The bitter side of dating : the phenomenon of dating violence in Malta and social work services

Abstract

Does dating violence exist in Malta as elsewhere? This research study set out to explore the social issue of dating violence in Malta, given that it has not yet been studied. Exploration of this issue was done through the use of semi-structured questionnaires with University students to explore possible incidence of dating violence and to seek a partial understanding of this phenomenon and of the social work services that exist in this regard. Dating violence was also explored through the use of semi-structured interviews with persons who sought social work help from the Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) of Agenzija APPOGG, which helped to gain a deeper understanding of the issue at hand, and provided also a fuller account of the social work services that cater for cases of dating violence. Quantitative and qualitative data analysis was done to analyse the data gathered from both instrumentations, and common themes emerged from both. The use of different research populations delineated interesting findings since the phenomenon of dating violence was examined in different contexts since populations have different characteristics. Despite these differences however, the study shows that dating violence exists in Malta as elsewhere and can be experienced by persons of different gender, age, educational level, culture, and persons who have different dating patterns. In the final chapter of the study, some recommendations are made, some of which were also suggested by the interviewees, on how the issue of dating violence could be addressed, and on how to increase awareness of the social work services.