13. Harm Reduction in the Domestic Violence Context

Abstract

Harm reduction is a school of thought born out of public health practices: the goal of harm reduction is to mitigate the collateral dangers associated with high-risk behaviors so that individuals engaging in those activities are exposed to less harm overall. This piece argues that there is a need for harm reduction practices to implemented in the domestic violence context, specifically when working with survivors who have not, for myriad reasons, left their abusive relationships. Harm reduction in this context would include providing services in accordance with survivors’ self-identified needs and goals—services that are not contingent on ending the relationship. Explicit incorporation of harm reduction principles into domestic violence practice would also reenergize the larger domestic violence movement by shifting the focus away from one-size-fits-all criminal justice solutions and back onto survivor autonomy and community needs.