Research

Dating violence is defined as the physical, sexual, psychological, or emotional violence within a dating relationship. Dating violence can lead to symptoms of depression and anxiety, drug and alcohol abuse, involvement in antisocial behaviors, and thoughts of suicide.

• Approximately 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have experienced severe physical violence by an intimate partner (https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs_report2010-a.pdf).
• Approximately 1.3 million women and 835,000 men are physically assaulted by an intimate partner annually in the United States (http://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/intimate-partner-violence/Pages/extent.aspx).
• Sexual assault or forced sex occurs in approximately 40-45% of battering relationships (http://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/intimate-partner-violence/Pages/extent.aspx).
• 1 in 5 female high school students reports being physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner (http://www.apa.org/topics/violence/partner.aspx).

Elder abuse refers to any knowing, intentional, or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm or serious risk of harm to a vulnerable adult. It includes the use of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, exploitation, and abandonment.

• It is estimated that more than 1 in every 10 older adults experience abuse in some form(https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/elder-abuse).
• Experts believe that for every case of abuse or neglect that is reported to authorities, 23 cases go undetected (https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/elder-abuse).

Abusive partners in LGBTQ relationships use all the same tactics to gain power and control as abusive partners in heterosexual relationships–physical, sexual or emotional abuse, financial control, isolation and more.

• According to a study conducted by the Urban Institute, 42.8% of LGBT youth reported experiencing dating violence whereas 29% of heterosexual youth reported the same (http://www.hrc.org/resources/teen-dating-violence-among-lgbtq-youth).
• One study found that 26.9% of gay men had experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetimes and 12.1% had experienced intimate partner violence in the past year (http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/Intimate-Partner-Violence-and-Sexual-Abuse-among-LGBT-People.pdf).

• According to a 2010 national survey by the Centers for Disease Control and the U.S. Department of Justice, in the last 12 months, more men were victims of intimate partner physical violence than women and over 40% of severe physical violence was directed at men. Men were also the victims of psychological aggression and control over sexual or reproductive health more often than women (https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs_report2010-a.pdf).
• According to the CDC, “Nearly 56% of men who are victims of contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner first experienced these or other forms of violence by that partner before age 25.” (https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/datasources/nisvs/men-ipvsvandstalking.html)
• According to an article published by the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence, domestic violence can be described as non-severe (pushing, shoving, slapping, etc.),  severe (“beating up”, using a knife, etc.), or emotional abuse or psychological abuse (abuse intended to demean or humiliate). (https://web.archive.org/web/20090104074211/http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ncfv-cnivf/familyviolence/pdfs/Intimate_Partner.pdf)
• The National Domestic Violence Hotline states about 1 in 10 (10%) of men in the US have experienced rape. (https://www.thehotline.org/resources/statistics/)

Sibling abuse includes physical, emotional, or sexual abuse towards another sibling, which affects young boys and girls across the world. Because sibling abuse is overlooked as play fighting, parents oftentimes miss the signs of sibling abuse that affect children.

• According to experts, 3 in every 100 children are dangerously violent towards their brother or sister (http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/sibabuse.htm).
• A study found that about 35 in every 100 children are dangerously assaulted every year. Experts believe that sibling incest is more prevalent than parent-child incest (http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/sibabuse.htm).
• The AAMFT (American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy), says that sibling abuse starts when parents fail to adequately supervise their child’s behavior or teach them the appropriate means of resolving conflict. (https://www.aamft.org/Consumer_Updates/Sibling_Violence.aspx)