New research has identified conservative community attitudes, male leadership and a focus on crisis response rather than prevention as obstacles to tackling domestic violence in Wagga Wagga.The research is first phase of a wider study by Dr Andreia Schineanu from Charles Sturt University (CSU) and Ms Lauren Darley Bentley of the Wagga Women's Health Centre (WWHC).An adjunct lecturer at CSU's School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Dr Schineanu, said this phase of the project canvassed the views of people who were in some way connected with domestic violence and the services that respond to the issue in Wagga Wagga."While some of the obstacles to addressing domestic violence stem from government financial rationalisation and limited funding opportunities, many challenges are related to Wagga's conservative attitudes and lack of gender equality in leadership, and this is something that we can work with," Dr Schineanu said."This first phase provides a good starting point for us to get together as a community and develop a series of interventions to tackle the high rate of domestic violence, while giving us a baseline against which we can measure any future changes."The report also found that Wagga Wagga's readiness to address domestic violence is very low and that there are many misconceptions about what domestic violence is, where it occurs, who it affects and the available services.The project Wagga Wagga's Readiness to Tackle Domestic Violence against Women – Stakeholder consultation Reportwill be launched at 12:30pm on Monday 5 December at the Wagga Wagga civic precinct, Baylis Street, Wagga Wagga.It is part of a wider project for the Wagga Women's Health Centre titled, Domestic Violence: Our Issue, Our Response.The project is supported by funding from the Rotary Club of Wollundry and also involves the Army Recruit Training Centre Kapooka.The ongoing research will examine the community's attitude towards domestic violence and gender issues before considering strategic planning of interventions to address the issue.