Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a health problem affecting people of all genders, ages, and sexual identities. While IPV victimization of cis-gender heterosexual women are most widely researched, men, children and individuals of the LGBTQ community are also directly impacted. In result, there is an inadequate understanding of IPV experiences among these groups.
What about men?
Men are often stigmatized to be the perpetrator and women to be the victim in IPV occurrences. The publics perceived prejudice and discrimination are contributing factors towards the masculine identity, thus why they are not commonly thought to be the victim. Additionally, associated behavioral norms are a powerful component of their assumed role with IPV (Taylor et al., 2021). Elements of internalized stigma, in terms of one’s own beliefs relating to their gender, is a common barrier to men’s help seeking for IPV, which is why this group is misrepresented.
1 in 9 men experience severe physical violence, and sexual violence by their intimate partner.
1 in 25 men have been injured by an intimate partner.
1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner.
1 in 4 men have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner, including slapping, shoving, or pushing.
[Statistics Retrieved From https://ncadv.org/STATISTICS]
Children
Children are often thought of as the hidden or silent victims of IPV, and some are directly injured, while others are frightened witnesses. IPV exposure for this group are more likely to have also experienced emotional abuse, neglect, physical abuse, and community violence (NCTSN, 2022). Exposure can lead to immediate reactions, such as generalized anxiety, nightmares, and increased aggression, but it can also cause long-term effects such as substance use, PTSD, and delinquency (NCTSN, 2022).
We will release another blog post with more in-depth information on how children are affected by IPV. In the meantime, it would be important to note that children are inherently resilient and can move forward from stressful life events, including IPV.
1 in 15 children have been exposed to IPV between their parents.
[Statistic Retrieved From www.ojp.usdoj.gov]
LGBTQ Community
Much of the intimate partner violence movement is focused on heterosexual relationships leaving the LGBTQ community largely underrepresented. Recent research suggests that LGBTQ members are victim to IPV at equal or even higher rates compared to their heterosexual counterparts (NCADV, 2022). Fear of being “outed” or a partner threatening to reveal the victims sexual orientation/gender identity, and prior experiences of trauma (bullying, hate crime, etc.) have been associated with barriers to help seeking. Transgender individuals may suffer from an even greater burden of IPV than gay or lesbian individuals (NCADV, 2022). Specific forms of abuse occur, including using offensive pronouns such as “it”, ridiculing the transgender partners body or appearance, and telling the transgender partner that he or she is not a “real” woman or man.
43.8% of lesbian woman have experienced IPV.
61.1% of bisexual woman have experienced IPV.
26% of gay men have experienced IPV.
37.3% of bisexual men have experienced IPV.
Transgender victims are more likely to experience IPV, compared to those who do not identify as transgender.
[Statistics Retrieved From www.ncadv.org]
Everyone deserves to live a life free of abuse from their partner. If you or someone you know is a victim of abuse, please call 1-800-799-7233 for someone to talk to and referrals to local services.
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