Seeking support following assault

Population groups

• Sex and gender

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by sex?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, for males and females. In 2016, 39% of men with disability reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault, compared with 63% of women.

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  Sex	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  Males	39%	(32.3%-46.7%)
  Females	63%	(57.2%-68.1%)
  All persons	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 19 May 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview
  

• Age group

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by age?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, grouped by age. In 2016, 59% of adults with disability aged 18–24 reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault, as did 49% of those aged 25–44 (please note that the proportion for adults aged 18–24 has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

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  Age group	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  18–24	*59%	(45.8%-71.4%)
  25–44	49%	(42.2%-55.2%)
  45–64	51%	(44.1%-58.9%)
  65 and over	*53%	(37.8%-68.7%)
  All ages	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  • * Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points or proportion ± MoE is <0% or >100%.

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 19 May 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview
  

• Cultural and linguistic diversity status

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by cultural and linguistic diversity background?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, by culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) status. In 2016, the proportion of adults with disability who reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault was 52% for adults with disability in both CALD and non-CALD groups (please note that the proportion for people with CALD backgrounds has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

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  Cultural and linguistic diversity status	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  CALD	*52%	(38.1%-65.2%)
  CALD – low English proficiency	n.p.	n.p.
  CALD – high English proficiency	n.p.	n.p.
  Non-CALD	52%	(47.5%-55.6%)
  All persons	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  • * Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points or proportion ± MoE is <0% or >100%.
  • n.p. (not published) Category has been suppressed to avoid identifying individual people.

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.
  5. Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) cohort includes people not born in a main English-speaking country and/or who mainly speak a language other than English at home.
  6. English proficiency is reported for people in the CALD cohort only. Low English proficiency group includes people who mainly speak a language other than English at home and say they speak English 'not well' or 'not at all'. High English proficiency group includes people who mainly speak English at home, and those who mainly speak a language other than English at home and say they speak English 'well' or 'very well'.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 27 September 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview
  

• Remoteness

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by remoteness?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, grouped by remoteness. In major cities, 52% of adults with disability reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault, as did 45% in outer regional and remote areas (please note that the proportion for adults in outer regional and remote areas has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

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  Remoteness	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  Major cities	52%	(46.1%-57.3%)
  Inner regional	*55%	(44.5%-64.7%)
  Outer regional and remote	*45%	(28.6%-61.4%)
  All areas	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  • * Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points or proportion ± MoE is <0% or >100%.

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.
  5. Remoteness is classified according to Accessibility and Remoteness Index of Australia. Data source does not cover very remote areas.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 27 September 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview
  

• Disability group

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by disability group?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, by disability group. In 2016, 61% of adults with psychological disability reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault, compared with 51% of adults with sight, hearing or speech disability.

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  Disability group	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  Sight, hearing, speech	51%	(42.4%-59.9%)
  Physical	52%	(46.4%-57.0%)
  Intellectual	*67%	(56.7%-78.0%)
  Psychological	61%	(54.4%-67.6%)
  Head injury, stroke or brain damage	*63%	(41.2%-84.4%)
  Type not specified	58%	(50.4%-65.3%)
  All with disability	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  • * Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points or proportion ± MoE is <0% or >100%.

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.
  5. Components will not add to total as people may report impairments related to more than one disability group. In such cases, people are counted separately for each disability group but are only counted once in the aggregated total.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 27 September 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview
  

• Severity of disability

  Does the proportion of people with disability who experienced assault and sought advice or support vary by severity of disability?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of adults with disability (aged 18 and over) who experienced assault and sought advice or support after the most recent incident, grouped by disability severity. In 2016, the proportion of adults with disability who reported seeking advice or support after the most recent incident of assault was 58% for people with severe or profound disability and 51% for people with other disability status (please note that the proportion for adults with severe or profound disability has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

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  Severity of disability	% of adults with disability who sought advice or support after assault	95% Confidence Interval
  Severe or profound disability	*58%	(47.3%-68.1%)
  Other disability status	51%	(46.3%-55.3%)
  All with disability	52%	(47.6%-55.5%)

  Notes:

  • * Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points or proportion ± MoE is <0% or >100%.

  1. Restricted to people with disability aged 18 and over who experienced sexual and/or physical assault less than 10 years ago.
  2. Reporting is for the most recent incident of assault, regardless of type.
  3. With disability includes those with disability or restrictive long-term health condition.
  4. Disability status is recorded as at the time of interview, not at the time violence occurred.
  5. Severe or profound disability means always or sometimes needing assistance or supervision with self-care, mobility, and/or communication.

  Source: ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2017. Microdata: Personal Safety Survey, Australia, 2016, ABS cat. no. 4906.0.55.001, ABS, AIHW analysis of detailed microdata in DataLab, accessed 27 September 2022.

  Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Personal Safety Survey (PSS) | Data source overview