InfoPEI

HOME / HEALTH / FAMILY VIOLENCE /

Facts About Domestic Violence

Did you know that...

51% of Canadian women report having experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16 (Stats Canada, 1993)
nearly 3 in 10 Canadian women (29%) who have ever been married or lived in a common -law relationship have been physically or sexually assaulted by a marital partner at some point during the relationship (Canadian Centre for Justice Stats, 1994)
of 22,000 victims of spousal violence reported to police in 1997, 88% were female and 12% were male (Stats Canada, 1999)
women are 7 times more likely to be killed or hurt in their homes than by strangers (Stats Canada, 1993)
two-thirds of all murdered women died at the hands of their intimate partners (Stats Canada, 1993)
40% of woman abuse incidents begin during pregnancy (Noel & Yam, 1992)
abuse is the single major cause of injury among women - more frequent than auto accidents, muggings and rapes combined (Hadley, 1992)

Profile of a Woman in an Abusive Relationship

Women in abusive relationships often have common characteristics and beliefs. She will often:

blame herself and take responsibility for the abusive behaviour of her partner; believe her actions cause the abuse, and, in some way, excuse the abusive actions
tend to be passive rather than assertive in her interpersonal relationships
be socially isolated by her partner and lack substantial support networks of friends or relatives
tend to "give in" as a way to survive
have low self-esteem; see herself as incompetent, unworthy, unlovable and may be ridden with guilt and shame; believe that if she had "gotten it right", the abuse would not be occuring
tend to feel depressed and/or have suicidal thoughts or behaviours
have injuries which do not match the explanation she gives
be economically and emotionally dependent upon her partner
be deeply concerned about her children’s welfare and support; and will frequently remain in the relationship because "children need a father"
believe her partner will change because he isn’t always violent, and is sometimes loving and kind
tend to minimize the violence as a way of coping with the pain in her life
prolonged use of drugs such as tranquilizers, anti-depressants
the intermittent or continual presence of stress reaction such as tension, hyperactivity, headaches, insomnia, pain in the back, chest or stomach

Adapted from Transition House Association, Prince Edward Island, April 13, 2000

Profile of an Abuser

Abusive men also tend to have many characteristics in common. He will often:

be jealous and imagine his partner is having affairs
try to isolate his partner
try to control his partner
have a Jekyll and Hyde personality
have other problems with the law
have an explosive temper and fly into a rage without provocation
use insults, putdowns or slanderous names to abuse his partner in addition to physical assault
tell his partner that the abuse is her fault
come from a family where violence is practiced
be more violent when his partner is pregnant or soon after giving birth
deny the beatings or their severity, seeming not to remember them
do whatever it takes to drive his partner away and then whatever it takes to get her back including grabbing the children, apologizing profusely, sending flowers, crying and promising anything he knows his partner wants to hear
repeat the above pattern over and over again

Adapted from: Transition House Association, Prince Edward Island, April 13, 2000

Family Violence Related Costs

a 1995 study in London, Ontario, estimated the social services/education, criminal justice, health/medicine, and labour/employment costs of violence against women at more than $4.2 billion annually
studies indicate that 22% to 35% of emergency ward visits by women are believed to result from acts of violence
abused women are 16x more likely to become alcoholics and 9x more likely to use drugs than women who are not abused
studies repeatedly show that at least 50% of women patients admitted to psychiatric hospitals are known to suffer from abuse
the estimate of annual health-related costs of violence against women in Canada is $1,539,650,387.00

Source: Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children, 1995

Family Violence Related Costs

annual cost of incarceration in a federal institution per person is approximately $50,000
the lifetime psychiatric health care costs for 15 women with multiple personality disorder resulting from sexual abuse is $4,144,115
a survivor of child abuse is 7x more likely to become dependent on alcohol and drugs and 10x more likely to attempt suicide than those not abused as children
in a recent Quebec study, 20% of children staying in a women’s shelter experienced mental health problems compared to 4% of children in the general population
4 in 5 abused women report their injuries at least once to a physician

Source - Violence in Society: A Public Health Perspective, 1994

Why is Family Violence an Issue for all Professionals?

