Professor of Violence in Relations of Dependency
‘People in need should never slip through the cracks’
Janine Janssen, professor of Violence in Relations of Dependency
Let’s get one thing out of the way first: Janine Janssen had a wonderful childhood and has never been in an abusive relationship. Apparently, her field of expertise makes people think otherwise, because she is regularly asked if she has ever experienced abuse herself. But Janssen’s research interests weren’t inspired by her own life: “It was the realisation that violent experiences have an enormous impact on people, and understanding the difference you can make with well-differentiated, firmly grounded and methodical safety care. People in need deserve the best possible care, and they should never slip through the cracks when they seek help from an organisation.”
Janssen’s fascination with safety and violence was first sparked by her decision to travel after completing her studies in cultural anthropology and criminology. “In the Netherlands, I almost never feel unsafe. And if I were to feel unsafe, I’d trust the police. But in countries like Colombia, the situation is very different. My travels made me even more aware of the importance of a safe society,” she says. Her motivation to do research on domestic violence can also be traced back to this time in her life: “When it’s not safe outside, your home becomes all the more important. At home, you should be able to relax and recharge. That’s the foundation for everything else you do. If you don’t have that sense of security, it can carry over into every other aspect of your life.”
Dependency relationships
So how do you deal with violence in dependency relationships? That’s Janssen’s area of expertise – whether it’s within the immediate or extended family, within organisations (such as healthcare providers, legal institutions and churches) or in the field of human trafficking. “Dependency in itself isn’t necessarily a negative thing. Sooner or later, we all need other people. That’s just part of life. But when power and coercion come into play, things can go sideways. Understanding those harmful mechanisms will bring us closer to a solution.”
Honour-based violence
According to Janssen, the term ‘violence’ is an oversimplification of reality: it leaves no room for nuance or the complexity of the people involved. She notes that the same is true of the way police, prosecutors and social services tend to respond to violence: their interventions often don’t do justice to the complexity of the situation. Janssen wants to change that. “There’s no one-size-fits-all solution to violence. When a crime occurs, we mainly focus on individual offenders and victims. But honour-based violence is the result of group conflict, because it involves entire families. There will often be serious threats and severe violence, and sometimes it can even escalate to kidnapping and murder. The professionals who have to deal with this do very challenging work, under very challenging conditions. I care deeply about their plight, which is why I want to make sure they’re better equipped.” Janssen is pleased that her research on dealing with honour-based violence has been used to develop new working methods for the police, and that it has been included in the training programme for judges. “People in need should never slip through the cracks, for example because agencies are uninformed or understaffed. To me, there’s no excuse for inadequate care in these kinds of situations.”
Evidence-based opinions
Janssen’s drive seems to know no bounds. In addition to her professorship at Avans, she’s a lecturer at the Police Academy, head of research at the National Police’s Centre of Expertise on Honour-Based Violence and professor of legal anthropology at the Open University. She puts a lot of energy into sharing her knowledge. “Publishing remains essential. I want my opinions and findings to be based on a solid foundation of evidence. I also think it’s important to make my work accessible to people outside academia too, so I frequently give lectures and share videos on LinkedIn.” Janssen’s far from tired of her field of research. In the near future, she wants to help raise awareness about how humanity is treating the Earth. “The way we treat our planet and all the life it sustains is the ultimate form of violence in a dependency relationship.”
Janine Janssen delivered her inaugural lecture on 16 September 2016. You can read it here.