research on domestic violence

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Please review these safety tips .

Research & Evidence

NRCDV works to strengthen researcher/practitioner collaborations that advance the field’s knowledge of, access to, and input in research that informs policy and practice at all levels. We also identify and develop guidance and tools to help domestic violence programs and coalitions better evaluate their work, including by using participatory action research approaches that directly tap the diverse expertise of a community to frame and guide evaluation efforts.

Safety & Privacy in a Digital World

Immigrant Survivors of Domestic Violence  

Teen Dating Violence

Housing and Domestic Violence

Domestic Violence in LGBTQ Communities

Trans and Non-Binary Survivors

The Difference Between Surviving & Not Surviving

Earned Income Tax Credit & Other Tax Credits

For an extensive list of research & evidence materials check out the research & statistics section on VAWnet

The Domestic Violence Evidence Project (DVEP) is a multi-faceted, multi-year and highly collaborative effort designed to assist state coalitions, local domestic violence programs, researchers, and other allied individuals and organizations better respond to the growing emphasis on identifying and integrating evidence-based practice into their work. DVEP brings together research, evaluation, practice and theory to inform critical thinking and enhance the field's knowledge to better serve survivors and their families.

The Community Based Participatory Research Toolkit  (CBPR) is for researchers and practitioners across disciplines and social locations who are working in academic, policy, community, or practice-based settings. In particular, the toolkit provides support to emerging researchers as they consider whether and how to take a CBPR approach and what it might mean in the context of their professional roles and settings. Domestic violence advocates will also find useful information on the CBPR approach and how it can help answer important questions about your work.

For over two decades, the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence has operated  VAWnet , an online library focused on violence against women and other forms of gender-based violence.  VAWnet.org  has long been identified as an unparalleled, comprehensive, go-to source of information and resources for anti-violence advocates, human service professionals, educators, faith leaders, and others interested in ending domestic and sexual violence.

Safe Housing Partnerships , the website of the Domestic Violence and Housing Technical Assistance Consortium , includes the latest research and evidence on the intersection of domestic and sexual violence, housing, and homelessness. You can also find new research exploring different aspects of efforts to expand housing options for domestic and sexual violence survivors, including the use of flexible funding approaches, DV Housing First and rapid rehousing, DV Transitional Housing, and mobile advocacy.

Domestic Violence Facts and Statistics    *  Domestic Violence Video Presentations   *   Online CEU Courses

From the Editorial Board of the Peer-Reviewed Journal, Partner Abuse www.springerpub.com/pa and the Advisory Board of the Association of Domestic Violence Intervention Programs www.battererintervention.org *  www.domesticviolenceintervention.net

Resources for researchers, policy-makers, intervention providers, victim advocates, law enforcement, judges, attorneys, family court mediators, educators, and anyone interested in family violence

PASK FINDINGS

61-Page Author Overview

Domestic Violence Facts and Statistics at-a-Glance

PASK Researchers

PASK Video Summary by John Hamel, LCSW

• Introduction
• Implications for Policy and Treatment
• Domestic Violence Politics

17 Full PASK Manuscripts and tables of Summarized Studies

INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH

THE PARTNER ABUSE STATE OF KNOWLEDGE PROJECT

The world's largest domestic violence research data base, 2,657 pages, with summaries of 1700 peer-reviewed studies.

Courtesy of the scholarly journal, Partner Abuse www.springerpub.com/pa and the Association of Domestic Violence Intervention Providers www.domesticviolenceintervention.net

MAJOR UPDATE COMING, JANUARY, 2025!

Over the years, research on partner abuse has become unnecessarily fragmented and politicized. The purpose of The Partner Abuse State of Knowledge Project (PASK) is to bring together in a rigorously evidence-based, transparent and methodical manner existing knowledge about partner abuse with reliable, up-to-date research that can easily be accessed both by researchers and the general public.

Family violence scholars from the United States, Canada and the U.K. were invited to conduct an extensive and thorough review of the empirical literature, in 17 broad topic areas. They were asked to conduct a formal search for published, peer-reviewed studies through standard, widely used search programs, and then catalogue and summarize all known research studies relevant to each major topic and its sub-topics. In the interest of thoroughness and transparency, the researchers agreed to summarize all quantitative studies published in peer-reviewed journals after 1990, as well as any major studies published prior to that time, and to clearly specify exclusion criteria. Included studies are organized in extended tables, each table containing summaries of studies relevant to its particular sub-topic.

In this unprecedented undertaking, a total of 42 scholars and 70 research assistants at 20 universities and research institutions spent two years or more researching their topics and writing the results. Approximately 12,000 studies were considered and more than 1,700 were summarized and organized into tables. The 17 manuscripts, which provide a review of findings on each of the topics, for a total of 2,657 pages, appear in 5 consecutive special issues of the peer-reviewed journal Partner Abuse . All conclusions, including the extent to which the research evidence supports or undermines current theories, are based strictly on the data collected.

Contact: [email protected]

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRAININGS

Online CEU Courses - Click Here for More Information

Also see VIDEOS and ADDITIONAL RESEARCH sections below.

Other domestic violence trainings are available at: www.domesticviolenceintervention.net , courtesy of the Association of Domestic Violence Intervention Providers (ADVIP)

Click here for video presentations from the 6-hour ADVIP 2020 International Conference on evidence-based treatment.

NISVS: The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey

Click here for all reports

CLASSIC VIDEO PRESENTATIONS Murray Straus, Ph.D. *  Erin Pizzey  *  Don Dutton, Ph.D. Click Here

Video: the uncomfortable facts on ipv, tonia nicholls, ph.d., video: batterer intervention groups:  moving forward with evidence-based practice, john hamel, ph.d., additional research.

From Other Renowned Scholars and Clinicians.  Click on any name below for research, trainings and expert witness/consultation services

PREVALENCE RATES

Arthur Cantos, Ph.D. University of Texas

Denise Hines, Ph.D. Clark University

Zeev Winstok, Ph.D. University of Haifa (Israel)

CONTEXT OF ABUSE

Don Dutton, Ph.D University of British Columbia (Canada)

K. Daniel O'Leary State University of New York at Stony Brook

Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rohling, Ph.D. University of South Alabama

ABUSE WORLDWIDE ETHNIC/LGBT GROUPS

Fred Buttell, Ph.D. Tulane University

Clare Cannon, Ph.D. University of California, Davis

Vallerie Coleman, Ph.D. Private Practice, Santa Monica, CA

Chiara Sabina, Ph.D. Penn State Harrisburg

Esteban Eugenio Santovena, Ph.D. Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

Christauria Welland, Ph.D. Private Practice, San Diego, CA

RISK FACTORS

Louise Dixon, Ph.D. University of Birmingham (U.K.)

Sandra Stith, Ph.D. Kansas State University

Gregory Stuart, Ph.D. University of Tennessee Knoxville

IMPACT ON VICTIMS AND FAMILIES

Deborah Capaldi, Ph.D. Oregon Social Learning Center

Patrick Davies, Ph.D. University of Rochester

Miriam Ehrensaft, Ph.D. Columbia University Medical Ctr.

Amy Slep, Ph.D. State University of New York at Stony Brook

VICTIM ISSUES

Carol Crabsen, MSW Valley Oasis, Lancaster, CA

Emily Douglas, Ph.D. Bridgewater State University

Leila Dutton, Ph.D. University of New Haven

Margaux Helm WEAVE, Sacramento, CA

Linda Mills, Ph.D. New York University

Brenda Russell, Ph.D. Penn State Berks

CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESPONSES

Ken Corvo, Ph.D. Syracuse University

Jeffrey Fagan, Ph.D. Columbia University

Brenda Russell, Ph.D, Penn State Berks

Stan Shernock, Ph.D. Norwich University

PREVENTION AND TREATMENT

Julia Babcock, Ph.D. University of Houston

Fred Buttell, Ph.D.Tulane University

Michelle Carney, Ph.D. University of Georgia

Christopher Eckhardt, Ph.D. Purdue Univerity

Kimberly Flemke, Ph.D. Drexel University

Nicola Graham-Kevan, Ph.D. Univ. Central Lancashire (U.K.)

Peter Lehmann, Ph.D. University of Texas at Arlingon

Penny Leisring, Ph.D. Quinnipiac University

Christopher Murphy, Ph.D. University of Maryland

Ronald Potter-Efron, Ph.D. Private Practice, Eleva, WI

Daniel Sonkin, Ph.D. Private Practice, Sausalito, CA.

Lynn Stewart, Ph.D. Correctional Service, Canada

Casey Taft, Ph.D Boston University School of Medicine

Jeff Temple, Ph.D. University of Texas Medical Branch

• Frontiers in Psychology
• Gender, Sex and Sexualities
• Research Topics

New Perspectives on Domestic Violence: from Research to Intervention

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In a document dated June 16th 2017, the United States Department of Justice stated that Domestic Violence (DV) has a significant impact not only on those abused, but also on family members, friends, and on the people within the social networks of both the abuser and the victim. In this sense, children who ...

Keywords : domestic violence, intimate partner violence, victims, perpetrators, societal attitudes, gender violence, intervention and prevention, relevant research, same sex intimate partner violence, same sex domestic violence

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Expert Commentary

Domestic violence and abusive relationships: Research review

Research review of data and studies relating to intimate partner violence and abusive relationships.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License .

by John Wihbey, The Journalist's Resource August 17, 2015

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The controversy over NFL star Ray Rice and the instance of domestic violence he perpetrated, which was caught on video camera, stirred wide discussion about sports culture, domestic violence and even the psychology of victims and their complex responses to abuse . In 2015, domestic violence drew a national spotlight again when the South Carolina newspaper, the Post and Courier , won a Pulitzer Prize for its investigation of women who were abused by men and had been dying at a rate of one every 12 days.

The research on domestic violence, referred to more precisely in academic literature as “intimate partner violence” (IPV), has grown substantially over the past few decades. Although knowledge of the problem and its scope have deepened, the issue remains a major health and social problem afflicting women. In November 2014 the World Health Organization estimated that 35% of all women have experienced either intimate partner violence or sexual violence by a non-partner during their lifetimes. This figure is supported by the findings of a 2013 peer-reviewed metastudy — the most rigorous form of research analysis — published in the leading academic journal Science . That metastudy found that “in 2010, 30.0% [95% confidence interval (CI) 27.8 to 32.2%] of women aged 15 and over have experienced, during their lifetime, physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence.” The prevalence found among high-income regions in North America was 21.3%. Of course, under-reporting remains a substantial problem in this research area.

In 2010, the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found that “more than 1 in 3 women (35.6%) … in the United States have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime.” That survey was subsequently updated in September 2014. The findings, based on telephone surveys with more than 12,000 people in 2011, include:

The lifetime prevalence of physical violence by an intimate partner was an estimated 31.5% among women and in the 12 months before taking the survey, an estimated 4.0% of women experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner. An estimated 22.3% of women experienced at least one act of severe physical violence by an intimate partner during their lifetimes. With respect to individual severe physical violence behaviors, being slammed against something was experienced by an estimated 15.4% of women, and being hit with a fist or something hard was experienced by 13.2% of women. In the 12 months before taking the survey, an estimated 2.3% of women experienced at least one form of severe physical violence by an intimate partner.

