4530.0 - Crime Victimisation, Australia, 2013-14 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 17/02/2015   
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PHYSICAL ASSAULT Endnote 1

WHAT IS PHYSICAL ASSAULT?

For this survey, physical assault is defined as an act of physical force or violence by a person against another person. It includes:

    • being pushed, grabbed, shoved, slapped, kicked, bitten, choked, shot, burnt
    • being hit with something such as a bat
    • being dragged or hit deliberately by a vehicle
    • assault which happens in the line of work.

Physical assault excludes:
    • incidents that occurred during the course of play on a sporting field or organised sport
    • verbal abuse
    • incidents where the person did not encounter the offender face-to-face
    • incidents of sexual assault or threatened sexual assault which also involved physical assault.

WHO EXPERIENCED PHYSICAL ASSAULT IN 2013-14? (Table 12)

During the 12 months prior to interview, an estimated 418,200 persons experienced at least one incident of physical assault in Australia (2.3% of the population), which was less than in 2012-13 (2.7% or 498,000 persons).

The victimisation rate for physical assault was lower for married people (1.3%) than for unmarried people (3.6%).

Persons who were unemployed experienced physical assault more often than persons who were employed (5.7% compared with 2.3%).

Persons living outside capital cities were more likely to experience physical assault than those living in capital cities. Persons living outside capital cities had a victimisation rate of 2.7% (166,700 victims) compared to 2.0% (252,900 victims) for persons living in capital cities.


EXPERIENCE OF MULTIPLE VICTIMISATION (Table 8)

Of the selected personal crime types, persons who experienced physical assault were most likely to experience a single incident in the 12 months prior to interview (43%), with an estimated one in five (22%) experiencing two incidents. A further 16% experienced three to five incidents and 17% experienced six or more incidents.

Persons who experienced physical assault were more likely to have experienced multiple incidents in the 12 months prior to interview (54%) than a single incident (43%). Females who experienced physical assault were more likely than males to have experienced multiple incidents (61% compared with 48%).


REPORTING RATE (Table 13)

In the 12 months prior to interview in 2013-14, an estimated 215,200 persons who experienced physical assault (52% of all persons who experienced physical assault) reported the most recent incident to police.


CHARACTERISTICS OF PHYSICAL ASSAULT INCIDENTS (Table 13)

This section discusses characteristics of the most recent incident for people who experienced physical assault in the 12 months prior to interview.

In the most recent incident of physical assault:
    • The offender was more likely to be male (for 75% of persons who experienced physical assault) than female (for 17% of persons who experienced physical assault)
    • The offender was more likely to be someone known to the person (62%) than to be a stranger (for 38%)
    • When the offender was known, the person was less likely to be living with the offender at the time of the incident (17%), than not living with the offender (46%)
    • The location of the incident was most likely to be the person's home (35% of persons who experienced physical assault)
    • For 13% of victims, the main reason they did not report the incident to the police was they considered it to be too trivial/unimportant. A further 12% of victims did not report it to the police because they thought it was a personal matter.


DIFFERENCES IN MALE AND FEMALE EXPERIENCE OF PHYSICAL ASSAULT INCIDENTS

In the most recent incident of physical assault:
    • Males were more likely than females to have been physically assaulted by strangers (52% compared with 21%) and people known by sight only (8% compared with 2%). For males who experienced physical assault in the twelve months prior to interview, strangers (52% of incidents) were the most common offender type
    • Females were more likely than males to have been physically assaulted by someone they know (80% compared with 47%). For females who experienced physical assault in the twelve months prior to interview, intimate partners (25%) and family members (19%) were the most common offender type.

ENDNOTE

Endnote 1 All comparisons discussed have been tested for statistical significance with a 95% level of confidence that there is a real difference in the two populations being tested. Only data with a relative standard error (RSE) of less than 25% is referred to in the text of this publication and these estimates are considered sufficiently reliable for general use. To determine whether there is a statistical difference between any other two estimates, significance testing should be undertaken. For further information, refer to the Technical Note.