G. Research by institutions

Government-sponsored research may help to formulate policy and distribute resources according to a specific national and political agenda. There are also several independent organizations, increasingly in developing countries, doing domestic violence research, including:

· Asia Pacific Forum in Women, Law and Development in Kuala Lumpur
· Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action
· Center for Global Issues and Women’s Leadership in New Brunswick, New Jersey
· Family Research Laboratory, University of New Hampshire
· Institute for the Study of Violence, University of Wales College of Cardiff
· Latin American Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights (CLADEM) in Lima, Peru
· Law Reform Commission, Papua New Guinea
· National Committee on Violence Against Women, Australia
· Women in Law and Development - Africa (WILDAF) in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Some researchers use specialized techniques, such as scales, to obtain information from both victims and perpetrators. The Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) (wife abuse) is one such scale.²⁰⁰ It has, however, always been the subject of criticism and methodological controversy.²⁰¹ Two key methodological problems which critics have identified are:

· CTS excludes many now-recognized forms of abuse (such as rape and sexual assault)

· CTS reflects major inconsistencies between the responses of husbands and wives about the nature of the violence. (The experience in men’s treatment groups suggests that husbands may systematically underestimate the violence they inflict.)

More accurate information on various aspects of the problem may be available from instruments which measure a wider range of behaviours now associated with domestic violence and qualitative methodologies which enable contextualized accounts of the dynamics between perpetrators and victims. These instruments can provide information on how victims cope and what practitioners should do to address the problem. They can provide a more detailed understanding of:

· What type of assistance is wanted and needed
· Which responses are most effective in stopping violence
· What motivates a person to act in a violent way
· What a person intends by using violence
· The actual harm or injury sustained
· Acts of self-defence
· Fear and intimidation
· The context of the violent event
· The context of the violent relationship
· The wider social context of violence.