Still, the overall rates of IPV in the United States have been generally falling over the past two decades, and in 2013 the federal government reauthorized an enhanced Violence Against Women Act , adding further legal protections and broadening the groups covered to include LGBT persons and Native American women. (For research on the relatively higher violence rates among gay men, see the 2012 study “Intimate Partner Violence and Social Pressure among Gay Men in Six Countries.” )

A 2013 study published in the Journal of Marriage and Family , “Women’s Education, Marital Violence, and Divorce: A Social Exchange Perspective,” analyzes a nationally representative sample of more than 900 young U.S. women to look at factors that make females more likely to leave abusive relationships. The researchers, Derek A. Kreager, Richard B. Felson, Cody Warner and Marin R. Wenger, are all at Pennsylvania State University. They note that traditional “social exchange theory” would suggest that as women have more resources, they become less dependent on men and have more opportunities outside relationships, and therefore have more ability to divorce. The study sets out to “determine whether the relationship between a woman’s education and divorce is different in violent marriages.” The researchers also hypothesize that women who have higher levels of education are less likely to get divorced in general — prior academic work they cite supports this — but they aim to see how the introduction of intimate partner violence changes this dynamic.

The study’s findings include:

• The data provide “support for our primary hypotheses that women’s education typically protects against divorce but that this association weakens in abusive marriages. In addition, we found a similar pattern for wives’ proportional income, net of education. Together, these patterns suggest that educational and financial resources benefit women by increasing marital stability in nonabusive marriages and promoting divorce in abusive marriages.”
• Further, the “greater tendency for educated women to leave abusive marriages was substantial. For example, in highly violent marriages, women with a college degree had over a 10% greater probability of divorce in the observed time period than women without a college degree.”
• The study also finds that “women with economic resources were likely to leave unhappy marriages, regardless of whether they involve abuse. Similarly, degree-earning women were more likely than less educated women to leave violent marriages, regardless of their feelings of dissatisfaction.”

The researchers note that, across the U.S. population, more women are attaining college degrees, and given the study’s findings, this suggests “increases in women’s education should reduce rates of domestic violence. In a population with many educated women, violent marriages are likely to break up.” They caution that it is also possible “that our observed patterns reflect husbands’ perceptions and decisions. Perhaps abusive men feel threatened by successful wives, which then increases divorce risk. Nonabusive men may not feel threatened and thus stay with successful women.” On this point, more research is required.

Related research: A 2015 study titled “When War Comes Home: The Effect of Combat Service on Domestic Violence” suggests that multiple deployments and longer deployment lengths may increase the chance of family violence. A June 2014 study published in the  Journal of Interpersonal Violence , “Intimate Partner Violence Before and During Pregnancy: Related Demographic and Psychosocial Factors and Postpartum Depressive Symptoms Among Mexican American Women,”  provides a snapshot of domestic violence in a community sample of low-income Hispanic women. A March 2013 report from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Female Victims of Sexual Violence, 1994-2010,” provides a broad picture of such crimes across American society, examining the demographics of both victims and offenders. Regarding the issue of IPV prevention, a 2003 metastudy published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) , “Interventions for Violence Against Women: Scientific Review,” found that “information about evidence-based approaches in the primary care setting for preventing IPV is seriously lacking…. Specifically, the effectiveness of routine primary care screening remains unclear, since screening studies have not evaluated outcomes beyond the ability of the screening test to identify abused women. Similarly, specific treatment interventions for women exposed to violence, including women’s shelters, have not been adequately evaluated.” Subsequent research continues to find problems with current techniques for screening and detection.

Tags: gender, women and work, crime, sex crimes

About The Author

John Wihbey

• Open access
• Published: 20 June 2023

A qualitative quantitative mixed methods study of domestic violence against women

• Mina Shayestefar 1 ,
• Mohadese Saffari 1 ,
• Razieh Gholamhosseinzadeh 2 ,
• Monir Nobahar 3 , 4 ,
• Majid Mirmohammadkhani 4 ,
• Seyed Hossein Shahcheragh 5 &
• Zahra Khosravi 6  

BMC Women's Health volume  23 , Article number:  322 ( 2023 ) Cite this article

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Violence against women is one of the most widespread, persistent and detrimental violations of human rights in today’s world, which has not been reported in most cases due to impunity, silence, stigma and shame, even in the age of social communication. Domestic violence against women harms individuals, families, and society. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence and experiences of domestic violence against women in Semnan.

This study was conducted as mixed research (cross-sectional descriptive and phenomenological qualitative methods) to investigate domestic violence against women, and some related factors (quantitative) and experiences of such violence (qualitative) simultaneously in Semnan. In quantitative study, cluster sampling was conducted based on the areas covered by health centers from married women living in Semnan since March 2021 to March 2022 using Domestic Violence Questionnaire. Then, the obtained data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics. In qualitative study by phenomenological approach and purposive sampling until data saturation, 9 women were selected who had referred to the counseling units of Semnan health centers due to domestic violence, since March 2021 to March 2022 and in-depth and semi-structured interviews were conducted. The conducted interviews were analyzed using Colaizzi’s 7-step method.

In qualitative study, seven themes were found including “Facilitators”, “Role failure”, “Repressors”, “Efforts to preserve the family”, “Inappropriate solving of family conflicts”, “Consequences”, and “Inefficient supportive systems”. In quantitative study, the variables of age, age difference and number of years of marriage had a positive and significant relationship, and the variable of the number of children had a negative and significant relationship with the total score and all fields of the questionnaire (p < 0.05). Also, increasing the level of female education and income both independently showed a significant relationship with increasing the score of violence.

Conclusions

Some of the variables of violence against women are known and the need for prevention and plans to take action before their occurrence is well felt. Also, supportive mechanisms with objective and taboo-breaking results should be implemented to minimize harm to women, and their children and families seriously.

Peer Review reports

Violence against women by husbands (physical, sexual and psychological violence) is one of the basic problems of public health and violation of women’s human rights. It is estimated that 35% of women and almost one out of every three women aged 15–49 experience physical or sexual violence by their spouse or non-spouse sexual violence in their lifetime [ 1 ]. This is a nationwide public health issue, and nearly every healthcare worker will encounter a patient who has suffered from some type of domestic or family violence. Unfortunately, different forms of family violence are often interconnected. The “cycle of abuse” frequently persists from children who witness it to their adult relationships, and ultimately to the care of the elderly [ 2 ]. This violence includes a range of physical, sexual and psychological actions, control, threats, aggression, abuse, and rape [ 3 ].

Violence against women is one of the most widespread, persistent, and detrimental violations of human rights in today’s world, which has not been reported in most cases due to impunity, silence, stigma and shame, even in the age of social communication [ 3 ]. In the United States of America, more than one in three women (35.6%) experience rape, physical violence, and intimate partner violence (IPV) during their lifetime. Compared to men, women are nearly twice as likely (13.8% vs. 24.3%) to experience severe physical violence such as choking, burns, and threats with knives or guns [ 4 ]. The higher prevalence of violence against women can be due to the situational deprivation of women in patriarchal societies [ 5 ]. The prevalence of domestic violence in Iran reported 22.9%. The maximum of prevalence estimated in Tehran and Zahedan, respectively [ 6 ]. Currently, Iran has high levels of violence against women, and the provinces with the highest rates of unemployment and poverty also have the highest levels of violence against women [ 7 ].

Domestic violence against women harms individuals, families, and society [ 8 ]. Violence against women leads to physical, sexual, psychological harm or suffering, including threats, coercion and arbitrary deprivation of their freedom in public and private life. Also, such violence is associated with harmful effects on women’s sexual reproductive health, including sexually transmitted infection such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), abortion, unsafe childbirth, and risky sexual behaviors [ 9 ]. There are high levels of psychological, sexual and physical domestic abuse among pregnant women [ 10 ]. Also, women with postpartum depression are significantly more likely to experience domestic violence during pregnancy [ 11 ].

Prompt attention to women’s health and rights at all levels is necessary, which reduces this problem and its risk factors [ 12 ]. Because women prefer to remain silent about domestic violence and there is a need to introduce immediate prevention programs to end domestic violence [ 13 ]. violence against women, which is an important public health problem, and concerns about human rights require careful study and the application of appropriate policies [ 14 ]. Also, the efforts to change the circumstances in which women face domestic violence remain significantly insufficient [ 15 ]. Given that few clear studies on violence against women and at the same time interviews with these people regarding their life experiences are available, the authors attempted to planning this research aims to investigate the prevalence and experiences of domestic violence against women in Semnan with the research question of “What is the prevalence of domestic violence against women in Semnan, and what are their experiences of such violence?”, so that their results can be used in part of the future planning in the health system of the society.

This study is a combination of cross-sectional and phenomenology studies in order to investigate the amount of domestic violence against women and some related factors (quantitative) and their experience of this violence (qualitative) simultaneously in the Semnan city. This study has been approved by the ethics committee of Semnan University of Medical Sciences with ethic code of IR.SEMUMS.REC.1397.182. The researcher introduced herself to the research participants, explained the purpose of the study, and then obtained informed written consent. It was assured to the research units that the collected information will be anonymous and kept confidential. The participants were informed that participation in the study was entirely voluntary, so they can withdraw from the study at any time with confidence. The participants were notified that more than one interview session may be necessary. To increase the trustworthiness of the study, Guba and Lincoln’s criteria for rigor, including credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability [ 16 ], were applied throughout the research process. The COREQ checklist was used to assess the present study quality. The researchers used observational notes for reflexivity and it preserved in all phases of this qualitative research process.

Qualitative method

Based on the phenomenological approach and with the purposeful sampling method, nine women who had referred to the counseling units of healthcare centers in Semnan city due to domestic violence in February 2021 to March 2022 were participated in the present study. The inclusion criteria for the study included marriage, a history of visiting a health center consultant due to domestic violence, and consent to participate in the study and unwillingness to participate in the study was the exclusion criteria. Each participant invited to the study by a telephone conversation about study aims and researcher information. The interviews place selected through agreement of the participant and the researcher and a place with the least environmental disturbance. Before starting each interview, the informed consent and all of the ethical considerations, including the purpose of the research, voluntary participation, confidentiality of the information were completely explained and they were asked to sign the written consent form. The participants were interviewed by depth, semi-structured and face-to-face interviews based on the main research question. Interviews were conducted by a female health services researcher with a background in nursing (M.Sh.). Data collection was continued until the data saturation and no new data appeared. Only the participants and the researcher were present during the interviews. All interviews were recorded by a MP3 Player by permission of the participants before starting. Interviews were not repeated. No additional field notes were taken during or after the interview.

The age range of the participants was from 38 to 55 years and their average age was 40 years. The sociodemographic characteristics of the participants are summarized in table below (Table  1 ).

Five interviews in the courtyards of healthcare centers, 2 interviews in the park, and 2 interviews at the participants’ homes were conducted. The duration of the interviews varied from 45 min to one hour. The main research question was “What is your experience about domestic violence?“. According to the research progress some other questions were asked in line with the main question of the research.

The conducted interviews were analyzed by using the 7 steps Colizzi’s method [ 17 ]. In order to empathize with the participants, each interview was read several times and transcribed. Then two researchers (M.Sh. and M.N.) extracted the phrases that were directly related to the phenomenon of domestic violence against women independently and distinguished from other sentences by underlining them. Then these codes were organized into thematic clusters and the formulated concepts were sorted into specific thematic categories.

