ABSTRACT

In this contribution a comparison is made between the use of the concept honour-based violence (HBV) in the Netherlands and its use in the (former) Dutch Caribbean. It is stated that this concept does not have identical meaning on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and that it is not without risk to use the concept without further explanations. Confusion about concepts entails much more than a purely semantic problem. If researchers want to contribute to the development of knowledge that can be used by policy makers and professionals to address violence, they should pay attention to the way victims, offenders, and bystanders of violence experience, perceive, and as a consequence define what has happened to them.