4524.0 - In Focus: Crime and Justice Statistics, October 2013
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 01/10/2013
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RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CRIME VICTIMISATION AND DISABILITY DUE TO A MENTAL HEALTH CONDITION There were an estimated 235,600 victims of physical or threatened violence and 140,600 victims of actual or attempted break-in that also had a disability due to a mental health condition. An estimated 312,800 people in total who experienced one or both of the personal and household crimes also had a disability due to a mental health condition. This amounted to just over one in ten victims (11.4%), which was double the proportion of people who had not been a victim of crime and had a disability due to a mental health condition (5.5%). When examining the crime types as separate personal and household offences, victims of both physical or threatened violence (13.6%) and victims of actual or attempted break-in (10.5%) were more likely to have a disability due to a mental health condition than those who were not victims of those crimes (5.6% and 6.1% respectively). It is important to note that causal inferences regarding the relationship between crime victimisation and disability due to a mental health condition cannot be drawn, as the survey was not designed for this purpose.  Footnote(s): (a) Includes physical or threatened violence. (b) Includes actual or attempted break-in. (c) Includes physical or threatened violence and/or actual or attempted break-in. Victims of both physical or threatened violence and actual or attempted break-in are counted only once. Source(s): In Focus: Crime and Justice Statistics (a) Includes physical or threatened violence and/or actual or attempted break-in. The General Social Survey included information about disability due to a mental health condition, sight/hearing/speech disabilities, physical disabilities, intellectual disabilities, head injury/stroke/brain damage, and unspecified disabilities. The survey results show that of all these long-term disabilities, disability due to a mental health condition was the only one where the prevalence was significantly higher for victims compared to non-victims. There were no statistically significant differences in the prevalence of the other long-term disabilities included in the survey between victims and those who were not victims.  Footnote(s): (a) Includes physical or threatened violence and\or actual or attempted break-in. Source(s): In Focus: Crime and Justice Statistics In terms of the relationship between personal stressors1 and disability due to a mental health condition, the survey found that 16.4% of people aged 18 years and over (88,300) who experienced or had someone close to them experience abuse or violent crime in the 12 months prior to survey, also had a disability due to a mental health condition. This was significantly higher than the proportion of people who experienced any personal stressor in the 12 months prior to survey, and also had a disability due to a mental health condition (8.8%). ENDNOTES 1. Personal stressors include the following problems: serious illness, serious accident, death of a family member or close friend, mental illness, serious disability, divorce or separation, not able to get a job, involuntary loss of job, alcohol or drug related problems, witness to violence, abuse or violent crime, trouble with the police, gambling problem, discrimination because of ethnic or cultural background, and other.
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