App to help women tackle abusive behaviour

Melbourne: A mobile phone app has been created to help young women understand the signs of controlling and abusive behaviour in relationships.

The iMatter app is designed to teach women about intimate partner violence and build resilience, ABC Online reported.

Users can share the content and use the app as a personal journal.

"It's a bit like a virtual library of images, video clips, quizzes, articles," Carmel O'Brien, director of clinical services at Doncare, was quoted as saying by ABC.

O'Brien said many girls thought controlling behaviour was actually protective.

"But nobody tells us about that fine line between abusive and controlling behaviour," she said.

The app was launched by Australian of the Year and anti-domestic violence campaigner Rosie Batty.

The app provides some advice, Batty said she wished she had been given as a younger woman.

"If it [the relationship] doesn't feel right, get out of it. Get out," Batty said.

"It never gets better. And I think that's the unfortunate thing about relationships. "We rarely do end them when we should," she added.

A recent Australian study found 22 per cent of girls aged under 20 had been victims of harm from dating violence.