is referenced in, a report and conference conducted by the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research (IASWR), through funding from the CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (The Injury Center). The Injury Center 's mission is to: "Prevent premature death and disability and to reduce the human suffering and medical costs caused by injuries" (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2002, p. 1). While this project focused on child maltreatment and domestic violence, it also served to link the social work and public health perspectives on this arena.

The IASWR Report: Child Maltreatment and Domestic Violence, Including Violence Against Women , which can be found online at www.iaswresearch.org identifies and documents contributions from social work research in violence prevention, especially in the areas of child maltreatment and domestic violence. It also identifies ways the social work profession contributes to the priorities laid out in the CDC Injury Center 's Research Agenda created in 2002 which can be found here.

A listing of NASW resources (which are available on www.socialworkers.org ) related to this subject is located in Appendix 3, pp. 52-53, in the IASWR report.

In addition to a literature review, IASWR convened several social work researchers in this field to present and discuss their findings along with Injury Center staff. An agenda was formulated recommending future research and action steps to more closely link social work and public health research in this important social concern. Following are some highlights of the identified research, as well as recommendations.