Violence and Society: Domestic Violence

• The lecture is on violence and society, focusing on domestic violence.
• The lecture is by Raymond W. Novaco from the University of California, Irvine in Winter 2025.

Art Portrayals of Violence

• Titian's 1571 painting depicts Lucretia being raped.
• Tucci's late 15th-century artwork similarly portrays the rape of Lucretia by Tarquin.
• Biagio di Antonio Tucci (1446-1516) painted the "Story of Lucretia".
• Botticelli's "Tragedy of Lucretia," from the late 15th century, depicts public outrage that led soldiers to overthrow a tyrant king.

National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) Findings

• According to the October 2022 report, almost three-quarters of female victims of intimate partner violence experienced their first victimization before age 25.
• More than 1 in 4 female victims were first victimized before age 18.
• Among female victims in the NISVS 2016/2017 annualized estimates:
  • 45.2% were first victimized between 18 to 24 years old.
  • 27.1% were first victimized at 17 years or younger.
  • 26.9% were first victimized at 25 years and older.
• Lifetime prevalence of IPV according to CDC&P 2022:
  • Among women, 47.3% experienced any contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner.
  • Among men, 44.2% experienced any contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner.

Global Prevalence of IPV Against Women

• According to Devries et al. (2013, Science), a synthesis of 141 studies in 81 countries estimates global and regional IPV prevalence.
• Methodologically, studies used the "gold standard" of private, one-on-one interviews.
• As of 2010, 30% of women aged 15 and over have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their lifetime.
• 600 million women live in countries where domestic violence is not a crime.

Mental and Physical Health Problems Related to Intimate Partner Violence

• Mental health issues include:
  • Depression
  • PTSD
  • Shame
  • Suicidality
  • Anxiety
  • Anger dysregulation
  • Substance abuse
  • Externalizing disorders
• Physical health problems include:
  • Fractures, contusions and concussions
  • Functional impairment
  • Gastrointestinal problems
  • Women's reproductive health
  • Problems during pregnancy
  • Sexually transmitted diseases
  • Chronic pain
  • Neonatal health issues

Forms of Violence and Control

• Physical violence includes slapping, pushing, shoving, hitting, kicking, dragging, beating, choking, burning, or using a weapon.
• Sexual violence involves physical force for sexual intercourse, sexual acts due to fear, and degrading or humiliating sexual acts.
• Controlling behaviors include isolating someone from friends and family, insisting on knowing their location, getting angry if they speak to other men, suspicion of infidelity, and demanding permission for seeking healthcare.

Studies of Domestic Violence

• According to NCVS data from 2003-2012, domestic violence accounted for 21% of all violent crime. The "Cycle of Violence" is a pattern often experienced in abusive relationships and, in the absence of intervention, domestic violence generally gets worse over time.
• Moore, Greenfield, Wilson, & Koch (1997) discussed batterers challenge the Psychosocial Educational Model based on "power and control"
• They suggest treatment approaches should be guided by specifics of each unique case.
• Variation in abusive partner is seen in different ways such as:
  • Social learning of male domination & female compliance
  • Severe abuse is linked to alcohol abuse and criminality
  • The presence of BPD, rage volatility, impetuous attachment switches
  • Paranoia
  • The ASPD with narcissistic and lying tendencies

Prevalence of IPV

• According to Garcia-Moreno et al. (Lancet, 2006), a World Health Organization study in 15 countries showed wide variation in physical and sexual violence
• The "Power & Control Wheel" is a common way of understanding domestic violence

Physically Abused Women Statistics

• Krug et al. (2002) reported on physically abused women in a World Health Organization study.
• Rates of physically abused women who never told anyone, contacted the police, told friends, and told family varied widely by country
• Global, regional, and national prevalence estimates of physical or sexual intimate partner violence against women in 2018 vary across geographic regions

Reporting Domestic Violence

• Bureau of Justice Statistics (May 2017) data on non-fatal domestic violence victimizations reported to the police indicated key trends.
• A significant percentage of domestic violence incidents go unreported

Reasons for Not Reporting Domestic Violence

• Common reasons for not reporting include:
  • Incident being seen as personal matter.
  • Desire to protect the offender.
  • Incident deemed minor.
  • Fear of reprisal from the offender.
• According to NCVS, 2006-2015, 61% of female victimizations involving a serious injury were not reported due to fear of reprisal.

Case Studies

• "It was torture" is how police described the abuse a boy endured before being rescued by an Orlando server in January 2021
• The boy's stepfather was arrested on counts of third-degree child abuse.
• Also, the boy’s mother was arrested and faced charges for child neglect.
• Gabriel Fernandez, 8, had been killed in 2013, after his mother's boyfriend’s horrific abuse.
• Mother's boyfriend was convicted of first-degree murder.

Aversive Childhood Experiences (ACES)

• Felitti et al. (1998) studied 9,508 Kaiser Permanente enrollees and assessed exposure to 7 categories of ACES
• The study revealed those with 4+ ACES had 4-12x risk for alcohol/drug abuse, depression, suicide attempt, and 2-4x risk for physical health problems.
• Reuben, Moffit, Caspi et al. (2016, JCP&P) replicated these findings in the Dunedin longitudinal study with objective measurements of ACEs.
• Fox et al. (2015) studied seriously violent chronic (SVC) juvenile offenders (N = 10,714) in Florida.
• Comparison of Florida offenders to those who had been imprisoned once, showed, higher prevalence of aversive childhood memories