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An Increasing Risk of Family Violence during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Strengthening Community Collaborations to Save Lives

DOI:10.1016/j.fsir.2020.100089
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Andrew Campbell
Andrew Campbell
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Abstract

Though necessary to slow the spread of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19), actions such as social-distancing, sheltering in-place, restricted travel, and closures of key community foundations are likely to dramatically increase the risk for family violence around the globe. In fact many countries are already indicating a dramatic increase in reported cases of domestic violence. While no clear precedent for the current crisis exists in academic literature, exploring the impact of natural disasters on family violence reports may provide important insight for family violence victim-serving professionals. Improving collaborations between human welfare and animal welfare agencies, expanding community partnerships, and informing the public of the great importance of reporting any concerns of abuse are all critical at this time.
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An Increasing Risk of Family Violence during the Covid-19 Pandemic:
Strengthening Community Collaborations to Save Lives
Andrew M. Campbell
PII: S2665-9107(20)30038-4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsir.2020.100089
Reference: FSIR 100089
To appear in: Forensic Science International: Reports
Received Date: 5 April 2020
Accepted Date: 6 April 2020
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© 2019 Published by Elsevier.
Title: An Increasing Risk of Family Violence during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Strengthening Community
Collaborations to Save Lives
By: Andrew M. Campbell
(CEO Campbell Research & Consulting)
Abstract
Though necessary to slow the spread of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19), actions such as social-
distancing, sheltering in-place, restricted travel, and closures of key community foundations are likely to
dramatically increase the risk for family violence around the globe. In fact many countries are already
indicating a dramatic increase in reported cases of domestic violence. While no clear precedent for the
current crisis exists in academic literature, exploring the impact of natural disasters on family violence
reports may provide important insight for family violence victim-serving professionals. Improving
collaborations between human welfare and animal welfare agencies, expanding community
partnerships, and informing the public of the great importance of reporting any concerns of abuse are
all critical at this time.
Keywords: Domestic Violence, Child Abuse, Pet Abuse, Covid-19, Coronavirus, Multi-Disciplinary,
Prevention, Animal Control
Introduction
As the Coronavirus (Covid-19) global pandemic continues, more and more countries, cities, and
communities are adopting dedicated measures to slow the spread of the virus. While actions such as
encouraging individuals to adopt “social distancing”, mandating school and business closures, and
imposing travel restrictions may reduce the transmission of the infectious disease, unfortunately not all
are finding safety in the resulting seclusion. Many family violence (domestic violence, child abuse, and
pet abuse) victims may currently be facing a “worst case” scenario – finding themselves trapped in the
home with a violent perpetrator during a time of severely limited contact with the outside world.
It’s not uncommon for domestic violence abusers to isolate their victims as an act of control or to reduce
opportunity for disclosure of abuse, and the current societal conditions are likely furthering the impact
of these actions. Perpetrator-imposed restrictions and continued surveillance of social media, internet,
and cell phones may also limit the ability of victims to reach out for help electronically. Further, schools,
libraries, and churches are all critical staples in family routines around the globe. Families who are
victimized by violence or abuse in the home indicate these institutions often offer critical emotional
support and provide opportunity for a “reprieve” from their abusive home environment – a reprieve
they are no longer getting at this time.
Increasing Risk of Family Violence during the Covid-19 Pandemic
With shelter in-place measures and widespread organizational closures related to Covid-19 likely to
continue for an extended period of time, stress and associated risk factors for family violence such as
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unemployment, reduced income, limited resources, and limited social support are likely to be further
compounded. Additionally, alcohol abuse, a commonly reported risk factor for family violence, has been
linked to an accumulation of stressful events and a lack of social support (both likely occurring as a result
of Covid-19) (Catalá-Miñana, et. al., 2016). With bars and restaurants being limited to take-out service
only in many communities, family violence perpetrators who abuse alcohol may be even more likely to
do so in the home, likely increasing risk for the entire household.
An increasing risk of domestic violence-related homicide is also a growing concern – reports continue to
surface around the globe of intimate partner homicides with ties to stress or other factors related to the
Covid-19 pandemic. Reports of increasing gun and ammunition sales in the U.S. during the crisis are
particularly concerning given the clear link between firearm access and fatal domestic violence incidents
(Liem & Reichelmann, 2014). Communities considering the mass release of prisoners to reduce their risk
of spreading Covid-19 in confinement must weigh the potentially significant risk for victims and
households if domestic violence or other violent offenders are among those released. This risk is likely to
extend outside of the home as well, as 20% of victims in domestic violence-related homicides are not
the intimate partner but rather a neighbor, family member, friend, bystander, or first responder (Smith,
Fowler, & Niolon, 2014).
