Key Terms

Key terms

Vine has compiled a list of some key terms that you will find across our website and in literature on family and sexual violence. It is not intended to be exhaustive but should give you a brief overview of the most common terms you might see. Have questions? Contact us at info@vine.org.nz.

You can also see our other Getting Started pages for more information.

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Family violence

Family violence is the term used in New Zealand law and policy to describe violence towards a person by another person with whom they are, or have been, in a family relationship. This can include (but is not limited to) current or ex-partners, parents and children, and siblings. The definition also includes carers and the people they care for.

Family violence is an umbrella term that covers a range of actions and behaviours. It can refer to physical, sexual, psychological or other forms of violence. While the term has a broad scope, it is also the term sometimes used in Aotearoa to refer to men’s violence against their intimate women partners - synonymously with the term domestic violence/abuse and intimate partner violence.

Family violence is legally defined in Aotearoa in the Family Violence Act 2018. Supplementary legal definitions can be found in the Crimes Act 1961 and the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015.

See also:

• The Centre for Family Violence and Sexual Violence Prevention (formerly Te Puna Aonui) Family Violence Entry to Expert Capability Framework (E2E) (page 15)
• The Centre for Family Violence and Sexual Violence Prevention Specialist Family Violence Organisational Standards (SOS) (page 15)
• Te Rito: New Zealand Family Violence Prevention Strategy
• Te Aorerekura | The enduring spirit of affection: the National Strategy to Eliminate Family Violence and Sexual Violence

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Violence impacting whānau within te ao Māori

Violence impacting whānau is not the same as ‘family violence’ but refers to violence that affects whānau Māori. This is shaped by the historical and intergenerational violence, trauma, imposter tikanga and structural racism imposed by colonisation.

A kaupapa Māori definition of violence includes all violence as a violation of tapu - the transgression of all that is held sacred. Violence towards a person is the transgression and violation of their mana and all of their whakapapa line: past, present and future.

Examining the different understandings of whānau and family (see A Litany of Sound, page 37) is critical in terms of any prevention and intervention strategies, policies, and practices. The Second Māori Taskforce on Whānau Violence argue that government policies do not distinguish between whānau and family and, by using these terms synonymously, indicate that they are not well understood or are viewed as the same constructs with different languages used to describe them. Failing to have an understanding within a Māori worldview of the nature of whānau as opposed to family may inevitably lead to failure in the attempts at prevention or intervention work with whānau.

See also:

• ‍Second Māori Taskforce on Whānau Violence also for violence within whānau as a compromise of te ao Māori values, an absence or disturbance in tikanga, and a transgression against whakapapa‍
• Violence Within Whānau and Mahi Tūkino – A Litany of Sound revisited also on the ways Pākeha conceptions of family violence overlook unique burdens that whānau Māori face including ongoing colonisation, disconnection from whenua, whānau, whakapapa, and the protections within cultural values, beliefs and practices, and contemporary socio-economic disenfranchisement
• He Kohinga kupu o te Mamae me te Oranga, a glossary of terms to help support whānau to find language for their experiences of whānau violence, resilience, and healing. This is presented as a glossary of everyday and sacred terms in te reo Māori, designed to empower whānau and service providers with shared, culturally grounded language

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Sexual violence

Sexual violence is an umbrella term for a range of sexual acts and experiences that are imposed, coerced, or forced by one or more persons onto another – including rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and sexual violation. These can be perpetrated by a stranger or someone who knows the victim.

Sexual violence occurs on a spectrum that includes criminal acts. Forms of sexual violence covered by the Crimes Act 1961 under the umbrella term “sexual crimes” usually involve a victim’s lack of consent, or consent obtained through deception.

Sexual violence can be perpetrated in person or online. One form of digital sexual violence - posting intimate images without consent - is covered in the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015. Definitions of sexual harassment in Human Rights Act 1993 include sexual violence in online forums.

See also:

• World Health Organization for an international view of forms, contexts, prevalence, drivers, and impacts of sexual violence
• Journal article from Melanie Beres about rethinking the concept of consent for anti-sexual violence activism and education

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Sexual violence within te ao Māori

When describing sexual violence in the context of Aotearoa it is essential to recognise that sexual violence within te ao Māori (sometimes described as mahi tūkino) is an absolute violation of both the mana of the victim and the perpetrator, and the collective mana of whānau, hapū and iwi. It is a violent transgression against a person’s whakapapa that reaches back to past generations and has direct impacts on future generations. Sexual violence for Māori is also understood as the violence perpetuated upon whānau, hapū and iwi through colonial invasion.  

See also:

• Journal article by Pihama et. al. for Māori perspectives on the origins and impacts of sexual violence for Māori, which advocates for kaupapa Māori decolonising approaches to be fully supported and engaged when addressing mahi tūkino

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Gender-based violence

Gender-based violence is violence directed at someone because of their sex or gender, particularly women and girls, as well as Rainbow and Takatāpui people. It covers a broad range of violence, including physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, but is not limited to these. Gender-based violence is a term often used in international policy documents, including by the UN. Some specific forms of violence are more frequently referred to as gender-based violence than others, including child marriage, female genital mutilation, and dowry abuse/‘honour’ killings.

See also:

• Femicide: deaths resulting from gender-based violence in Aotearoa New Zealand, a report from the National Mortality Review Committee

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Tamariki, children and young people

Rangatahi, taiohi, tamariki and taitamariki are interchangeable terms used to describe young people. Use can vary depending on dialect or preferred regional kupu.

