October is Domestic Violence Prevention and Awareness Month, highlighting the severe issue of domestic violence that includes physical, psychological, economic, and sexual abuse. Statistics reveal that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men experience physical abuse, with significant impacts such as increased risk of homicide and long-term psychological damage to victims. It emphasizes the importance of seeking help through trained advocates and resources for those in abusive situations.

1. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
October is Domestic Violence Prevention and Awareness Month

2. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
WHAT IS IT?
Domestic violence is the willful
intimidation, physical assault, battery,
sexual assault, and/or other abusive
behavior as part of a systemic pattern
of power and control perpetrated by
one intimate partner against another.

3. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
STATISTICS
• 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been
physically abused
• On a typical day, domestic violence hotlines
are called 20,800 time
• Domestic Violence accounts for 15% of all
violent crime
• The presence of a gun in a domestic violence
situation increases the risk of homicide by 500%
• Domestic Violence is most common in women
between the ages of 18-24
• 19% of all domestic violence involves a
weapon
• Domestic violence is correlated with a higher
rate of depression and suicidal behavior

4. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
WHY IT MATTERS
Domestic violence is prevalent in
every community and affects all
people regardless of age, socio-
economic status, sexual orientation,
gender, race, religion, or nationality.
Domestic violence can result in
physical injury, psychological trauma,
and even death. The devastating
consequences of domestic violence
can cross generations and last a
lifetime.

5. INTIMATE PARTNER PHYSICAL ABUSE
WHAT IS IT?
Physical abuse includes the physical
assault, battery, and sexual assault.
Physical abuse can cause severe
injury and even death. It often occurs
with other forms of abuse, including
psychological, economical, and
stalking.

6. INTIMATE PARTNER PHYSICAL ABUSE
STATISTICS
• In 2007, 1,640 women were
murdered by intimate partners
• In 2012, 924 women were killed by
intimate partners
• 40% of female murder victims are
killed by an intimate partner
• 76% of women killed by intimate
partners and 85% of women who
survive homicide attempts are
stalked prior to the murder or
attempted murder

7. INTIMATE PARTNER PHYSICAL ABUSE
WHY IT MATTERS
Intimate partner physical abuse is not
bound by specific groups of people.
Contrary to popular belief, physical
abuse is not simply a maladjusted
person’s occasional expression of
frustration or anger, nor is it typically
an isolated incident. Physical abuse is
a tool of control and oppression and
is a choice made by one person in
relationship to control another.

8. PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
WHAT IS IT?
Psychological abuse involves trauma
to the victim caused by verbal abuse,
acts, threats of acts, or coercive
tactics. Perpetrators use
psychological abuse to control,
terrorize, and denigrate their victims.
It frequently occurs prior to or
concurrently with physical or sexual
abuse.

9. PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
STATISTICS
• 48.4% of women and 48.8% of men
have experienced at least one
psychologically aggressive behavior
by an intimate partner
• 4 in 10 women and 4 in 10 men have
experienced one form of coercive
control by an intimate partner
• 17.9% of women have experienced a
situation when an intimate partner tried
to keep them from seeing family and
friends.

10. PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
WHY IT MATTERS
Psychological abuse increases
trauma of physical and sexual abuse,
and a number of studies have
demonstrated that psychological
abuse independently causes long-
term damage to a victim’s mental
health. Victims often experience
depression, post-traumatic stress
disorder, and difficulty trusting others.

11. ECONOMIC ABUSE
WHAT IS IT?
When an abuser takes control of
or limits access to shared or
individual assets or limits the
current or future earning potential
of the victim from their own
resources, rights and choices,
isolating the victim financially and
creating a forced dependency for
the victim and other family
members.

12. ECONOMIC ABUSE
STATISTICS
• Between 94-99% of domestic
violence survivors have also
experienced economic abuse
• Between 21-60% of victims of
domestic violence lose their
jobs due to reasons stemming
from abuse
• Victims of domestic violence
lost a total of 8 million days of
paid work each year

13. ECONOMIC ABUSE
WHY IT MATTERS
Victims of domestic violence may
be unable to leave an abusive
partner or may be forced to return
to an abuser partner for economic
reasons. Victims cannot afford to
raise their children as well. Victims
of coerced debt may face
massive barriers to economic self-
sufficiency, including struggling to
find a job of even obtaining a
place and its detrimental effects
of their personal credit scores.