In addition to adult victims of family violence, children and pets reside in 60% or more of households
where domestic violence is perpetrated and are also at risk of suffering significant physical and/or
emotional harm (Campbell, et. al., 2017). Given current school and library closures and shelter in-place
mandates, children are likely to be spending significantly more time than usual in the home. Domestic
violence abusers may often target children or pets in the home as a means of furthering control over the
household. Researchers estimate children residing in a home where domestic violence occurs are at as
much as 60 times the risk of child abuse or neglect compared to the general U.S. child population
(Thackeray, et. al., 2010). Additionally, when domestic violence abusers also harm animals in the home,
it is often an indicator of increased risk for both human and animal members of the household. Nearly
80% of victims residing in a home where domestic violence and pet abuse co-occur report daily fear they
will be killed by the perpetrator (Campbell, et. al., 2018).
How Family Violence Reporting in the Aftermath of Natural Disasters Relates to the Current Crisis
Though limited precedent exists for the current crisis, we do find scenarios of rapidly increasing stress,
sudden shifts in daily routines, the closing of schools and community resources, and a rapid decrease in
available resources after natural disasters. Additionally, controlling behaviors (often a means of coping
with trauma), unemployment, and limited access to social support systems have all been identified as
family violence risk factors that also commonly occur after natural disasters (Zahran, et. al., 2009).
Studies that explore the impact of natural disasters on crime and violence report that while property
crimes and other forms of violent crime may or may not be impacted, domestic violence reports often
substantially increase after the catastrophic event and associated societal upheaval (Parkinson, 2019;
Zahran, et. al., 2009).
In fact, domestic violence reports increased by 46% in Othello, Washington after the eruption of Mount
St. Helens, along with increases in reported alcohol abuse, family stress, and aggression (Adams &
Adams, 1984). After Hurricane Katrina, reports of psychological abuse among women by their partner
increased 35% while reports of partner physical abuse nearly doubled in the southernmost Mississippi
counties (Schumacher, et. al., 2010). Similar significant increases in domestic violence have been
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reported following earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and many other catastrophic events around the
world, including the 2009 “Black Saturday” bushfires in Australia and 2010 7.0 magnitude earthquake in
Haiti (Parkinson, 2019; Weitzman & Behrman, 2016).
While similarities exist, the current Coronavirus crisis may result in closures of key organizations for
longer durations than often occur in the aftermath of natural disasters. While community togetherness
may be often encouraged after natural disasters, physical separation from fellow community members
is the course of action promoted in the current crisis. As a result, the increase in family violence reports
during and after the Covid-19 pandemic may be even greater than the substantial increase observed in
reports following natural disasters and catastrophic events.
Additionally, studies indicate the increased rates of domestic violence reported after a natural disaster
often extend for several months after the catastrophic incident occurs. In fact, a study looking at the
aftermath of natural disasters in the United States and Canada found domestic violence victim service
requests increased for an entire year following the event (Enarson, 1999). Family violence victim-serving
professionals must be aware of the high likelihood of increases in victimization rates and reports both
during and long after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Increasing Reports of Domestic Violence during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Reports of increasing rates of domestic violence are beginning to surface around the world. In China,
domestic violence is reported to have tripled during their shelter in-place mandate. Additionally, France
has indicated a 30% increase in domestic violence reports, Brazil estimates domestic violence reports
have jumped 40-50%, and Italy has also indicated reports of domestic violence are on the rise. In Spain,
reports have surfaced of a horrific domestic violence-related homicide – a trend that is unfortunately
likely to continue around the globe as stress continues to build and shelter in-place measures extend
into the future. The growing global trend of increasing reports of domestic violence cases is likely to
continue throughout the pandemic and may only represent a “tip of the iceberg” as many victims still
find themselves trapped with the perpetrator and unable to report the abuse.
In the United States, agencies from across the country are also reporting an increase in domestic
violence. In addition to risk of physical harm, victims are also at great risk of emotional harm and abuse.
U.S. reports have surfaced of domestic violence perpetrators using Covid-19 as a weapon against their
victims, forbidding handwashing in an attempt to increase the victim’s fear of contracting the virus and
threatening to forbid medical treatment if the victim does contract the virus.