In the final stage, in order to make the data reliable, the researcher again referred to 2 participants and checked their agreement with their perceptions of the content. Also, possible important contents were discussed and clarified, and in this way, agreement and approval of the samples was obtained.

Quantitative method

The cross-sectional study was implemented from February 2021 to March 2022 with cluster sampling of married women in areas of 3 healthcare centers in Semnan city. Those participants who were married and agreed with the written and verbal informed consent about the ethical considerations were included to the study. The questionnaire was completed by the participants in paper and online form.

The instrument was the standard questionnaire of domestic violence against women by Mohseni Tabrizi et al. [ 18 ]. In the questionnaire, questions 1–10, 11–36, 37–65 and 66–71 related to sociodemographic information, types of spousal abuse (psychological, economical, physical and sexual violence), patriarchal beliefs and traditions and family upbringing and learning violence, respectively. In total, this questionnaire has 71 items.

The scoring of the questionnaire has two parts and the answers to them are based on the Likert scale. Questions 11–36 and 66–71 are answered with always [ 4 ] to never (0) and questions 37–65 with completely agree [ 4 ] to completely disagree (0). The minimum and maximum score is 0 and 300, respectively. The total score of 0–60, 61–120 and higher than 121 demonstrates low, moderate and severe domestic violence against women, respectively [ 18 ].

In the study by Tabrizi et al., to evaluate the validity and reliability of this questionnaire, researchers tried to measure the face validity of the scale by the previous research. Those items and questions which their accuracies were confirmed by social science professors and experts used in the research, finally. The total Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.183, which confirmed that the reliability of the questions and items of the questionnaire is sufficient [ 18 ].

Descriptive data were reported using mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage. Then, to measure the relationship between the variables, χ2 and Pearson tests also variance and regression analysis were performed. All analysis were performed by using SPSS version 26 and the significance level was considered as p < 0.05.

Qualitative results

According to the third step of Colaizzi’s 7-step method, the researcher attempted to conceptualize and formulate the extracted meanings. In this step, the primary codes were extracted from the important sentences related to the phenomenon of violence against women, which were marked by underlining, which are shown below as examples of this stage and coding.

The primary code of indifference to the father’s role was extracted from the following sentences. This is indifference in the role of the father in front of the children.

“Some time ago, I told him that our daughter is single-sided deaf. She has a doctor’s appointment; I have to take her to the doctor. He said that I don’t have money to give you. He doesn’t force himself to make money anyway” (p 2, 33 yrs).

“He didn’t value his own children. He didn’t think about his older children” (p 4, 54 yrs).

The primary code extracted here included lack of commitment in the role of head of the household. This is irresponsibility towards the family and meeting their needs.

“My husband was fired from work after 10 years due to disorder and laziness. Since then, he has not found a suitable job. Every time he went to work, he was fired after a month because of laziness” (p 7, 55 yrs).

“In the evening, he used to get dressed and go out, and he didn’t come back until late. Some nights, I was so afraid of being alone that I put a knife under my pillow when I slept” (p 2, 33 yrs).

A total of 246 primary codes were extracted from the interviews in the third step. In the fourth step, the researchers put the formulated concepts (primary codes) into 85 specific sub-categories.

Twenty-three categories were extracted from 85 sub-categories. In the sixth step, the concepts of the fifth step were integrated and formed seven themes (Table  2 ).

These themes included “Facilitators”, “Role failure”, “Repressors”, “Efforts to preserve the family”, “Inappropriate solving of family conflicts”, “Consequences”, and “Inefficient supportive systems” (Fig.  1 ).

Themes of domestic violence against women

Some of the statements of the participants on the theme of “ Facilitators” are listed below:

Husband’s criminal record

“He got his death sentence for drugs. But, at last it was ended for 10 years” (p 4, 54 yrs).

Inappropriate age for marriage

“At the age of thirteen, I married a boy who was 25 years old” (p 8, 25 yrs).

“My first husband obeyed her parents. I was 12–13 years old” (p 3, 32 yrs).

“I couldn’t do anything. I was humiliated” (p 1, 38 yrs).

“A bridegroom came. The mother was against. She said, I am young. My older sister is not married yet, but I was eager to get married. I don’t know, maybe my father’s house was boring for me” (p 2, 33 yrs).

“My parents used to argue badly. They blamed each other and I always wanted to run away from these arguments. I didn’t have the patience to talk to mom or dad and calm them down” (p 5, 39 yrs).

Overdependence

“My husband’s parents don’t stop interfering, but my husband doesn’t say anything because he is a student of his father. My husband is self-employed and works with his father on a truck” (p 8, 25 yrs).

“Every time I argue with my husband because of lack of money, my mother-in-law supported her son and brought him up very spoiled and lazy” (p 7, 55 yrs).

Bitter memories

“After three years, my mother married her friend with my uncle’s insistence and went to Shiraz. But, his condition was that she did not have the right to bring his daughter with her. In fact, my mother also got married out of necessity” (p 8, 25 yrs).

Some of their other statements related to “ Role failure” are mentioned below:

Lack of commitment to different roles

“I got angry several times and went to my father’s house because of my husband’s bad financial status and the fact that he doesn’t feel responsible to work and always says that he cannot find a job” (p 6, 48 yrs).

“I saw that he does not want to change in any way” (p 4, 54 yrs).

“No matter how kind I am, it does not work” (p 1, 38 yrs).

Some of their other statements regarding “ Repressors” are listed below:

Fear and silence

“My mother always forced me to continue living with my husband. Finally, my father had been poor. She all said that you didn’t listen to me when you wanted to get married, so you don’t have the right to get angry and come to me, I’m miserable enough” (p 2, 33 yrs).

“Because I suffered a lot in my first marital life. I was very humiliated. I said I would be fine with that. To be kind” (p1, 38 yrs).

“Well, I tell myself that he gets angry sometimes” (p 3, 32 yrs).

Shame from society

“I don’t want my daughter-in-law to know. She is not a relative” (p 4, 54 yrs).

Some of the statements of the participants regarding the theme of “ Efforts to preserve the family” are listed below:

Hope and trust

“I always hope in God and I am patient” (p 2, 33 yrs).

Efforts for children

“My divorce took a month. We got a divorce. I forgave my dowry and took my children instead” (p 2, 33 yrs).

Some of their other statements regarding the “ Inappropriate solving of family conflicts” are listed below:

Child-bearing thoughts

“My husband wanted to take me to a doctor to treat me. But my father-in-law refused and said that instead of doing this and spending money, marry again. Marriage in the clans was much easier than any other work” (p 8, 25 yrs).

Lack of effective communication

“I was nervous about him, but I didn’t say anything” (p 5, 39 yrs).

“Now I am satisfied with my life and thank God it is better to listen to people’s words. Now there is someone above me so that people don’t talk behind me” (p 2, 33 yrs).

Some of their other statements regarding the “ Consequences” are listed below:

Harm to children

“My eldest daughter, who was about 7–8 years old, behaved differently. Oh, I was angry. My children are mentally depressed and argue” (p 5, 39 yrs).

After divorce

“Even though I got a divorce, my mother and I came to a remote area due to the fear of what my family would say” (p 2, 33 yrs).

Social harm

“I work at a retirement center for living expenses” (p 2, 33 yrs).

“I had to go to clean the houses” (p 5, 39 yrs).

Non-acceptance in the family

“The children’s relationship with their father became bad. Because every time they saw their father sitting at home smoking, they got angry” (p 7, 55 yrs).

Emotional harm

“When I look back, I regret why I was not careful in my choice” (p 7, 55 yrs).

“I felt very bad. For being married to a man who is not bound by the family and is capricious” (p 9, 36 yrs).

Some of their other statements regarding “ Inefficient supportive systems” are listed below:

Inappropriate family support

“We didn’t have children. I was at my father’s house for about a month. After a month, when I came home, I saw that my husband had married again. I cried a lot that day. He said, God, I had to. I love you. My heart is broken, I have no one to share my words” (p 8, 25 yrs).

“My brother-in-law was like himself. His parents had also died. His sister did not listen at all” (p 4, 54 yrs).

“I didn’t have anyone and I was alone” (p 1, 38 yrs).

Inefficiency of social systems

“That day he argued with me, picked me up and threw me down some stairs in the middle of the yard. He came closer, sat on my stomach, grabbed my neck with both of his hands and wanted to strangle me. Until a long time later, I had kidney problems and my neck was bruised by her hand. Given that my aunt and her family were with us in a building, but she had no desire to testify and was afraid” (p 3, 32 yrs).

Undesired training and advice

“I told my mother, you just said no, how old I was? You never insisted on me and you didn’t listen to me that this man is not good for you” (p 9, 36 yrs).

Quantitative results

In the present study, 376 married women living in Semnan city participated in this study. The mean age of participants was 38.52 ± 10.38 years. The youngest participant was 18 and the oldest was 73 years old. The maximum age difference was 16 years. The years of marriage varied from one year to 40 years. Also, the number of children varied from no children to 7. The majority of them had 2 children (109, 29%). The sociodemographic characteristics of the participants are summarized in the table below (Table  3 ).

The frequency distribution (number and percentage) of the participants in terms of the level of violence was as follows. 89 participants (23.7%) had experienced low violence, 59 participants (15.7%) had experienced moderate violence, and 228 participants (60.6%) had experienced severe violence.

Cronbach’s alpha for the reliability of the questionnaire was 0.988. The mean and standard deviation of the total score of the questionnaire was 143.60 ± 74.70 with a range of 3-244. The relationship between the total score of the questionnaire and its fields, and some demographic variables is summarized in the table below (Table  4 ).

As shown in the table above, the variables of age, age difference and number of years of marriage have a positive and significant relationship, and the variable of number of children has a negative and significant relationship with the total score and all fields of the questionnaire (p < 0.05). However, the variable of education level difference showed no significant relationship with the total score and any of the fields. Also, the highest average score is related to patriarchal beliefs compared to other fields.

The comparison of the average total scores separately according to each variable showed the significant average difference in the variables of the previous marriage history of the woman, the result of the previous marriage of the woman, the education of the woman, the education of the man, the income of the woman, the income of the man, and the physical disease of the man (p < 0.05).

In the regression model, two variables remained in the final model, indicating the relationship between the variables and violence score and the importance of these two variables. An increase in women’s education and income level both independently show a significant relationship with an increase in violence score (Table  5 ).

The results of analysis of variance to compare the scores of each field of violence in the subgroups of the participants also showed that the experience and result of the woman’s previous marriage has a significant relationship with physical violence and tradition and family upbringing, the experience of the man’s previous marriage has a significant relationship with patriarchal belief, the education level of the woman has a significant relationship with all fields and the level of education of the man has a significant relationship with all fields except tradition and family upbringing (p < 0.05).

According to the results of both quantitative and qualitative studies, variables such as the young age of the woman and a large age difference are very important factors leading to an increase in violence. At a younger age, girls are afraid of the stigma of society and family, and being forced to remain silent can lead to an increase in domestic violence. As Gandhi et al. (2021) stated in their study in the same field, a lower marriage age leads to many vulnerabilities in women. Early marriage is a global problem associated with a wide range of health and social consequences, including violence for adolescent girls and women [ 12 ]. Also, Ahmadi et al. (2017) found similar findings, reporting a significant association among IPV and women age ≤ 40 years [ 19 ].

