Domestic Violence

WHAT IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ?
  • Domestic Violence is a pattern of behavior used to establish power and control over another person through fear and intimidation, often including the threat or use of violence.
  • Domestic Violence can be emotional, physical, sexual, and/or financial.
  • Other terms for domestic violence include intimate partner violence, domestic abuse, battering, relationship abuse, spousal abuse, or family violence.
Who is most likely to suffer from Domestic Violence?
  • Domestic violence and abuse can happen to anyone, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, income, or other factors.
  • Both women and men can be victims of domestic violence.
  • 24% of women and almost 12% of men report at least one lifetime episode of intimate partner violence.
What are the Effects of Domestic Violence on Children?
  • 1 in 15 children are exposed to intimate partner violence each year, and 90% of these children are eyewitnesses to this violence.
  • Children who live in homes where there is domestic violence also suffer abuse or neglect at high rates (30% to 60%).
  • Children exposed to domestic violence at home are more likely to have health problems, including becoming sick more often, having frequent headaches or stomachaches, and being more tired and lethargic.
  • Children are more likely to intervene when they witness severe violence against a parent – which can place a child at great risk for injury or even death.
What are the Effects of Domestic Violence on Physical & Mental Health?
  • Domestic violence victims face high rates of depression, sleep disturbances, anxiety, flashbacks, and other emotional distress.
  • Domestic violence contributes to increased incidences of chronic disease for many survivors such as heart disease, cancer, hypertension, gastrointestinal disorders, chronic pain, and/or neurological disorders. Abused women are:
  • 70% more likely to have heart disease
  • 80% more likely to experience a stroke
  • 60% more likely to develop asthma
  • Most women brought to emergency rooms due to domestic violence were socially isolated and had few social and financial resources.
How often does Domestic Violence occur?

  • On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.

Why Does Domestic Violence Happen?
  • No victim is to blame for any occurrence of domestic abuse or violence.
  • It is caused by the choices, beliefs and attitudes of the abuser or perpetrator

 

What is the Economic Cost of Domestic Violence?

  • Domestic violence costs more than $37 billion a year in law enforcement involvement, legal work, medical and mental health treatment, and lost productivity at companies.
  • Victims of intimate partner violence lose a total of 8 Million days of paid work each year.

What Happens to Victims of Domestic Violence?

  • Domestic violence is the third leading cause of homelessness among families, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
  • Between 21 – 60% of victims of intimate partner violence lose their jobs due to reasons stemming from the abuse.

Domestic Violence in America: General Statistics and Facts

  • Women ages 18 to 34 are at greatest risk of becoming victims of domestic violence.
  • More than 4 million women experience physical assault and rape by their partners.
  • In 2 out of 3 female homicide cases, females are killed by a family member or intimate partner.
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