A Flinders University researcher is working to help victims of crime who turn to alcohol and drugs find better ways to cope with the trauma of their experiences.

Dr Andrew Groves, who is part of a larger research team at Flinders Law School, has undertaken an empirical research project to evaluate the nature and extent of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use by crime victims as a form of self-medication.

Although considerable literature has explored the complex relationship between crime and the consumption of alcohol and other drugs, most has focused on AOD consumption by offenders and the nature of their offending, while little is known about the use by crime victims. 

The Self-medication project on which Dr Groves is working is a collaboration with the Victim support Service of South Australia and seeks to address what is a serious issue for many people in the community, for which many are currently receiving little or no help.

“We perceive that victims who do not, or are not able to, access formal or informal support networks are more likely to consume alcohol and other drugs, and consume them more often, as a way of dealing with their victimisation,” he said.

Dr Groves hopes his research will lead to increased knowledge and understanding of victim self-medication, which will help shape better responses and strategies for managing the issue by law enforcement and related criminal justice agencies, as well as providing support for health care providers.

In particular, he said he wanted the knowledge gained and strategies developed to help victims deal better with their experiences and prevent further harm by breaking the cycle of victim/offender behaviour.

Dr Groves said the idea for the study came from seeing an increasing number of presentations to the Victim Support Service by people who reported the consumption of alcohol and other drugs as a way of coping with their crime victimisation.

“It is important to recognise that coping is not an isolated behaviour and, in fact, affects and is affected by many aspects of a person’s life, often in overwhelming and damaging ways,” he said.

“Consequently, what this study seeks to do is map out the social determinants for why these particular victims use alcohol and other drugs in order to cope.”

If you are a victim of crime and need assistance, or would like information about dealing with victimisation; or if you would like to take part in the study, please call the Victim Support Service on 1800 842 846. Information is also available at www.victimsa.org/