Epidemiology of domestic violence
Domestic violence occurs across the world, in various cultures,[1] and affects people across society, at all levels of economic status;[2] however, indicators of lower socioeconomic status (such as unemployment and low income) have been shown to be risk factors for higher levels of domestic violence in several studies.
[3] In the United States, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics in 1995, women reported a six times greater rate of intimate partner violence than men.
A study was conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1997 and determined that 5-20% of lost healthy lives between women aged 15–44 was due to domestic violence.
[9] According to various national surveys, the percentage of women who were ever physically assaulted by an intimate partner varies substantially by country: Barbados (30%), Canada (29%), Egypt (34%), New Zealand (35%), Switzerland (21%), United States (33%).
[10][11] Some surveys in specific places report figures as high as 50–70% of women who were ever physically assaulted by an intimate partner.
[12] 80% of women surveyed in rural Egypt said that beatings were common and often justified, particularly if the woman refused to have sex with her husband.
A number of countries have been statistically analyzed to calculate the prevalence of this phenomenon: There are a number of presentations that can be related to domestic violence during pregnancy: delay in seeking care for injuries; late booking, non-attenders at appointments, self-discharge; frequent attendance, vague problems; aggressive or over-solicitous partner; burns, pain, tenderness, injuries; vaginal tears, bleeding, STDs; and miscarriage.
[citation needed] Domestic violence against a pregnant woman can also affect the fetus and can have lingering effects on the child after birth.
[5] The issue of victimization of men by women has been contentious, due in part to studies which report drastically different statistics regarding domestic violence.
The review examined studies from five continents and the correlation between a country's level of gender inequality and rates of domestic violence.
They also stated if one examines who is physically harmed and how seriously, expresses more fear, and experiences subsequent psychological problems, domestic violence is significantly gendered toward women as victims.
[40] The U.S Department of Health and Human Services reports that for each year between 2000 and 2005, "female parents acting alone" were most common perpetrators of child abuse.
[43] In China in 1989, 39,000 baby girls died during their first year of life because they did not receive the same medical care that would be given to a male child.
Approximately one-third of adolescent girls are victims of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner.
According to the Center for Disease Control, in 2009, nearly 10% of students nationwide had been intentionally hit, slapped, or physically hurt by their boyfriend or girlfriend.
[47] The problem in these countries is severe, and in 2013 a DV victim won a European Court of Human Rights case against Lithuania.
These findings were determined after a research into domestic violence toward women compared to men was conducted by the French government, also known as the Istanbul Convention.
Since these findings were published, the domestic violence in France has lowered due to passing the Law for Equality between Women and Men.
Various programs have been implemented, including information campaign to make women aware of different risks like multiple partners or substance abuse that will lead to an increased chance of experiencing domestic violence.
[58] However, Straus notes that Canadian studies on domestic violence have simply excluded questions that ask men about being victimized by their wives.
Women who often experience higher levels of physical or sexual violence from their current partner were 44%, compared with 18% of men to suffer from an injury.
Cases in which women are faced with extremely abusive partners result in the females having to fear for their lives due to the violence.
[60] Approximately 1.3 million women and 835,000 men report being physically assaulted by an intimate partner annually in the United States.
[69] A study on Bedouin women in Israel found that most have experienced DV, most accepted it as a decree from God, and most believed they were to blame themselves for the violence.
[71] In Jordan, part of article 340 of the Penal Code states that "he who discovers his wife or one of his female relatives committing adultery and kills, wounds, or injures one of them, is exempted from any penalty.
"[72] This has twice been put forward for cancellation by the government, but was retained by the Lower House of the Parliament, in 2003: a year in which at least seven honor killings took place.
[79][80] A UN report compiled from a number of different studies conducted in at least 71 countries found domestic violence against women to be most prevalent in Ethiopia.
