What is Domestic Violence?
Domestic violence is a pattern of abuse tactics (emotional, financial, physical, sexual, spiritual) to gain or maintain power and control. Domestic violence can occur in different relationships such as two people living together, formerly married, or in an intimate relationship, or with other family members or caretakers.
It is sometimes referred to as intimate partner violence (IPV), dating violence, teen dating violence, or family violence.
People who engage in abusive behaviors use many different types of abuse tactics, and will often increase the severity of the abuse tactics they use over time. Tactics might include:
- Emotional: put-downs, name-calling, “gaslighting” or making someone feel they’re going crazy, guilt-tripping, acting jealous, monitoring texts and phone calls, saying the abuse wasn’t a big deal, blaming, undermining parenting decisions
- Physical: hitting, punching, restraining, blocking exits, erratic driving, throwing things, destroying property, gestures, kicking, biting, burning, sabotaging sobriety, threatening with weapons, choking/strangulation
- Sexual: pressuring for sex, using threats, coercion, or blackmail, making unwanted sexual comments, drugging to engage in sexual activity, sharing private photos or video, cheating, failing to disclose sexual health information, sabotaging access to reproductive healthcare, expecting sex in return for gifts
- Spiritual: restricting or requiring religious practices, criticizing beliefs, spreading rumors within a faith community, using religion or religious texts as justification for abuse, threatening spiritual consequences
- Financial: sabotaging work or school, destroying a partners’ credit and/or rental history, fraud, putting all financial documents in one person’s name, restricting access to documents, money, or financial information, creating allowances
- Abusing Privilege: threatening to report to ICE or DHS, withholding documents, interfering with language access, denying medical care such as assistive devices, or hygiene, threatening to disclose sexual orientation or gender identity
Note about the wheels above: While the language above assumes a female identifying survivor, violence can happen to anyone.
Stats and Further Information
- Facts about Intimate Partner Violence
- Women’s Foundation of Oregon
- Ujima The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black Community
- National Latin@ Network
- Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence
- National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life
- The NW Network
Impact of Domestic Violence
Someone experiencing domestic violence might feel constantly worried about triggering their partner’s abusive behavior. Abusive people tell them they can never do anything right, or that the abuse is their fault. They might limit survivors from going places or spending time with the people they care about.
Domestic violence affects many different facets of a survivors’ life including relationships with friends and family, employment, housing, and physical and mental well-being.
- The landmark Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) study launched in 1995 found a significant relationship between childhood experiences of abuse and violence and negative adult physical and mental health outcomes like heart disease, stroke, depression, suicide attempts, sexually transmitted diseases, and substance abuse (Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., et al., 1998).
- In Oregon on a single surveyed day, 1,681 victims received services, 234 made requests for services that could not be provided due to lack of resources, 39% of those were for emergency shelter or other housing (Domestic Violence Counts Report Oregon Summary 2022).
- The landmark Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) study launched in 1995 found a significant relationship between childhood experiences of abuse and violence and negative adult physical and mental health outcomes like heart disease, stroke, depression, suicide attempts, sexually transmitted diseases, and substance abuse (Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., et al., 1998).
- Survivors have nearly double the risk for developing depressive symptoms, and 3 times the risk for developing major depressive disorder (Beydoun, H.A., Beydoun, M.A., Kaufman, J.S., Lo, B, Zonderman, A.B., 2012).
- A large study conducted by the World Health Organization found that women who reported partner violence at least once in their lifetime are nearly 3 times as likely to have suicidal thoughts and nearly 4 times as likely to attempt suicide, compared to women who have not been abused by a partner (Current Evidence: Intimate Partner Violence, Trauma-Related Mental Health Conditions & Chronic Illness)
If you’re experiencing any of these things, we’re here to help. 1 in 3 women, 1 in 4 men, and nearly half of people who identify as LGBTQIA+ will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. We know there is hope beyond the abuse, and that survivors go on to do amazing things within their lives and community, and teach us all about strength and resiliency. Call our 24-hour Crisis and Support line at (888) 654-2288 or message our confidential chat to connect with our services.