Tackling men's violence in families

Maria Eriksson PhD is a research coordinator for the Nordic Council of Ministers, based at Göteborg University, Sweden. Marianne Hester is Professor of Gender, Violence and International Policy at the University of Bristol. Suvi Keskinen is a post-doctoral researcher at Åbo Akademi University, Finland. Keith Pringle is Professor of Social Work at Aalborg University, Denmark and Visiting Professor of Sociology at University College Mälardalen, Sweden.

• Introduction: Nordic issues and dilemmas ~ Maria Eriksson and Keith Pringle; Children, abuse and parental contact in Denmark ~ Marianne Hester; Commitments and contradictions: linking violence, parenthood and professionalism ~ Suvi Keskinen; "Talking feels like you wouldn't love Dad anymore": children's emotions, close relations and domestic violence ~ Hannele Forsberg; By-passing the relationship between fatherhood and violence in Finnish policy and research ~ Teija Hautanen; Marching on the spot? Dealing with violence against women in Norway ~ Wenche Jonassen; Children's peace? The possibility of the law to protect children by means of criminal law and family law ~ Gudrun Nordborg; A visible or invisible child? Professionals' approaches to children whose father is violent to the mother ~ Maria Eriksson; "Take my father away from home": children growing up in the proximity of violence ~ Katarina Weinehall; Neglected issues in Swedish child protection policy and practice: age, ethnicity and gender ~ Keith Pringle; Tackling men's violence in families: lessons for England ~ Marianne Hester.

"This book provides a welcome focus on men's violence, its family impact and what can be done about it. Lessons for UK academics and practitioners are both implicit and explicit, from the socio-legal context to the need for continued vigilance in the community. If enlightened countries such as those covered here cannot guarantee safety for women and children, then there is something about men's violent behaviour and society's sanctioning of it that we all need to think about and work to change. This book will help us along that road." Audrey Mullender, Principal, Ruskin College, Oxford