Two others categories of “Facilitators” in the present study were “Husband’s criminal record” and “Overdependence” which had a sub-category of “Forced cohabitation”. Ahmadi et al. (2017) reported in their population-based study in Iran that husband’s addiction and rented-householders have a significant association with IPV [ 19 ].

The patriarchal beliefs, which are rooted in the tradition and culture of society and family upbringing, scored the highest in relation to domestic violence in this study. On the other hand, in qualitative study, “Normalcy” of men’s anger and harassment of women in society is one of the “Repressors” of women to express violence. In the quantitative study, the increase in the women’s education and income level were predictors of the increase in violence. Although domestic violence is more common in some sections of society, women with a wide range of ages, different levels of education, and at different levels of society face this problem, most of which are not reported. Bukuluki et al. (2021) showed that women who agreed that it is good for a man to control his partner were more likely to experience physical violence [ 20 ].

Domestic violence leads to “Consequences” such as “Harm to children”, “Emotional harm”, “Social harm” to women and even “Non-acceptance in their own family”. Because divorce is a taboo in Iranian culture and the fear of humiliating women forces them to remain silent against domestic violence. Balsarkar (2021) stated that the fear of violence can prevent women from continuing their studies, working or exercising their political rights [ 8 ]. Also, Walker-Descarte et al. (2021) recognized domestic violence as a type of child maltreatment, and these abusive behaviors are associated with mental and physical health consequences [ 21 ].

On the other hand and based on the “Lack of effective communication” category, ignoring the role of the counselor in solving family conflicts and challenges in the life of couples in the present study was expressed by women with reasons such as lack of knowledge and family resistance to counseling. Several pathologies are needed to investigate increased domestic violence in situations such as during women’s pregnancy or infertility. Because the use of counseling for couples as a suitable solution should be considered along with their life challenges. Lin et al. (2022) stated that pregnant women were exposed to domestic violence for low birth weight in full term delivery. Spouse violence screening in the perinatal health care system should be considered important, especially for women who have had full-term low birth weight infants [ 22 ].

Also, lack of knowledge and low level of education have been found as other factors of violence in this study, which is very prominent in both qualitative and quantitative studies. Because the social systems and information about the existing laws should be followed properly in society to act as a deterrent. Psychological training and especially anger control and resilience skills during education at a younger age for girls and boys should be included in educational materials to determine the positive results in society in the long term. Manouchehri et al. (2022) stated that it seems necessary to train men about the negative impact of domestic violence on the current and future status of the family [ 23 ]. Balsarkar (2021) also stated that men and women who have not had the opportunity to question gender roles, attitudes and beliefs cannot change such things. Women who are unaware of their rights cannot claim. Governments and organizations cannot adequately address these issues without access to standards, guidelines and tools [ 8 ]. Machado et al. (2021) also stated that gender socialization reinforces gender inequalities and affects the behavior of men and women. So, highlighting this problem in different fields, especially in primary health care services, is a way to prevent IPV against women [ 24 ].

There was a sub-category of “Inefficiency of social systems” in the participants experiences. Perhaps the reason for this is due to insufficient education and knowledge, or fear of seeking help. Holmes et al. (2022) suggested the importance of ascertaining strategies to improve victims’ experiences with the court, especially when victims’ requests are not met, to increase future engagement with the system [ 25 ]. Sigurdsson (2019) revealed that despite high prevalence numbers, IPV is still a hidden and underdiagnosed problem and neither general practitioner nor our communities are as well prepared as they should be [ 26 ]. Moreira and Pinto da Costa (2021) found that while victims of domestic violence often agree with mandatory reporting, various concerns are still expressed by both victims and healthcare professionals that require further attention and resolution [ 27 ]. It appears that legal and ethical issues in this regard require comprehensive evaluation from the perspectives of victims, their families, healthcare workers, and legal experts. By doing so, better practical solutions can be found to address domestic violence, leading to a downward trend in its occurrence.

Some of the variables of violence against women have been identified and emphasized in many studies, highlighting the necessity of policymaking and social pathology in society to prevent and use operational plans to take action before their occurrence. Breaking the taboo of domestic violence and promoting divorce as a viable solution after counseling to receive objective results should be implemented seriously to minimize harm to women, children, and their families.

Limitations

Domestic violence against women is an important issue in Iranian society that women resist showing and expressing, making researchers take a long-term process of sampling in both qualitative and quantitative studies. The location of the interview and the women’s fear of their husbands finding out about their participation in this study have been other challenges of the researchers, which, of course, they attempted to minimize by fully respecting ethical considerations. Despite the researchers’ efforts, their personal and professional experiences, as well as the studies reviewed in the literature review section, may have influenced the study results.

Data Availability

Data and materials will be available upon email to the corresponding author.

Abbreviations

Intimate Partner Violence

Human Immunodeficiency Virus

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Acknowledgements

The authors of this study appreciate the Deputy for Research and Technology of Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Social Determinants of Health Research Center of Semnan University of Medical Sciences and all the participants in this study.

Research deputy of Semnan University of Medical Sciences financially supported this project.

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Contributions

M.Sh. contributed to the first conception and design of this research; M.Sh., Z.Kh., M.S., R.Gh. and S.H.Sh. contributed to collect data; M.N. and M.Sh. contributed to the analysis of the qualitative data; M.M. and M.Sh. contributed to the analysis of the quantitative data; M.SH., M.N. and M.M. contributed to the interpretation of the data; M.Sh., M.S. and S.H.Sh. wrote the manuscript. M.Sh. prepared the final version of manuscript for submission. All authors reviewed the manuscript meticulously and approved it. All names of the authors were listed in the title page.

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Correspondence to Mina Shayestefar .

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This article is resulted from a research approved by the Vice Chancellor for Research of Semnan University of Medical Sciences with ethics code of IR.SEMUMS.REC.1397.182 in the Social Determinants of Health Research Center. The authors confirmed that all methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations. All participants accepted the participation in the present study. The researchers introduced themselves to the research units, explained the purpose of the research to them and then all participants signed the written informed consent. The research units were assured that the collected information was anonymous. The participant was informed that participating in the study was completely voluntary so that they can safely withdraw from the study at any time and also the availability of results upon their request.

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Shayestefar, M., Saffari, M., Gholamhosseinzadeh, R. et al. A qualitative quantitative mixed methods study of domestic violence against women. BMC Women's Health 23 , 322 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-023-02483-0

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Domestic Violence Statistics 2024

Author: Milena J. Wisniewska | Last updated: August 29, 2024 Fact-checked | Cite this webpage

Report highlights. In the United States, nearly every 1 in 2 women and more than 2 in 5 men reported experiencing intimate partner violence at some point in their lifetime. 

Here are some critical facts:

• Nearly every 1 in 2 women in the United States is going to face physical violence from an intimate partner at some point in their lives. [ 1 ]
• More than 16 million people in the U.S. suffer from intimate partner abuse per year. [ 2 ]
• Every minute 32 people experience intimate partner violence in the United States. [ 3 ]
• 1 in 4 men in the United States has endured severe physical violence from an intimate partner. [ 4 ]
• Over 47% of women have encountered contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. [ 5 ]

How Many Women Experience Domestic Violence? 

Domestic violence continues to profoundly affect the lives of countless women across the United States, remaining a persistent and critical issue.

According to a series of reports from the 2016/2017 data years of the National Intimate Partner Violence Survey (NISVS):

• Nearly every 1 in 2 women in the United States will face physical violence from an intimate partner at some point in their lives. [ 6 ]
• Almost 1 in 5 women in the United States reported any contact sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 7 ]
• Slightly more than 2 in 5 women in the United States reported experiencing any physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 8 ]
• Almost 40 million women reported being slapped, pushed, or shoved. [ 9 ]
• Almost half of all women reported any psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 10 ]

How Common Is Domestic Violence?

Domestic violence is alarmingly common in the United States, affecting millions of individuals each year. NISVS reports:

• More than 16 million people in the U.S. suffer from intimate partner abuse per year. [ 11 ]
• Every minute 32 people experience intimate partner violence in the United States. [ 12 ]
• Nearly every 1 in 2 women and more than 2 in 5 men reported experiencing intimate partner violence at some point in their lifetime. [ 13 ]

What Percentage of Domestic Violence Victims Are Female? 

Data leaves no doubt: Domestic violence predominantly impacts women. According to a report published by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in 2009: 

• 85% of domestic violence victims are women. [ 14 ]

How Many Women Die From Domestic Violence? 

• Around 75% of fatal victims of domestic violence are women. [ 15 ]
• In 2007, 24% of female homicide victims were killed by a spouse or ex-spouse. [ 16 ]
• By 2019, nearly 4 women were murdered daily by intimate partners. [ 17 ]

Domestic Violence Rates Over Time

Domestic violence statistics over the years paint a grim picture, revealing the persistent and escalating nature of the issue:

• In 2000, a U.S. Department of Justice report indicated that 1.3% of women and 0.9% of men experienced domestic violence in the past year. [ 18 ]
• By 2019, nearly 4 women were murdered daily by intimate partners, reflecting an increase since 2014 after decades of decline. [ 19 ]
• Each year, about 2.3 million people are raped or physically assaulted by a current or former partner. [ 20 ]
• Victimization rates vary by race, with White and Black women more frequently victims of beatings than Asian or Hispanic women. [ 21 ]

Domestic Violence Statistics From the CDC

• Nearly every 1 in 2 women in the United States will face physical violence from an intimate partner at some point in their lives. [ 22 ]
• Almost 1 in 5 women in the United States reported any contact sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 23 ]
• Slightly more than 2 in 5 women in the United States reported experiencing any physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 24 ]
• Almost 40 million women reported being slapped, pushed, or shoved. [ 25 ]
• Almost half of all women reported any psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime. [ 26 ]
• More than 16 million people in the U.S. suffer from intimate partner abuse per year. [ 27 ]
• Every minute, 32 people experience intimate partner violence in the United States (based on annualized report results). [ 28 ]
• 1 in 4 men in the United States has endured severe physical violence from an intimate partner. [ 29 ]
• Over 47% of women have encountered contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. [ 30 ]
• Leemis, R. W., Friar, N., Khatiwada, S., Chen, M. S., Kresnow, M., Smith, S. G., Caslin, S., & Basile, K. C. (2022). The national intimate partner and sexual violence survey: 2016/2017 report on intimate partner violence . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/nisvs/documentation/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf ↩︎
• Catalano, S., Smith, E., Snyder, H., & Rand, M. (2009). Female victims of violence (NCJ 228356). Bureau of Justice Statistics. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/fvv.pdf ↩︎
• Catalano, S., Smith, E., Snyder, H., & Rand, M. (2009). Female victims of violence (NCJ 228356). Bureau of Justice Statistics. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pd ↩︎
• Fridel, E. E., & Fox, J. A. (2019). Gender differences in patterns and trends in US homicide, 1976–2017. Violence and Gender, 6 (1), 27–36. https://doi.org/10.1089/vio.2019.0005 ↩︎
• Tjaden, P. G. (2000). Full report of the prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey . US Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice. https://books.google.com/books/download/Full_Report_of_the_Prevalence_Incidence.pdf?id=1ErTLeIq8ccC&output=pdf ↩︎
• The Violence Against Women Act of 2005, Summary of Provisions. 42 U.S.C. §§ 13925–14045d. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/house-bill/3402 ↩︎
• Stockman, J. K., Hayashi, H., & Campbell, J. C. (2015). Intimate partner violence and its health impact on ethnic minority women [Corrected]. Journal of Women’s Health (Larchmt), 24 (1), 62–79. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2014.4879 ↩︎

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Employing Research To Understand Violence Against Women

Fifty years ago, violence against women, and domestic violence in particular, was not considered a criminal justice concern in this country. It was largely viewed as a personal matter, best dealt with privately within families.