14. STALKING
WHAT IS IT?
Stalking is defined by law by the federal
government. When an abuser acts in such a
way as to intentionally create a fear of
harm or death for the victim, that is stalking.
This could take the form of a fear of harm,
injury, or death for themselves, a relative, or
any third party. Abusers who use stalking to
terrorize and threaten create substantial
emotional distress for their victims, family
members and third parties.

15. STALKING
STATISTICS
• 76% of women murdered by an intimate
partner were stalked first; 85% of women
who survived murder attempts were
stalked
• 89% of female victims who have been
physically assaulted before their murder
were also stalked in the last year prior to
their murder
• 54% of female victims reported stalking
to the police before they were killed by
their stalkers

16. STALKING
WHY IT MATTERS
Stalking is often an indicator of other
forms of violence. 81% of women who
were stalked by a current or former
husband or co-habituating partner were
also physically assaulted by that
partner. 31% of victims were also
sexually assaulted. Abusers use stalking
to intimidate and control their victims.

17. SEXUAL ABUSE
WHAT IS IT?
Perpetrators who are physically violent
toward their intimate partners are often
sexually abusive as well. Victims who are
both physically and sexually abused are
more likely to be injured or killed than victims
who experience one form of abuse. Abusers
assault people of all genders, races, ages,
social classes, and ethnicities. Women who
are disabled, pregnant, or attempting to
leave their abusers are at greatest risk for
intimate partner rape.

18. SEXUAL ABUSE
STATISTICS
• 18% of female victims of spousal rape say
their children witnessed the crime
• Between 10% and 14% of married women
will be raped at some point during their
marriage
• Only 36% of all rape-victims ever report the
crime to the police. The % of married
women is even lower. Marital rape is the
most unreported form of sexual assault
• Until 1976, state laws specifically
exempted spousal rape from the general
rape laws. In 1976, Nebraska was the first
to legally recognize nonconsensual
intercourse with a spouse as rape. By 1993,
all 50 states had either forms of spousal
rape charges

19. SEXUAL ABUSE
WHY IT MATTERS
Many Americans do not believe marital rape
is actually rape. Intimate partner rape
happens over and over again. Victims are
made to feel “dirty” and that no one would
ever want to be with her except her abuser.
Victims suffer severe and long-lasting
physical and mental health problems. They
have higher rates of depression and anxiety
than women who were raped by a non-
intimate partner or physically abused, but not
sexually abused by an intimate partner.

20. DATING ABUSE AND TEEN VIOLENCE
WHAT IS IT?
Federal law and many state laws
define domestic violence as abuse
perpetrated by a current or former
spouse, co-habitant, or co-parent.
This leaves dating partners without
protections afforded to other current
or former intimate partners, including
access to protective orders and
protection from gun violence.

21. DATING ABUSE AND TEEN VIOLENCE
STATISTICS
• 20.9% of female high school
students and 13.4 % of male high
school students report being
sexually abused by a dating
partner
• Nearly 1.5 million high school
students in the United States are
abused by partners every year
• 43% of college women reported
experiencing abuse behaviors from
their partners

22. DATING ABUSE AND TEEN VIOLENCE
WHY IT MATTERS
Domestic violence is most common in
women ages 18 – 24. The rate of
marriage has declined steeply over
the last fifty years. Young people are
dating longer than in previous
generations. As people get married
later in life, dating violence will
continue to rise. Given this
prevalence, they need resources and
increases in legal protections.

23. WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE IN A
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SITUATION
First, seek help from a trained domestic violence advocate. Avoid using credit and debit cards
that can enable an abuser to track your whereabouts. Keep your personal and financial
records in a safe location. Leave copies with trusted friends or relatives. Compile an
emergency evacuation box with copies of your family’s important records and documents.
Keep copies of your car and house keys, extra money, and emergency phone numbers in a
safe place. If you use the internet to explore domestic violence issues or research how to
regain financial independence , make sure your abuser cannot trace your activities. Take a
financial inventory, listing assets and liabilities. If your partner controls the money, look for other
ways to find out more about their income, financial property and debts. Calculate what it
would cost you to live on your own, and consider starting to set aside you own money in a safe
place, even if it is just a few dollars. Obtain a copy of your credit report from any of the three
major credit bureaus, review the information, and report any fraud, disputed claims, or identity
theft. Under FACTA (The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act) you can obtain a free copy
of your credit report each year. Seek assistance by calling the National Domestic Violence
Hotline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233). Trained advocates are available 24/7 to provide you with help
and support you deserve.

24. REFERENCES
Fact sheets from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence retrieved from
www.ncadv.org