How young people are defined within research and policy can be confusing. Age groups can vary and are not always disaggregated by age (instead using terms like early, mid, or late adolescent), with some research defining ‘young people’ as up to age 29. Aotearoa is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC), which defines children and young people as being aged from birth to 18 years of age. In some contexts, Oranga Tamariki continues to provide transition support for care-experienced rangatahi up to the age of 25.

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Child abuse and child sexual abuse

Violence against tamariki, children and young people is often referred to as child abuse. This term encompasses harming, ill-treatment, physical and sexual abuse, neglect, or deprivation of any child or young person. This includes witnessing violence between parents, guardians and/or adults within their household. The term child abuse is legally defined in Aotearoa in the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 | Children's and Young People's Well-being Act 1989 and in the Crimes Act 1961. Child abuse is sometimes used interchangeably with child sexual abuse, but child abuse is an umbrella term that refers to all physical, sexual, psychological abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

Similar terms include child maltreatment and child neglect. Child neglect usually refers to abuse of children by not meeting their needs or withholding resources or affection.

In te ao Māori, any form of violence against tamariki is an absolute violation of their mana and the collective mana of whānau, hapū and iwi. Violence against a child is a violent transgression their whakapapa that reaches back to past generations and has direct impact on future generations.

See also:

• Te Puni Kōkiri. (2010). Arotake Tūkino Whānau: Literature review on family violence. Wellington. on the importance of noting that most tamariki, children and young people in Aotearoa are not maltreated but are loved and nurtured; nor are children's views of their world static or monolithic
• Article from Rob Thomson (2025): The lifetime effects of child maltreatment

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Victim-survivor

Victim-survivor refers to a person who has lived experience of family or sexual violence. As described in a journal article by Laura Bower, separate terms “victim” and “survivor” also exist, while victim-survivor is an imperfect umbrella term that aims to promote greater flexibility for people to describe their lived experiences. The term aims to challenge existing misconceptions around current victim and survivor labels to recognise that people have nuanced experiences that may not clearly align to a set timeline or behavioural expectations after experiencing violence.

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Perpetrator

Perpetrator refers to a person who has used violence against another person. Alternative words include “offender”, which is often used in police or justice contexts, or “person using violence/person causing harm”, which can be found in some policy, academic, or legislative documents.

• Violence Within Whānau and Mahi Tūkino – A Litany of Sound revisited (page 2) on why the terms "victim" and "perpetrator" can be unhelpful when looking at prevention and intervention activities for violence affecting whānau Māori

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Structural violence

Structural violence occurs when systems of rules, practices, biases, and customs disadvantage minority or less socially powerful groups, while automatically advantaging dominant groups. All of society participates in, and is affected by, these systems and violence occurs when disadvantaged groups face poor socio-economic, political, and health outcomes as a result.

Structural violence may be perpetrated deliberately or unconsciously, and can only be combatted by conscious efforts to make institutions and society more inclusive.

See also:

• A fair go for all? Addressing Structural Discrimination in Public Services
• Puao-te-ata-tu: the report of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on a Māori Perspective for the Department of Social Welfare

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Coercive control

Coercive control refers to a systemic, ongoing pattern of coercive and controlling behaviour used to dominate intimate partners, constrain their freedom and deprive them of equality in the relationship. The tactics used to commit coercive control are “numerous and varied”, according to Evan Stark, but he describes them in four main categories: violence, intimidation, isolation and control. The acts – or “tactics” – that make up a pattern of coercively controlling behaviour can include acts that are subtle and acts that may seem relatively unremarkable if assessed as isolated acts, rather than as part of a wider systemic pattern of repetitive, dominating, demeaning and controlling behaviour. The harm of coercive control is cumulative, inducing states of fear and anxiety and constrictions on a woman’s human rights and freedoms. Stark frames it as a “liberty crime”.

See also:

• Evan Stark's Coercive Control (pages 5-6) for why he believes coercive control is gendered, perpetrated exclusively by men against women. He argues that there is no counterpart that women can use against men, or other women, because coercive control leverages power and advantages that accrue from gender inequality
• A 2019 update from Evan Stark and Marianne Hester on coercive control [abstract only] that reviews new evidence on four dimensions of coercive control: the relationship between “control” and “violence,” coercive control in same-sex couples, measuring coercive control, and children’s experience of coercive control

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Systemic entrapment

Systemic entrapment refers to broader systemic patterns of harm that restrict a victim-survivor's autonomy and agency in the context of family violence. A person's abusive behaviours can also entrap a victim-survivor, but systemic entrapment (usually be the state, social norms, or agencies) creates wide-ranging barriers to safety, wellbeing, and stability that often continue after a victim-survivor leaves their violent partner.

Systemic entrapment requires an understanding of how both victims' and perpetrators' identities and circumstances (race, class, sex, gender, sexual preference etc.) affect their experiences of violence and safety responses. Entrapment is highly specific - no two people's experiences will be the same, because entrapment is predicated on an individual's social location, as well as their family's historical and intergenerational life experiences.

See also:

• Report from Wilson et. al. (2019), E Tū Wāhine, E Tū Whānau: Wāhine Māori Keeping Safe in Unsafe Relationships
• Journal article from Tolmie et al. (2023) on why coercive control requires a social and systemic entrapment framework
• Vine's 2024 webinar, Recognising and responding to coercive control and systemic entrapment