With a sweeping reinvestment in criminal justice reform in the 1960s, the women’s movement of the 1960s and 1970s, and efforts in the late 1980s and 1990s that led to passage of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994, violence against women entered the public consciousness in the United States. It began to be recognized as a serious public health and public safety problem that warranted criminal justice system intervention.

Over the past 50 years, NIJ has established and expanded a strong program that addresses violence against women. Its portfolio has funded more than $130 million in research on intimate partner violence, sexual violence, stalking, teen dating violence, and other related topics. NIJ-funded initiatives have also helped finance the testing of previously unsubmitted sexual assault kits and establish best practices in testing these kits.

Kristina Rose, a former NIJ acting director who worked on violence against women issues throughout her 19 years with the U.S. Department of Justice, summed up NIJ’s influence: “When it comes to violence against women, NIJ has been brave and pioneering across the spectrum of issues to help people understand what we know about violence against women, including what the criminal justice response should look like.”

Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment

In the wake of national attention surrounding violence against women in the 1970s and early 1980s, NIJ funded a randomized controlled trial experiment in Minneapolis that examined various law enforcement responses to domestic violence. [1] In 1984, the results of the Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment indicated that spending a night in jail significantly reduced the risk that a person would commit a future act of domestic violence. As a result, many police departments across the country implemented pro-arrest or mandatory arrest policies in domestic violence situations.

Given the findings and the implications for law enforcement, NIJ funded six replication studies, beginning in 1986. These studies showed contradictory results, which underscored the importance of replicating research studies. Replication ensures that results are valid, reliable, and generalizable.

Although replications found mixed results, the Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment marked a significant change in how law enforcement approached intimate partner violence.

“This was the first time there was a shift in how the criminal justice system thought about and responded to domestic violence,” says Angela Moore, senior science advisor and social scientist at NIJ.

Nearly 40 years later, the Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment is still frequently cited as a pivotal study.

The Violence Against Women Act

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) of 1994 was landmark legislation that created legal protections for victims of domestic and sexual violence and established funding streams for responding to these crimes. Filling critical resource gaps in every state, VAWA grant programs support law enforcement agencies, prosecutors’ offices, courts, domestic violence shelters, and rape crisis centers in serving victims and holding persons who commit violent acts against women accountable. VAWA also expanded the scope and scale of U.S. research on violence against women and led to a significant expansion of NIJ’s major research and evaluation efforts in the field.

“VAWA was an impetus,” says Moore. “We did some work on violence against women before the Act, but the funding NIJ received as a result of VAWA helped us spring forward and gave rise to the program we have today.”

VAWA was reauthorized in 2000, 2005, and 2013, and separate legislation in 2002 established the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), a Department of Justice agency responsible for leading the implementation of VAWA grant programs.

“Thanks to funding administered by OVW, communities have developed coordinated responses to crimes of violence against women,” says OVW Acting Director Katharine Sullivan. “Justice system professionals, victim services providers, and other community partners have used these grants to work together to ensure that victims get the help they need and that dangerous persons are stopped from committing more crimes. These coordinated community responses have transformed how domestic violence is treated in the criminal and civil justice systems and sparked innovative prevention efforts like Maryland’s Lethality Assessment Program to reduce domestic violence homicides.”

In 1998, NIJ began receiving designated VAWA funds for research on violence against women. Funding allocations varied by year — ranging from $7 million in 1998 to $1.88 million in 2008 and 2009 — with a current allocation of $3 million to $5 million each fiscal year. This steady stream of funds from OVW has helped NIJ study the nature and scope of violence against women and the effectiveness of strategies for combatting these crimes. Knowledge generated through NIJ’s Violence Against Women program informs efforts within the Department of Justice and in communities across the nation to protect victims and bring those who commit violent acts against women to justice.

Collecting Representative Data

Despite the considerable number of studies on violence against women that were conducted in the 1980s and 1990s, there remained a critical need to understand the magnitude and nature of intimate partner violence, sexual violence, and stalking in a way that would provide accurate and reliable data. Surveys that frame questions within the context of crime do not necessarily provide representative data on respondents’ experiences with violence against women, in part because people do not always self-identify as victims of crime.

To address this research gap, in 2000 NIJ partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the National Violence Against Women Survey (NVAWS). [2] The survey revealed that more than half of the surveyed women reported being physically assaulted at some point in their lives, and nearly two-thirds of women who reported being raped, physically assaulted, or stalked were victimized by intimate partners.

For two reasons, this survey has been consistently cited as a more reliable representation of rates of violence against women than surveys that frame victimization within the context of crime. First, the NVAWS did not rely solely on reported offenses because the vast majority of crimes go unreported. Second, the survey was designed to ask detailed, behavior-specific questions about respondents’ victimization experiences. By asking questions that avoid legal terms (for example, “rape”) and instead asking about a suspect’s specific behaviors (for example, “slapped,” “pushed,” and “shoved”), the survey avoided attributing blame or labeling respondents as victims.

The NVAWS was one of many NIJ-CDC collaborations to address violence against women. As a result, NIJ was able to bring a public health perspective to its work, alongside its inherent focus on public safety. NIJ again collaborated with CDC, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense Family Advocacy Program, to develop the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS); the first survey report was produced in 2011. [3] CDC continues to administer the NISVS to capture data about violence against women and men, and the survey has become one of the most frequently cited data sets in the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data.

Research After VAWA

VAWA mandated that the Department of Justice work in partnership with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to develop a research agenda for violence against women. The 1996 NAS report Understanding Violence Against Women was instrumental in shaping the direction of NIJ’s violence against women research portfolio. Subsequent NAS reports, along with strategic planning workshops and other input, have also informed program goals and direction.

Intimate Partner Violence

Through grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts supported by VAWA funding, NIJ has supported more than 200 studies on intimate partner violence — accounting for nearly half of the agency’s total funding allocations for violence against women research since 1993. Over this period, rates of intimate partner homicides have dropped nearly 30 percent as public awareness of intimate partner violence and policy responses have grown. [4] In 2016, NIJ hosted a meeting with prominent researchers and criminal justice practitioners to inform the Institute’s research agenda moving forward.

NIJ-funded studies on intimate partner violence have focused on definition and measurement, victims and those who commit the violent act, impacts on children, contexts and consequences, civil and criminal justice interventions, and processes used to respond to these crimes. This research has found links between intimate partner violence and early parenthood, severe poverty, and unemployment and has shown that understanding the demographic differences among victims and person who abuse their partner helps predict which interventions will be successful in specific groups.

Violence Against Women in Special Populations

Violence against women is a multifaceted issue that affects populations on many levels. NIJ’s broad name for its violence against women program — the Violence Against Women and Family Violence Research and Evaluation Program [5] — helped make it possible for NIJ to fund research on a wide range of topics related to violence against women, including trauma and the impact on children exposed to violence. This work also gave rise to a focus on teen dating violence and the maltreatment of elderly adults.

“There’s a lot of research that talks about the intergenerational aspects of violence against women,” says Moore. “It’s important to study these other facets of violence because they can have a tremendous impact within families, communities, and society as a whole.”

Building on a long history of research in the area of intimate partner violence, NIJ’s teen dating violence research portfolio grew out of a recognition that the field needed to explore how to prevent dating violence in populations younger than adults. NIJ has funded nearly three dozen studies on teen dating violence since the portfolio was established in 2005. NIJ also sponsored an interagency working group on teen dating violence in 2006. [6]

VAWA reauthorizations in 2005 and 2013 called for NIJ, in consultation with OVW, to conduct analyses and research on violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women in Indian Country. NIJ focused subsequent research on dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking, stalking, and murder in these communities. NIJ-funded research also evaluated the effectiveness of federal, state, tribal, and local responses to violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women. As part of the NIJ-CDC partnership, NIJ funded an oversampling of American Indian and Alaska Native women and men in 2010. The data revealed that four out of five American Indian and Alaska Native women in the United States have experienced violence in their lifetimes, and that these women find it much more difficult than other populations to access victim services. [7]

NIJ has funded dozens of additional studies to examine violence against women in specific populations, including disabled, elderly, and homeless persons; recipients of welfare; immigrants; incarcerated individuals; and various racial, cultural, and ethnic groups.

Sexual Violence

NIJ supported its first sexual violence research project in 1973, but the agency’s research on sexual violence dramatically expanded in the 1990s after the passage of VAWA. The first solicitation that focused exclusively on sexual violence was issued in 2002, when NIJ-funded research provided the first comprehensive national look at rape and sexual assault on college campuses.

NIJ has also done groundbreaking work to assist in the processing of sexual assault evidence nationally. In 2011, NIJ funded action-research projects in Houston, Texas, and Wayne County, Michigan, to help understand the nature and scope of untested sexual assault kits and to identify effective, sustainable, victim-centric responses to sexual assault. Additionally, through an NIJ-FBI partnership, the FBI laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, tested thousands of previously untested sexual assault kits from across the country, and NIJ convened the NIJ Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Reporting (SAFER) working group. Information gleaned from these efforts contributed to the creation of the publication National Best Practices for Sexual Assault Kits: A Multidisciplinary Approach, which NIJ released in 2017. [8]

NIJ is also evaluating the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). The action-research projects in Houston, Wayne County, and other jurisdictions helped inform and establish the multidisciplinary nature of SAKI and underscored the need for collaboration between multiple components of the criminal justice system on sexual assault kit testing.

NIJ’s preliminary research in this area examined the stalking of members of Congress and celebrities in the 1980s. In 1993, NIJ was directed to develop a model anti-stalking code. NIJ has funded five projects on stalking, but this remains the least funded research topic in NIJ’s violence against women program, in part because of the difficulty of measuring and capturing reliable data on the subject.

Disseminating Results

NIJ-funded researchers have published scholarly articles related to violence against women in more than 50 different journals. The NIJ Journal has been an additional platform to disseminate research results, and a special issue of the Violence Against Women journal in 2013 highlighted NIJ’s programs. [9] NIJ’s Compendium of Research on Violence Against Women spans nearly 300 pages and includes summary information on all research related to violence against women from 1993 to the present, with links to study reports and manuscripts. [10]

NIJ releases an annual solicitation and has more than 50 active research projects on violence against women.

“All of NIJ’s work aims to respond to the needs and questions of the criminal justice field,” says Moore. “NIJ has funded work that has transformed the evidence base around what we know in regard to violence against women. We have come a long way since the Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment and the early days of our violence against women work. What hasn’t changed over the past 50 years is our commitment to funding research to better understand violence against women and how best to combat it moving forward.”

About This Article

This article was published as part of NIJ Journal issue number 281 , released May 2019.