Decreasing Reports of Child Abuse or Neglect during the Covid-19 Pandemic
In contrast to increasing reports of domestic violence, many child welfare organizations are noting a
significant drop in reports of child abuse or neglect. Unfortunately, this decrease may be a result of
fewer opportunities for detection as opposed to an actual decrease in incidence. The closures of schools
and other critical community organizations has limited key community partners in their ability to detect
and report abuse. In the United States, 67% of substantiated child abuse or neglect reports come from
victim-serving professionals and 19% of these reports come from education personnel (Child Welfare,
2019).
There is growing concern that we may see an overwhelming number of reports of child abuse or neglect
when children do return to schools. If children do not return to the classroom until after the summer,
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the concerns should be even greater given an even further extended period of time out of the school
system. When Covid-19 related measures are lifted and society returns to “normal”, child abuse victim-
serving professionals may find themselves completely buried in reports and unable to meet the needs of
an overwhelming number of victims. Agencies must work to develop community partnerships now with
faith-based organizations, summer camps, youth clubs, libraries, public swimming facilities, and youth
sports leagues to create potential opportunities to detect and report child abuse or neglect during
spring or summer as opposed to waiting until they return to school in the fall.
Uniting Human Welfare and Animal Welfare Efforts in Response to Covid-19
My recent study published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence found that 78% of calls to police
reporting domestic violence come from the victim themselves, and in only 7% of those cases the suspect
was on scene when officers arrived (Campbell, et. al., 2017). Victims of domestic violence often report
waiting for the perpetrator to leave the scene before they call 911. Current shelter in-place measures
likely leave victims of domestic violence trapped in-home with these perpetrators for an extended
period of time, limiting opportunity to safely report any incidents that may be occurring.
While the majority of domestic violence reports come from victims, the majority of animal control calls
come from neighbors. My recent analysis of data from multiple victim-serving agencies across the State
of Indiana revealed that while only 8% of calls reporting domestic violence to law enforcement come
from a neighbor or bystander, 80% or more of animal control calls come from neighbors or bystanders.
This important difference in report sources may provide critical opportunity to detect violence or abuse
in the home during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. While family violence victims are likely significantly
restricted from reporting right now, neighbors may be even more likely to be in their home as a result of
the shelter in-place recommendations and often do not face the same barriers to reporting to
authorities that victims experience. Animal control officers must utilize all opportunities to check on the
welfare of animals in their community to ensure the well-being of humans residing in the home as well,
both during and after the Covid-19 pandemic.
If there was ever a time our nation needed animal welfare professionals and human welfare
professionals to work together – it’s right now. While these agencies often work alongside each other,
they may less often work well with each other. Research is clear regarding a significant link between
abuse or neglect of animals and an increased risk for humans who reside in the home as well.
Perpetrators of domestic violence who also abuse animals are more likely have mental illness and/or
abuse substances, have attempted suicide, and to have access to a firearm than domestic violence
abusers who do not abuse pets (Campbell, et. al., 2018). Animal-abusing, domestic violence perpetrators
likely present a significant risk of harm to households, communities, and first responders, with outcomes
that include emotional harm, physical injury, and/or death.
The idea of animal welfare and human welfare agencies working together is not novel. In fact, organized
child welfare efforts in the United States were birthed from Henry Bergh’s successes with the Society for
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in New York in 1800’s (LeBow & Cherney, 2015). Over time, animal
and human welfare efforts seem to have largely gone their separate ways. Now more than ever, we
must return to our collaborative roots. With resources so significantly limited and both welfare
initiatives facing unprecedented barriers to providing assistance, professionals must unite their efforts
to better protect the many vulnerable humans and animals at high risk of abuse.
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Improving Community Collaborations: A Call to Action
The reality is, we were hardly “winning” the fight to end family violence even before this pandemic
shook the world. Many agencies around the globe were already feeling the strain of an ever-increasing
workload and continually diminishing resources. Now, many find themselves facing even greater
barriers as they struggle to find ways to reach these families who have been cut-off from the rest of the
community and likely at great risk of harm. In addition to improving relations between human welfare
and animal welfare agencies, family violence victim-serving agencies must explore new and expanded
community partnerships. Many postal workers, garbage collectors, food delivery staff, and home repair
agencies are all still out and traveling through neighborhoods during the global crisis – they may still
have opportunity to detect violence in the home and report their concerns to the proper authorities.
