Published Paper Details:

This study focused on investigating domestic violence within police households in BuruBuru Police Division. The motivation behind the study was the need for new interventions to address the persistent and increasing violence against women in these households, which was attributed to a lack of information on the issue. The study aimed to explore the forms and nature of domestic violence against women in police households, examine the factors contributing to such violence, and assess its effects on police families in the BuruBuru Police Division. The study utilized a cross-sectional descriptive study design and employed both probability sampling and purposive sampling techniques to select a sample size of 133 respondents from partners of male police officers. Additionally, eight key informants were interviewed to gather further insights. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics in the SPSS software package for quantitative data, while qualitative data underwent content analysis. Correlation analysis was used to test for associations and dependencies between study variables. The study found that domestic violence does occur in police households. The major forms of domestic violence identified were physical violence (48.5%), sexual abuse (56.6%), controlling or domineering behavior (42.4%), economic deprivation (41.4%), and intimidation (38.4%). Socio-economic factors were found to significantly contribute to domestic violence in police households (63.6%), impacting the mental health of police officers and the quality of their work. The study also highlighted that existing police disciplinary procedures may not be adequate to address this problem. Based on the findings, the study recommends implementing policies that incorporate conflict resolution mechanisms such as mediation, counseling, and outreach programs by government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). These interventions should specifically target the challenging task of reaching the population residing within police houses or police lines.