[note 1] In this article, the terms “domestic violence” and “intimate partner violence” can be considered synonyms. NIJ now uses the more inclusive term “intimate partner violence,” which does not imply that this violence occurs exclusively within a domestic setting.

[note 2] National Institute of Justice, Full Report of the Prevalence, Incidence, and Consequences of Violence Against Women: Findings From the National Violence Against Women Survey , Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, November 2000, NCJ 183781.

[note 3] “ The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) ,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, updated September 19, 2018.

[note 4] See Intimate Partner Violence: Interventions .

[note 5] See Violence Against Women and Family Violence Program .

[note 6] For more information on the NIJ teen dating violence research portfolio, see Teen Dating Violence .

[note 7] André B. Rosay, Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Native Women and Men: 2010 Findings From the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey , Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, May 2016, NCJ 249736.

[note 8] National Institute of Justice, National Best Practices for Sexual Assault Kits: A Multidisciplinary Approach , Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 2017, NCJ 250384.

[note 9] Bernard Auchter, ed., “The Violence Against Women Research and Evaluation Program at the National Institute of Justice,” special issue, Violence Against Women 19 no. 6 (2013).

[note 10] National Institute of Justice, Violence and Victimization Research Division's Compendium of Research on Violence Against Women, 1993-2016 , Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, August 2017, NCJ 223572.

About the author

Rianna P. Starheim is a writer and former contractor with Leidos.

Cite this Article

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• Violence and Victimization Research Division's Compendium of Research on Violence Against Women, 1993-2018
• NIJ Journal Issue No. 281

Domestic Violence

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Domestic violence against women: Recognize patterns, seek help

Domestic violence is a serious threat for many women. Know the signs of an abusive relationship and how to leave a dangerous situation.

Your partner apologizes and says the hurtful behavior won't happen again — but you fear it will. At times you wonder whether you're imagining the abuse, yet the emotional or physical pain you feel is real. If this sounds familiar, you might be experiencing domestic violence.

Recognize domestic violence

Domestic violence — also called intimate partner violence — occurs between people in an intimate relationship. Domestic violence can take many forms, including emotional, sexual and physical abuse and threats of abuse. Abuse by a partner can happen to anyone, but domestic violence is most often directed toward women. Domestic violence can happen in heterosexual and same-sex relationships.

Abusive relationships always involve an imbalance of power and control. An abuser uses intimidating, hurtful words and behaviors to control a partner.

It might not be easy to identify domestic violence at first. While some relationships are clearly abusive from the outset, abuse often starts subtly and gets worse over time. You might be experiencing domestic violence if you're in a relationship with someone who:

• Calls you names, insults you or puts you down
• Prevents or discourages you from going to work or school or seeing family members or friends
• Tries to control how you spend money, where you go, what medicines you take or what you wear
• Acts jealous or possessive or constantly accuses you of being unfaithful
• Gets angry when drinking alcohol or using drugs
• Threatens you with violence or a weapon
• Hits, kicks, shoves, slaps, chokes or otherwise hurts you, your children or your pets
• Forces you to have sex or engage in sexual acts against your will
• Blames you for his or her violent behavior or tells you that you deserve it

If you're in a same-sex relationship or if you're bisexual or transgender, you might also be experiencing abuse if you're in a relationship with someone who:

• Threatens to tell friends, family, colleagues or community members your sexual orientation or gender identity
• Tells you that authorities won't help you because of your sexuality or gender identity
• Justifies abuse by questioning your sexuality or gender identity

Pregnancy, children, family members and domestic violence

Sometimes domestic violence begins — or increases — during pregnancy. Domestic violence puts your health and the baby's health at risk. The danger continues after the baby is born.

Even if your child isn't abused, simply witnessing domestic violence can be harmful. Children who grow up in abusive homes are more likely to be abused and have behavioral problems than are other children. As adults, they're more likely to become abusers or think abuse is a normal part of relationships.

You might worry that telling the truth will further endanger you, your child or other family members — and that it might break up your family. But seeking help is the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Break the cycle

If you're in an abusive situation, you might recognize this pattern:

• Your abuser threatens violence.
• Your abuser strikes.
• Your abuser apologizes, promises to change and offers gifts.
• The cycle repeats itself.

The longer you stay in an abusive relationship, the greater the physical and emotional toll. You might become depressed and anxious, or you might begin to doubt your ability to take care of yourself. You might feel helpless or paralyzed.

You may also wonder if the abuse is your fault — a common point of confusion among survivors of domestic abuse that may make it more difficult to seek help.

Don't take the blame

You may not be ready to seek help because you believe you're at least partially to blame for the abuse in the relationship. Reasons may include:

• Your partner blames you for the violence in your relationship. Abusive partners rarely take responsibility for their actions.
• Your partner only exhibits abusive behavior with you. Abusers are often concerned with outward appearances and may appear charming and stable to those outside of your relationship. This may cause you to believe that his or her actions can only be explained by something you've done.
• Therapists and health care providers who see you alone or with your partner haven't detected a problem. If you haven't told your health care provider about the abuse, they may only take note of unhealthy patterns in your thinking or behavior. This can lead to a misdiagnosis. For example, survivors of intimate partner violence may develop symptoms that resemble chronic disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome or fibromyalgia. Exposure to intimate partner violence also increases your risk of mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• You have acted out verbally or physically against your abuser, yelling, pushing or hitting your partner during conflicts. You may worry that you are abusive, but it's much more likely that you acted in self-defense or intense emotional distress. Your abuser may use such incidents to manipulate you, describing them as proof that you are the abusive partner.

If you're having trouble identifying what's happening, take a step back and look at larger patterns in your relationship. Then review the signs of domestic violence. In an abusive relationship, the person who routinely uses these behaviors is the abuser. The person on the receiving end is being abused.

Unique challenges

If you're an immigrant , you may be hesitant to seek help out of fear that you will be deported. Language barriers, lack of economic independence and limited social support can increase your isolation and your ability to access resources.

Laws in the United States guarantee protection from domestic abuse, regardless of your immigrant status. Free or low-cost resources are available, including lawyers, shelter and medical care for you and your children. You may also be eligible for legal protections that allow immigrants who experience domestic violence to stay in the United States.

Call a national domestic violence hotline for guidance. These services are free and protect your privacy.

• If you're an older woman , you may face challenges related to your age and the length of your relationship. You may have grown up in a time when domestic violence was simply not discussed. You or your partner may have health problems that increase your dependency or sense of responsibility.
• If you're in a same-sex relationship , you might be less likely to seek help after an assault if you don't want to disclose your sexual orientation. If you've been sexually assaulted by another woman, you might also fear that you won't be believed.

Still, the only way to break the cycle of domestic violence is to take action. Start by telling someone about the abuse, whether it's a friend, a loved one, a health care provider or another close contact. You can also call a national domestic violence hotline.

At first, you might find it hard to talk about the abuse. But understand that you are not alone and there are experts who can help you. You'll also likely feel relief and receive much-needed support.

Create a safety plan

Leaving an abuser can be dangerous. Consider taking these precautions:

• Call a women's shelter or domestic violence hotline for advice. Make the call at a safe time — when the abuser isn't around — or from a friend's house or other safe location.
• Pack an emergency bag that includes items you'll need when you leave, such as extra clothes and keys. Leave the bag in a safe place. Keep important personal papers, money and prescription medications handy so that you can take them with you on short notice.
• Know exactly where you'll go and how you'll get there.

Protect your communication and location

An abuser can use technology to monitor your telephone and online communication and to track your location. If you're concerned for your safety, seek help. To maintain your privacy:

• Use phones cautiously. Your abuser might intercept calls and listen to your conversations. An abusive partner might use caller ID, check your cellphone or search your phone billing records to see your call and texting history.
• Use your home computer cautiously. Your abuser might use spyware to monitor your emails and the websites you visit. Consider using a computer at work, at the library or at a friend's house to seek help.
• Turn off GPS devices. Your abuser might use a GPS device on your vehicle or your phone to pinpoint your location.
• Frequently change your email password. Choose passwords that would be difficult for your abuser to guess.
• Clear your viewing history. Follow your browser's instructions to clear any record of websites or graphics you've viewed.

Where to find help

In an emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number or law enforcement agency. The following resources also can help:

• Someone you trust. Turn to a friend, loved one, neighbor, co-worker, or religious or spiritual adviser for support.
• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-SAFE (800-799-7233; toll-free). Call the hotline for crisis intervention and referrals to resources, such as women's shelters.
• Your health care provider. A health care provider typically will treat injuries and can refer you to safe housing and other local resources.
• A local women's shelter or crisis center. Shelters and crisis centers typically provide 24-hour emergency shelter as well as advice on legal matters and advocacy and support services.
• A counseling or mental health center. Counseling and support groups for women in abusive relationships are available in most communities.
• A local court. A court can help you obtain a restraining order that legally mandates the abuser to stay away from you or face arrest. Local advocates might be available to help guide you through the process.

It can be hard to recognize or admit that you're in an abusive relationship — but help is available. Remember, no one deserves to be abused.

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• Intimate partner violence. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/index.html. Accessed March 4, 2022.
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Committee Opinion No. 518. Intimate partner violence and women's health. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2012; doi:10.1097/AOG.0b013e318249ff74. Reaffirmed 2019.
• Frequently asked questions about domestic violence. National Network to End Domestic Violence. https://nnedv.org/content/frequently-asked-questions-about-domestic-violence/. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Domestic and intimate partner violence. Office on Women's Health. https://www.womenshealth.gov/relationships-and-safety/domestic-violence. Accessed March 4, 2022.
• AskMayoExpert. Intimate partner violence. Mayo Clinic; 2021.
• Goldman L, et al., eds. Intimate partner violence. In: Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Elsevier; 2020. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Ferri FF. Intimate partner violence. In: Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2022. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Internet & computer safety. National Network to End Domestic Violence. https://nnedv.org/content/internet-computer-safety/. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Technology safety & privacy: A toolkit for survivors. Technology Safety. https://www.techsafety.org/resources-survivors. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Intimate partner violence: A guide for psychiatrists treating IPV survivors. American Psychiatric Association. https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/cultural-competency/education/intimate-partner-violence/women. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Domestic violence and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender relationships. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. http://www.mmgconnect.com/projects/userfiles/File/DCE-STOP_NOW/NCADV_LGBT_Fact_Sheet.pdf. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Bakes K, et al. Intimate partner violence. In: Emergency Medicine Secrets. Elsevier: 2022. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• What is domestic violence? National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. https://ncadv.org/learn-more. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Intimate partner abuse and relationship violence. American Psychological Association: Working Group on Intimate Partner Abuse and Relationship Violence. https://www.apa.org/about/division/activities/partner-abuse.pdf. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• The myth of mutual abuse. National Domestic Violence Hotline. https://www.thehotline.org/resources/the-myth-of-mutual-abuse/. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Final recommendation statement: Intimate partner violence, elder abuse, and abuse of vulnerable adults. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/recommendation/intimate-partner-violence-and-abuse-of-elderly-and-vulnerable-adults-screening. Accessed March 5, 2022.
• Information on the legal rights available to immigrant victims of domestic violence in the United States and facts about immigrating on a marriage-based visa fact sheet. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. https://www.uscis.gov/archive/information-on-the-legal-rights-available-to-immigrant-victims-of-domestic-violence-in-the-united. Accessed March 5, 2022.
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Significant rise in domestic-violence related stalking and intimidation in NSW

Release Date:  Thursday 23 June 2022

Link to report summary -  Trends in domestic violence-related stalking and intimidation offences in the criminal justice system: 2012 to 2021

Further enquiries:  Jackie Fitzgerald, Executive Director, BOCSAR  0423 139 687 Email:  [email protected] Copies of the report:   www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au  

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Population-Based Approaches to Prevent Domestic Violence against Women Using a Systematic Review

Ebrahim babaee.

