Local Context Matters

Abstract

There are high levels of family and sexual violence (FSV) in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Many businesses in PNG, like an increasing number of organizations worldwide, want to address the effects of FSV on their employees and operations to minimize human suffering and to maximize productivity. To date, a range of workplace strategies designed to address related forms of violence (FSV, domestic and family violence, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, violence against women, and gender-based violence) have been developed and implemented, albeit mainly in Western contexts. This article considers the extent to which these workplace strategies can or should be modified for workplaces in PNG. Findings from participatory action research undertaken with FSV service providers, advocates, businesses, and their employees in PNG strongly indicate that workplace strategies should be modified to reflect cultural and other contextual specificities. In particular, workplace strategies should reflect local understandings about what constitutes FSV, who may perpetrate and who may be victimized by FSV, and what supports are available to victims of FSV. It is important to note that while the supports examined are necessarily culturally and contextually specific to PNG, they have subsequently provided important insights relevant for workplace responses in other developing and industrialized countries, thereby extending the evidence base of possible workplace strategies generally.