Domestic Violence Information Center

Overview of Domestic Violence

Domestic violence encompasses a wide range of acts committed by one person against another in an intimate relationship or within a family. It is a pattern of coercive behavior that is used by one person to gain power and control over another. This may include physical violence, sexual, emotional and psychological intimidation, verbal abuse, stalking and economic control. It may take the form of breaking objects, hurting/killing pets, yelling, driving recklessly to endanger or scare the victim, isolating the victim from friends and family members and controlling resources like money, vehicles, credit, medications and time. In same gender relationships, it can include threats to out the victim.

Domestic violence can happen to people of all racial, economic, educational, religious backgrounds and in heterosexual and same gender relationships. While both men and women may be victims of domestic violence, research shows that the overwhelming majority of adult victims are women and that domestic violence is a major cause of injury to women.

Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey (July 2000) indicate that domestic violence is pervasive in U.S. society. Analysis of the survey data from calls to 8,000 U.S. women and 8,000 U.S. men, produced the following key results:

• Nearly 25% of women and 7.6% of men said they were raped and or physically assaulted by a current or former spouse, cohabitating partner or date in their lifetime.
• Almost 5% of women and 0.6 % of men experienced stalking by a current or former spouse, cohabitating partner or date in their lifetime.
• Women experience more chronic and injurious physical assaults at the hands of intimate partners than do men.
• Slightly more than 11% of lesbians experienced rape, physical assault and/or stalking by a female cohabitant.
• Approximately 15% of gay men experienced rape, physical assault and/or stalking by a male cohabitant.
• Most intimate partner victimizations are not reported to the police

Follow this link for the full National Violence Against Women Survey (July 2000)

Disagreements develop from time to time in relationships. Domestic violence is not a disagreement. It is learned behavior (through observation, experience, reinforcement, culture, family, community) and is rarely caused by substance abuse, genetics, stress, illness or problems in the relationship, although these factors are often used as excuses and can exacerbate violent behavior. The goal of an abusive person is to establish and maintain control over his or her partner.

Domestic violence is reinforced when abusers are not arrested, prosecuted or otherwise held responsible for their acts. Without intervention, the violence can become more destructive and sometimes lethal over time. To monitor this lethality, PCADV collects newspaper clipping to chronicle domestic violence-related fatalities that occur in the Commonwealth.