Though many communities around the globe now find themselves physically separated by the threat of
spreading the virus, opportunities to remain connected through this difficult time still exist.
Communities must ensure citizens are aware of the current increased risk of family violence at this time,
encourage them to check on their neighbors, friends and family (while maintaining adherence to any
distancing regulations) and report ANY concerns they see or hear to the proper authorities.
For as long as we allow family violence to remain in the shadows, it will do just that – remain. We must
be vigilant. Risk of family violence is currently very high and will likely remain that way for the coming
months. If you see or hear something concerning, please report it. The call you make may very well save
a life.
Declaration of interests
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships
that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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  • Dec 2022
Considerando os altos índices de violência doméstica contra mulheres, tanto no Brasil como no mundo, a chamada misoginia vem sendo estudada desde seu contexto histórico, sua propagação, e formas de evitá-la através de políticas públicas destinadas à essa parcela da população. Além das repercussões físicas no corpo, a qualidade de saúde geral, como consequência do “demérito feminino”, afeta psicologicamente quem sofre tal abuso. A Harmonização Orofacial (HOF), como especialidade odontológica, é uma das opções capaz de solucionar e realizar a manutenção de deterioração no rosto, que, apesar de físico, gera consequências mentais e sociais à vítima. O objetivo desse trabalho é realizar uma revisão da literatura sobre o contexto social e histórico que levou o Brasil a alcançar altos índices de misoginia e violência doméstica contra as mulheres, bem como relacionar a consequência mental e social que as vítimas sofrem com as agressões, e como a HOF, através da capacitação de profissionais Cirurgiões-dentistas, pode auxiliar na manutenção da saúde psicológica das vítimas.
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Domestic Violence in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Synthesis of Systematic Reviews
Article
The current systematic meta-review aimed to map out, characterize, analyze, and synthesize the overarching findings of systematic reviews on domestic violence (DV) in the context of COVID-19. Specifically, a systematic meta-review was conducted with three main objectives: (1) to identify what types and aspects of DV during COVID-19 have been reviewed systematically to date (research trends), (2) to synthesize the findings from recent systematic reviews of the theoretical and empirical literature (main findings), and (3) to discuss what systematic reviewers have proposed about implications for policy and practice as well as for future primary research (implications). We identified, appraised, and synthesized the evidence contained in systematic reviews by means of a so-called systematic meta-review. In all, 15 systematic reviews were found to be eligible for inclusion in the current review. Thematic codes were applied to each finding or implication in accordance with a set of predetermined categories informed by the DV literature. The findings of this review provide clear insight into current knowledge of prevalence, incidence, and contributing factors, which could help to develop evidence-informed DV prevention and intervention strategies during COVID-19 and future extreme events. This systematic meta-review does offer a first comprehensive overview of the research landscape on this subject. It allows scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to recognize initial patterns in DV during COVID-19, identify overlooked areas that need to be investigated and understood further, and adjust research methods that will lead to more robust studies.
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Investigating the Increase in Domestic Violence Post Disaster: An Australian Case Study
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2017
Interviews with 30 women in two shires in Victoria, Australia, confirmed that domestic violence increased following the catastrophic Black Saturday bushfires on February 7, 2009. As such research is rare, it addresses a gap in the disaster and interpersonal violence literature. The research that exists internationally indicates that increased violence against women is characteristic of a postdisaster recovery in developing countries. The relative lack of published research from primary data in developed countries instead reflects our resistance to investigating or recognizing increased male violence against women after disasters in developed countries. This article begins with an overview of this literature. The primary research was qualitative, using in-depth semistructured interviews to address the research question of whether violence against women increased in the Australian context. The sample of 30 women was aged from 20s to 60s. Recruitment was through flyers and advertisements, and interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and checked by participants. Analysis was inductive, using modified grounded theory. Seventeen women gave accounts of new or increased violence from male partners that they attribute to the disaster. A key finding is that, not only is there both increased and new domestic violence but formal reporting will not increase in communities unwilling to hear of this hidden disaster. Findings are reported within a framework of three broad explanations. In conclusion, although causation is not claimed, it is important to act on the knowledge that increased domestic violence and disasters are linked.