1 Preventive Medicine and Public Health Research Center, Psychosocial Health Research Institute, Community and Family Medicine Department, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Arash Tehrani-Banihashem

Mehran asadi-aliabadi, arghavan sheykholeslami, majid purabdollah.

2 Department of Nursing, Nursing and Midwifery Faculty, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.

Arezou Ashari

Marzieh nojomi.

3 Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Nipissing University, North Bay, Ontario, Canada.

Objective: In this systematic review, we aimed to evaluate the existing strategies and interventions in domestic violence prevention to assess their effectiveness.

Method : To select studies, Pubmed, ISI, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane, Scopus, Embase, Ovid, Science Direct, ProQuest, and Elsevier databases were searched. Two authors reviewed all papers using established inclusion/ exclusion criteria. Finally, 18 articles were selected and met the inclusion criteria for assessment. Following the Cochrane quality assessment tool and AHRQ Standards, the studies were classified for quality rating based on design and performance quality. Two authors separately reviewed the studies and categorized them as good, fair, and poor quality.

Results: Most of the selected papers had fair- or poor-quality rating in terms of methodology quality. Different intervention methods had been used in these studies. Four studies focused on empowering women; 3, 4, and 2 studies were internet-based interventions, financial interventions, and relatively social interventions, respectively. Four interventions were also implemented in specific groups. All authors stated that interventions were effective.

Conclusion: Intervention methods should be fully in line with the characteristics of the participants. Environmental and cultural conditions and the role of the cause of violence are important elements in choosing the type of intervention. Interventions are not superior to each other because of their different applications.

Domestic violence (DV) can be a major health problem ( 1 ) and one of the causes of death and disability in women that depends on the local culture where the woman lives ( 2 ). Violence against women as a health concern is increasing ( 3 ). This issue will increase the demand for health services ( 4 ). DV can be physical, sexual, economic, and psychological ( 5 ). Scientific evidence suggests that DV causes physical injuries, gastrointestinal disorders, chronic pain syndrome, depression, anxiety, suicidal behaviors, and pregnancy problems, such as unwanted pregnancy, illegal abortion, and preterm labor ( 6 ).

Besides, this phenomenon can affect children in the future. Studies show that the risk of behavioral problems and emotional injuries in children who experience violence increases in the future ( 7 ).

According to a recent WHO report, 37% of Eastern Mediterranean countries have the highest rate of violence against women ( 8 ). Surveys show that the prevalence of violence against women varies from 27% to 83% between different communities, and this diversity may be due to cultural differences ( 9 , 10 ).

Recent studies in Iran show that about 66% of married women during the first year of their marriage have experienced some form of violence by their current or ex-spouse ( 9 ).

Although the problem of DV is very serious, it can be well screened for routine symptoms of DV during general health services ( 11 ). The ultimate goal is to stop the violence before it begins. For this purpose, it is important to understand the factors that trigger violence. Studies show that traditional misconceptions, low literacy levels, poor knowledge about women's rights, and lack of social support for abused women can lead to various forms of violence against women ( 1 ). Violence tracking is the first step in controlling DV ( 11 ). In contrast, any delay in the early detection of this phenomenon can cause serious harm to the well-being of women and children. Based on previous systematic review studies in Iran, various interventions and prevention methods have been used to control DV and overcome this social dilemma.

Despite recent information about the epidemiology of violence based on recent studies, there is still less evidence-based approaches in primary health care services for the prevention and control of DV against women. The assessment of different interventions to improve the well-being of affected women is still a key research priority ( 12 ). Thus, there is an urgent need to design complementary research with very robust and comprehensive research methods to evaluate the effectiveness of existing intimate partner violence (IPV) interventions. According to the available documentation, serval interventions have been designed to combat violence against women. Some of these interventions are specific to a particular type of violence. But nowadays, according to the documentation, there is a need for implementation of social support programs and interventions for women, children, and their partners. Also, it seems few randomized control trials (RCT) as a robust design have been performed in this field, and studies have reported that the results of the intervention were effective, but the quality of these studies should be assessed.

Finally, methods should be selected and designed to be effective, simple, accessible, and practicable for different demographic groups and health care settings. According to the mentioned evidence-based facts, in this research project, we aimed to evaluate the existing strategies and interventions in DV prevention, using a systematic review, to assess their effectiveness to choose the best applicable and effective methods.

Materials and Methods

Search Strategy and Study Screening Process

This systematic review was conducted in 2019. To select appropriate studies, an extensive search was conducted. Pubmed, ISI, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane, Scopus, Embase, Ovid, Science Direct, ProQuest, and Elsevier databases were searched to cover published articles from 2000 to 2019.To select studies, we used the keywords such as Domestic Violence Family, Violence Partner Abuse, Intimate Partner Violence, Abused, and Women. The type of included studies was intervention clinical trial, randomized controlled trial, and prevention trials. Therefore, these terms were used as keywords as well. Also, references of the selected articles were searched manually. Two researchers conducted the resource search process separately and eventually coordinated the selected studies. In the first searching phase, 921 articles were selected. Using manual searching, 58 related articles were found. Finally, 979 articles were selected. Duplicating articles were detected by one researcher and supervised by a subsequent researcher using EndNote (X8) software. The number of articles after this process reached 927. Then, the title and abstract of articles were evaluated based on inclusion criteria. Consequently, 78 articles met the inclusion criteria. By reviewing the full-texts of articles, 44 were excluded due to inappropriate content. Out of the remaining 34 articles, 16 were excluded considering their designs. Finally, 18 eligible studies were reviewed. Finding and Screening Flowchart were plotted using the PRISMA Flow Diagram Tool ( 13 ), which is reported in Figure 1.

Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria

We considered all studies with a RCT design, as eligible for inclusion if they examined PICO as a tool ( Table1 ) for developing a search strategy for identifying potentially relevant studies in any topic about DV with prevention approach. We applied other restrictions in this review, such as studies related to the English language and their publication time was from 2000 to 2019. Also, articles whose full texts were not accessible were excluded.

Description of PICO Criteria Applied to the Selecting Studies

Quality Evaluation of Selected Articles (Risk of Bias Assessment)

The Cochrane Risk-of-Bias Tool was used for the qualitative evaluation of the articles, considering the design of the papers that had the RCT methods ( 14 ). This tool has 7 criteria to assess the quality of articles in terms of bias. Articles were evaluated by 2 researchers using this tool separately. There was a 25% inconsistency between both researchers. To resolve the disagreement, a third-person re-evaluated and judged the disputes. Using the instructions of the Cochrane quality assessment tool, the studies were classified for quality rating, based on design and performance quality according to the AHRQ Standards. Therefore, the studies were categorized into 3 subgroups: good, fair, and poor quality ( 14 ). Table 2 illustrates these subgroups. Thereafter, data were entered into Review Manager Software (version: 5.3). The results are presented as the risk of bias graph (Figure 2) and the summary of the risk of bias graph (Figure 3).

Summary of Characteristics Domestic Violence Intervention Studies

PRISMA Flowchart Screening and Selection of Studies

Assessment of Methodological Quality of Selected Studies (Risk of Bias Graph)

Assessment of Methodological Quality of Selected Studies (Risk of Bias Summery)

As noted, after a comprehensive search and qualitative evaluation of studies, finally 18 articles were selected for evaluatation. Based on the included articles, to prevent and control the violence against women in different countries, different models have been applied to various groups. In included articles, DV against women has been considered physical, emotional, sexual, financial, etc, by the wife or partner of the woman. The results of the studies show various screening tools for violence. For example, some of these tools were used in primary health care ( 15 ), some for pregnant women ( 16 ), and some for men ( 17 ). Of the final selected papers, the oldest was in 2003 and the newest in 2018. All final selected articles had an RCT design. Based on selecting the population to perform the interventions, there were various target groups and intervention methods. Most studies focused on empowering women. In 3 studies, the internet sites had been applied to conduct interventions. Four studies had also evaluated economic interventions and financially empowerment methods in couples. Two studies had used kinds of social intervention. Follow-up times were different between studies, and in some studies, the follow-up period was 4 years. In all selected studies based on the study goal, a preventive intervention method was considered for the study target group. The control group consisted of those who either did not receive any intervention or received another intervention to compare the efficacy of the method applied to the intervention group or were under routine care and treatment. Also, it was found that to assess the effectiveness of interventional methods, the amount of inflicted violence on women was either self-reported or measured using standard measurement tools. Evaluation of the design and quality of these studies based on the relevant evaluation checklists indicated that all studies had strengths and weaknesses in the method of implementation and process of the research. Most of the papers were at the fair or poor-quality level in terms of methodology quality rating. The summary of the characteristics of reviewed studies in this project that met the inclusion criteria was reported in Table 2 .

Summary of Included Studies

Women Empowerment Interventions

In 4 included studies in this systematic review, women empowerment interventions were used to combat DV. The first study in this field was done in 2012 in china ( 18 ). Women aged 18 years or older with a positive screening for DV (n = 200) and small children were recruited to participate. The intervention was a community-based advocacy program, consisting of 2 components: empowerment and telephone social support. The intervention aimed to increase abused women’s safety and enhance their problem-solving ability. After the intervention, in the treatment group, the mean of safety behavior was increased almost a 5-fold significantly. The other study by Hannah in 2018, reported the reducing IPV in Spanish-Latinas speaking women ( 19 ). Inclusion criteria were having a history of IPV in the past 2 years and having a child of 4 to 12 years. The intervention was a community-based Moms’ Empowerment Program (MEP). MEP was used as an interpersonal relationship to empower women to increase women’s self-efficacy and reduce their self-blame. Although the sample size was not significant (intervention group = 55, control group = 40), the intervention ( 36 ) was significantly effective in the treatment group, especially physical violence. Because of the selection of specific groups of participants, the generalizability of the results was controversial. In a study by Jhumka Gupta, women over 18 years with at least 1-year marriage duration were involved ( 20 ). The intervention in this study was relatively different from the 2 previous studies. The control arm (n = 421) received VSLA (village savings and loan associations) and the treatment arm (n = 513) received VSLA and an 8-session gender dialogue group (GDG). The GDGs were developed between men and women to address household gender inequities and communication. Despite some methodological limitations, the results of this study were also effective in the VSLA-GDG group, but it was not significant. Another community-based intervention to empower women was in 2015 by Sandra ( 21 ). The intervention was a 10 session community- based therapeutic group program. The study included women who had a physical conflict and their children aged 6 and 12 years. Participants were categorized into 3 groups: mother-plus-child (n = 61), child-only (n = 62), and comparison group (n = 58). The intervention focused on enhancing women's skills, strengthening them in connecting to social support, and also empowering children to improve children's attitudes about DV to manage this health problem. This intervention with good methodological status like previously ( 37 ) had a moderate change in IPV prevention.