The family is the most dangerous place to be
The most vulnerable are most likely to be the victims:
- Children
- Women
- Elderly
- Disabled
Family violence is repetitive and escalates in severity over time

Children Witnessing Domestic Violence
Police Response to Domestic Violence Study by Rona Brown June 1996 - January 1998, PEI

of the 363 police files included in the study, 207 involved children present in the home during the violence
of the 207 files involving children present, 131 cases identified the number of children present while in 76 cases this information was not available
of the 131 police files that included information on the number of children as witnesses to the violence, there were a total of 342 children present
ages were available for 257 of these children:

Age Category Total No. of Children

0 - 6 years 156

7 - 12 years 66

13 - 18 years 35

Children Witnessing Domestic Violence
Scope of the Problem

research indicates that as many as 90% of children witness the violence in their homes (Children’s Advocate, July - August 1997)
studies also demonstrate a significant overlap between domestic violence and child physical abuse frequently referred to as the "double whammy" (Russell et.al., 1996)
in families where domestic violence is present, child abuse and neglect is 15x more likely than in other families (Children’s Advocate, July - August 1997)
one study (Jenkins et.al. 1990) reports that over 70% of children intervene in the spousal abuse
a study in London, Ontario found that on average a woman is assaulted 35 times by her partner before the first call to police is made (Leger, 1984)
Jaffe (1987) reports that over 50% of young offenders have been exposed to domestic violence
Project Guardian (London, Ont, 1995) uncovered a child sex ring in which over 50% of the male victims reported turning to the streets to avoid the chaos and exposure to domestic violence in their homes
Wolfe (1985) reports that serious behaviour problems are 17x higher for boys and 10x higher for girls who have been exposed to domestic violence

Factors Associated with Police Response to Domestic Violence
June 1996 - January 1998 by Rona Brown, Memorial University of Newfoundland, December 1998

Data Summary

the majority of reported cases of domestic violence involved female victims (94.2%) between the ages of 20-29 years (36.4%) living in common-law relationships (31.7%) with their partners in rural (60.9%) areas of the province
most requests for help from the police came from victims themselves (68.6%)
domestic violence offenders are primarily male (93.9%) between the ages of 30-39 years of age
police responded to reports of domestic violence by laying criminal charges in the majority of cases (59.8%)
police arrested offenders in slightly over half of the reports (55.4%)
police utilized the new Victims of Family Violence Act in few cases (10.7%)
in those cases where police did use the legislation, the majority of situations involved victims living in rural areas of the province (68.3%)
in the majority of cases, police made referrals to outside agencies (71.9%) with the majority of these referrals having been made to Victim Services (67.5%)
physical abuse (83.2%) was the most common type of abuse reported to police
weapons were present in a small minority of cases (14.9%)
alcohol/drug involvement (56.5%) was a common factor in cases reported to police
there was a high volume of children present (57.5%) in those cases reported to police
injuries (41.0%) were frequently involved
approximately one-third of the offenders (33.1%) had a related-record for violence
a history of family violence (62.0%) was frequently reported
the most frequent month of the year in which police received reports of domestic violence was November (11.6%)
the most frequent day of the week reports were received was Saturday (22.0%)
the most frequent time of the day that reports were received was during the evening (30.6%)
most criminal charges were laid in urban (68.3%) areas of the province
the majority of offenders arrested by police (55.4%) for physically abusing their partners (58.6%) lived in rural areas of the province (52.5%) and had a history of family violence coupled with a previous related-record (75.3%)
criminal charges (59.8%) were most common in those cases involving the presence of a history of family violence, alcohol/drug involvement, children, weapons, and injuries (74.2%)
the high percentage of children witnessing domestic violence (57.0%) resulted in few (13.0%) mandated police referrals to Child & Family Services

Source: Brown, Rona (1998), Factors Associated with Police Response to Domestic Violence, Memorial University, NFLD