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Contextual Factors Related to Alcohol Abuse Among Intimate Partner Violence Offenders
Article
Full-text available
  • Jan 2017
Background: The association between alcohol consumption and intimate partner violence (IPV) has been reiterated in numerous studies. Some authors have found higher levels of risk factors in intimate partner violence offenders (IPVOs) with alcohol problems than in IPVOs without such problems. Objective: The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship of contextual variables with harmful alcohol use in a sample of IPVOs. Method: This cross-sectional research analyzes data from 231 IPVOs. In addition to demographic data, information was collected on alcohol use, ethnicity, accumulation of stressful life events and perceived social support and rejection. The sample was divided into hazardous and nonhazardous alcohol users, according to the AUDIT test scale. Results: No differences were found between groups on demographic variables. The results of a hierarchical logistic regression analysis supplemented with ROC curves revealed that Latin American immigrants as opposed to Spanish nationality, accumulating stressful life events, and perceiving low social support significantly increased the likelihood of alcohol abuse, with adequate predictive power. Conclusion: Contextual variables such as ethnicity, accumulation of stressful life events, and lack of social support may explain harmful alcohol consumption. These variables should be taken into account in batterer intervention programs in order to reduce one of the most relevant risk factors of IPV: alcohol abuse.
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Disaster, Disruption to Family Life, and Intimate Partner Violence: The Case of the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2016
Natural disasters have inherently social dimensions because they exacerbate preexisting inequalities and disrupt social norms and institutions. Despite a growing interest in the sociological aspects of disasters, few studies have quantitatively explored how disasters alter intrahousehold family dynamics. In this article, we develop and test a conceptual framework that explicates how natural disasters affect an important component of family life: intimate partner violence (IPV). We combine two waves of geocoded Demographic and Health Surveys data, collected before and after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, with spatial data on variation in the earthquake's destruction. Our findings indicate that exposure to earthquake devastation increased the probability of both physical and sexual IPV one to two years following the disaster. These increases were accompanied by substantial changes in family functioning, the household economy, and women's access to their social networks. Select household-level experiences during and after the earthquake, such as displacement, were also positively associated with IPV. These findings provide new insights into the multidimensional effects of disasters on family life and have important theoretical and policy implications that extend beyond the particular case of Haiti. Language: en
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The role of animal welfare legislation in shaping child protection in the United States
Article
Full-text available
  • Jan 2015
The aim of this paper is to study the role that the development of animal welfare legislation had on shaping child protection in the United States. Although it is well known that the same individuals responsible for animal protection were involved in the subsequent creation of child welfare legislation, most historical discussions of child welfare begin only at the intervention of those individuals. We sought to combine the topics, and examine how closely the foundation of animal protection related to child protection in the United States. In order to study the ways in which the animal protective movement influenced child protection in the United States, a review of the relevant literature including books and journal articles on the topics, court cases and documents, and state and federal statutes was conducted. Through our research, we found that the framework for the creation and enforcement of child protective laws was modeled almost entirely after animal protection. Thus, we concluded that child protection in the United States would not be the same if it were not for the preceding animal protection movement. Although the two movements share roots, with time animal and child protection have diverged as a result of the notion of social work for families.
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Homicide Studies Patterns of Multiple Family Homicide can be found at: Homicide Studies Additional services and information for
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2014
Previous research has treated multiple family homicide, or familicide, as a uniform event. We sought to explore whether subtypes of familicide could be discerned, making use of a decade of Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR) coupled with newspaper articles. The resulting 238 cases were analyzed through a two-step cluster analysis, showing that the familicides can be subgrouped into four categories based on the perpetrator’s age, relationship between perpetrator and victims, and perpetrator’s suicide. The empirically grouped categories were labeled Despondent Husbands, Spousal Revenge, Extended Parricide, and Diffuse Conflict. Familicide is thus a heterogeneous phenomenon and must be viewed in unique terms to appropriately determine prevention strategies.
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Intimate Partner Homicide and Corollary Victims in 16 States: National Violent Death Reporting System, 2003-2009
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Full-text available
Objectives: We estimated the frequency and examined the characteristics of intimate partner homicide and related deaths in 16 US states participating in the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), a state-based surveillance system. Methods: We used a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to analyze NVDRS data from 2003 to 2009. We selected deaths linked to intimate partner violence for analysis. Results: Our sample comprised 4470 persons who died in the course of 3350 intimate partner violence-related homicide incidents. Intimate partners and corollary victims represented 80% and 20% of homicide victims, respectively. Corollary homicide victims included family members, new intimate partners, friends, acquaintances, police officers, and strangers. Conclusions: Our findings, from the first multiple-state study of intimate partner homicide and corollary homicides, demonstrate that the burden of intimate partner violence extends beyond the couple involved. Systems (e.g., criminal justice, medical care, and shelters) whose representatives routinely interact with victims of intimate partner violence can help assess the potential for lethal danger, which may prevent intimate partner and corollary victims from harm.