Interventions for Specific Groups

Out of 18 selected articles, in 5 the interventions were applied to specific groups. The applied interventions were also specific. In one study, the name of the intervention was the Green Dot program ( 22 ). In this method, male and female students (n = 89 707) were involved and received training about the types of violence (most sexual violence). These students had to train their friends as leaders. Although the study had a methodological limitation, at the end of the study, the different types of violence (especially sexual violence) and alcohol or drug-facilitated sex in schools reduced significantly. In the next study by Louisa Gilbert, drug user women were target groups ( 23 ). The aim was to assess the impact of RPRS (Relapse Prevention and Relationship Safety) to reduce IPV and prevent drug use in addicted women. According to experts, RPRS is suitable for women who experience different levels of violence and have multiple partners. The RPRS enables participants to avoid IPV and drug use by behavior changes and training suitable negotiation methods. After the intervention, in the RPRS group, about 5.3 times reduction in physical and sexual violence and 6 times in psychological violence was obtained. Another interesting study was applying religious methods (Happy Muslim Family Activities) to reduce DV. The study was conducted by Kasetchai Laeheem in 2017( 24 ). In this study, certain religious norms and practices have been used as an intervention in Thailand's Muslim population to control violence against women. This method used Islamic methods and teachings to change the behavior of the couples, improve their attitude, and reinforce their morality. Despite the limitations, violence in this study was also reduced significantly in the intervention group. In the fourth study, Jennifer et al in 2012 examined the effect of BALL intervention (Building A Lasting Love Intervention) to reduce violence on young African American pregnant girls (n = 72)( 25 ). This program focused on the signs of healthy versus unhealthy romantic relationships, personal relationship skill, and problem-solving techniques. Findings indicated that the program had some impact on IPV reduction in the treatment arm. In the last study, Jamila Mejdoubi evaluated the effect of nursing home care intervention to IPV control on 237 pregnant women ( 26 ). Women received approximately 50 nurse home visits during pregnancy, first-year, and second-year life of the child by trained nurses. During each home visit, the health status of the mother and child, mitigation of risk factors for IPV, and informing about consequences of IPV were intended. At the end of the study, about 50% reduction in violence (sexual, physical, and psychological) was obtained in the intervention group.

Internet Based Interventions

In 3 included studies, the internet-based interventions were applied. In the study of Jane Koziol-McLain conducted on 186 women aged 16 years and over, the study aimed to test the efficacy of a web-based safety decision aid to reduce IPV exposure by improving women's mental health ( 27 ). Participants were followed up for 1 year, and the study discovered that intervention was effective in reducing violence and depression symptoms. The next study in 2017 by Nancy E. Glass was conducted using the same methodology and yielded similar results ( 29 ). Other online intervention (KOCH) in 2017 by Joon Choi was designed to examine the impact of a short intervention for preventing and addressing IPV ( 28 ). About 55 Korean-American religious leaders were included in the study. The KOCH aimed to increase self-efficacy, knowledge of IPV, and improve attitudes that support IPV. After the 3-month follow-up, findings indicated that the intervention was effective and knowledge of clergy and their attitudes against IPV increased significantly.

Financial Interventions

Four studies have used financial interventions to reduce IPV. The first intervention (IMAGE) by Paul M Pronyk in 2005 aimed to assess a structural intervention on women aged 14-35 years in 8 matched villages ( 30 ). There were 3 groups: women who applied for loans (n = 843), women who were also living with loans applied women (n = 1455), and randomly selected women from that area (n = 2858). The intervention consisted of income-generating activities, gender roles, cultural beliefs, relationships, and IPV facts training curriculum. At the end of the study, the experience of IPV either physical or sexual reduced by 55%, and household economic wellbeing along social capital increased. The small number of clusters, short duration of follow-up, and biased reporting were several limitations of the study. The next intervention (Mashinani) by Clea Sarnquist was a woman empowering program through a combination of formal business training, microfinance, and IPV reduction activities ( 31 ). Women aged 18 years or older who were victims of DV were included. Women received their first loan and began their business activities according to their job plan. After 4 to 5 months of follow-up, the results showed that interventions affected increasing daily profits and decreasing DV. Another study by Kathryn L in 2015 was slightly different in terms of intervention and subjects ( 32 ). Researchers hypothesized that interventions on reducing IPV and economic abuse are not more effective on women married as child brides (<17 years). Women aged 18 years and older with no previous microfinance experience were eligible. The intervention aimed at the reduction of IPV and economic abuse using gender equality promotion activities. After the intervention, most forms of IPV were lower among women married as adults, and the study showed that interventions were less effective in women who are married at an early age. The last study by Anita Raja (CHARM intervention) in 2017 has particularly focused on women's economic empowerment ( 33 ). This research involved longitudinal examinations of women's financial independence and its associations with consequent incident IPV. The intervention was economic programs and gender equity training sessions. Eligible couples were women over 15 years with husbands aged 18-30 years. Finally, findings indicated that women's economic conflict with owning a bank account and involvement of married women with their husbands in business can reduce the occurrence and recurrence of IPV.

Other Interventions

Intervention in 2 studies was nearly social. The first study (SASA) by Tanya Abramsky in 2012 emphasized prevention violence and HIV/AIDS in women in African countries ( 34 ). SASA intervention used a community mobilization approach by changing the community attitudes, norms, behaviors, and ending of gender inequality and societal misconceptions to prevent violence against women. Participants in the study were men and women aged 18 to 49 years. After 4 years, in the intervention group, attitudes improved toward violence, and social support responses to helping affected women increased. The ESID intervention was another social method by Cris M. Sullivan in 2003 ( 35 ). In this intervention, the role of social professionals by making innovations was crucial. Female undergraduate students were used to conduct the intervention on shelter women after community psychological training. Training courses were about empathy and active listening skills, IPV facts, managing dangerous situations, and accessing community resources. This intervention was also effective, and results indicated that women in the treatment arm were significantly less likely to be abused again, and they also reported a higher quality of life and fewer difficulties in obtaining community resources.

In this systematic review, we examined the effectiveness of applied interventions and existing strategies to prevent IPV in 18 selected RCT articles. Reviewing the studies revealed that different interventions and therapeutic methods have been developed to control and reduce violence against women in different regions and countries. Included studies were also reviewed methodologically. Almost all articles received a fair- or poor-quality rating based on the Cochrane quality assessment tool. These limitations in the studies can preclude drawing any conclusions about the effectiveness of interventions.

Reviewing the papers also revealed that the selection of suitable screening tools, determining the amount of inflicted violence, and selecting effective methods to outcome assessment of interventions should be considered widely by researchers. The results of the studies showed that there are various screening tools for violence. For example, some of these tools were used in primary health care ( 15 ), some for pregnant women ( 16 ), and some for men. Based on included articles, very few studies to date have evaluated the effectiveness of screening programs to reduce violence or to improve women’s health. Also, data about the potential harms associated with these programs are lacking. Selecting the appropriate tool to assess outcomes of interventions is also controversial. Based on evidence, there is no complete consensus that the measurement of the recurrence of violence against individuals can be used as an appropriate tool to assess the effectiveness of interventional methods. Many researchers believe that most women do not have any control on re-violence over themselves ( 16 ). Furthermore, some insist on self-reporting by women, and there is great evidence that women underreport the violence and abuse against themselves ( 15 ).

In all reviewed articles, all authors stated that interventions were efficient, and there was no article declaring that the intervention was not effective. Likewise, most of the interventions were on women. Therefore, the results should be interpreted with caution.

Some studies have used the internet to intervene as an innovation. The researchers suggest that the online intervention provides a vehicle for creating awareness and action for change in a private space ( 27 , 38 ). Based on the evidence, online data collection may help reduce some biases, and online training can eliminate general barriers to participation ( 39 ). Although this method may apply to certain groups, many abused women seek information online, and available information typically is not tailored to their circumstances.

Reviewing selected studies revealed that social factors are very efficient in designing and implementing interventions. Considering this, the many goals on IPV prevention programs can be achieved by changing gender inequality behaviors and societal misconceptions. Due to cultural resistance, these changes may be slow. Based on the evidence, one of the causes of disability in women depends on the local culture in which they live ( 32 ). According to WHO, one of the most important roles of public health in controlling DV is addressing social and cultural norms related to gender that support IPV ( 40 ).

Results of papers also showed that the role of social education and individual skills in enhancing women's social capital and reducing violence is important. Education plays both direct and indirect roles in the prevention of IPV ( 41 ). Based on studies, a positive attitude toward male dominance, belief about women as a lower rank in the creation, and many other cultural gender inequities rationalize violence against women ( 42 ). Thus, it seems that social scientists should play an active role in creating positive societal change in women with abusive partners who needed access to a variety of community resources.

In several studies, children had participated in the interventions, and the methods were effective likewise. Children as witnesses of parental violence learn that violence is a way to deal with marital problems, and when they grow up, they will commit violence against their own families ( 43 ). This matter should be widely considered in future works that children need to understand the facts of violence and learn how to manage it.

There have been some economic empowerment programs that have yielded somewhat conflicting results to reduce IPV and decrease its health harms ( 44 ). Studies state that women's revenue formation or their higher-earning than men are associated with increased rather than a reduced chance for IPV ( 45 ). Experts emphasize that the financial empowerment of women can reduce the risk for IPV, especially if sponsored with attempting to improve gender equity norms ( 46 ). Based on the evidence, when norms do not accept women's employment well, these programs may not be effective in controlling IPV ( 47 ).

Religious leaders can be effective in reducing violence against women in some countries. Some studies have emphasized the use of the process of Islamic socialization to prevent IPV. Related specialists believe that promoting Muslims to participate in activities that develop their potential with emphasis on Islamic morality and ethics can prevent and solve the problem of aggressive behavior ( 48 ). It is recommended that such interventions be performed for other religions as well.

Appraising included studies also showed that more vulnerable groups, such as students, pregnant and addicted women, should be considered separately and receive appropriate intervention programs to prevent violence. The Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) ( 49 ) and Bystander intervention programs were specifically effective interventions conducted on young high-risk pregnant women and students to reduce the probability of violence respectively ( 50 , 51 ).

In the ongoing systematic review, we had some potential weaknesses. We limited this systematic review to English-language articles with available full-text. These constraints can lead to potential publication bias. Also, the search process restricted to selecting papers with an RCT design, and very effective interventions may have been made with different designs in other languages. Finally, it seems that a scoping review or narrative review be the most appropriate method instead of the systematic review approach for assessing or responding to such a wide study objective. Despite these limitations, we believe that conducting extensive search and selecting a variety of interventional studies in sufficient numbers can be one of the strengths of our study.

Most of the selected papers had fair- or poor-quality rating in terms of methodology quality. Evaluating the included articles revealed that the intervention methods should be fully in line with the characteristics of the participants and the role of the cause of violence in the choice of intervention should not be ignored. Interventions are not superior to each other, because they are selected based on the type of violence and the target group. Further research using rigorous designs should be done to assess the effectiveness of existing methods to facilitate reductions in IPV exposure.

Acknowledgment

The research reported in this publication was supported by the Elite Researcher Grant Committee under award number 971358 from the National Institutes for Medical Research Development (NIMAD), Tehran, Iran.

Conflict of Interest

The corresponding author reports grants from the National Institutes for Medical Research Development (NIMAD) during this study. Other authors report no conflict of interest.