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Natural Disasters and Social Order: Modeling Crime Outcomes in Florida
Article
Full-text available
  • Apr 2009
This study analyzes the spatial distribution of crime outcomes at the county scale in Florida as a function of natural disasters. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and conditional fixed effects negative binomial statistical techniques are used. Four crime outcomes are analyzed: index crimes, property crimes, violent crimes, and domestic violence crimes. Adjusting for socio-demographic and social order variables, we find that natural disasters significantly decrease levels of reported index, property, and violent crimes, but significantly increase the expected count of reported domestic violence crimes.
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Intimate Partner Violence and Pet Abuse: Responding Law Enforcement Officers’ Observations and Victim Reports From the Scene
Article
  • Mar 2018
The risk of harm/injury in homes where intimate partner violence (IPV) occurs is not limited to humans; animals reside in as many as 80% of these homes and may be at substantial risk of suffering severe or fatal injury. Gaining a better understanding of IPV-pet abuse overlap is imperative in more accurately identifying the risks of harm for all individuals and animals residing in these homes. The objectives of this study were to utilize law enforcement officers’ observations and IPV victim reports from the scene of the incident to (a) determine the prevalence of pet abuse perpetration among suspects involved in IPV incidents, (b) compare characteristics of IPV incidents and the home environments in which they occur when the suspect has a history of pet abuse with incidents involving suspects with no reported history of pet abuse, and (c) compare IPV incident outcomes involving suspects with a history of pet abuse with those involving suspects with no reported history of pet abuse. IPV victims residing in homes with a suspect who has a history of pet abuse often describe “extremely high-risk” environments. With nearly 80% reporting concern that they will eventually be killed by the suspect, victims in these environments should be considered at significant risk of suffering serious injury or death. In addition, IPV victims involved in incidents with a suspect that has a history of pet abuse were significantly more likely to have had at least one prior unreported IPV incident with the suspect (80%) and to have ever been strangled (76%) or forced to have sex with the suspect (26%). Effective prevention/detection/intervention strategies are likely to require multidisciplinary collaboration and safety plans that address the susbstantial risk of harm/injury for all adults, children, and animals residing in the home.
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Characteristics of Intimate Partner Violence Incidents and the Environments in Which They Occur: Victim Reports to Responding Law Enforcement Officers
Article
  • Apr 2017
The objectives of this study were to identify intimate partner violence (IPV) incidence rates, to quantify specific risks and characteristics of these incidents and the environments in which they occur, to identify how often children are present for or injured during these incidents, and to identify differences in victim reports of IPV to law enforcement officers at the scene of the incident compared with previously published reports of IPV from retropsective, anonymous surveys and domestic violence shelter interviews. Data gathered by responding law enforcement officers at the scene of the IPV incident were used to determine the prevalence of IPV incident characteristics and outcomes. Females aged 20 to 39 years, unmarried adults, and African Americans were disproportionately represented as victims of IPV in this study. IPV incidents were significantly more likely to occur on Saturdays and Sundays and during the months of May through August. Relationship durations for suspect–victim pairs were most often less than 12 months at the time of the incident. Weapon use and/or strangulation was common, occurring in 44% of all incidents. Minors (under age 18 years) were frequently present in the home during the IPV incident or a member of the household (59%). This study provides a unique perspective of IPV by utilizing data collected directly from the scene of the incident by first responders. Previously published characteristics of IPV were confirmed, but this study also brings to light new and critical information concerning this prevalent form of violence. Study findings relating to incidence, seasonality, severity, disproportionately affected populations, and child exposure are discussed.
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Violence Against Women in Disasters: A Study of Domestic Violence Programs in the United States and Canada
Article
Although data are limited, field reports indicate that reported violence against women increases in communities hit by environmental disasters. Seventy-seven Canadian and U.S. domestic violence programs participated in a study of organizational readiness, impact, and response employing a mail survey and open-ended telephone interviewing. Low levels of in-house emergency preparedness were found, but also strong interest in increasing disaster readiness. Those programs most severely impacted by disasters reported increased service demands, as long as 1 year after the event, and decreased organizational resources. Strategies are suggested for more fully engaging women's services in community-based disaster mitigation, planning, and response.
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