Join

Stats and Facts

Domestic violence remains one of the most prevalent violent crimes globally, with 1 in 3 women experiencing some form of physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. This isn't just an issue adult women face. Domestic violence can be experienced by anyone, regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, race, income, sexual orientation, or faith.

Globally, 26% of women aged 15 and over have experienced intimate partner violence, and 24% of adolescent girls (ages 15-19) who have been in a relationship have experienced physical or sexual violence from their partner. for every 3 victims15 In the US 28% of male victims of completed rape were first raped when they were 10 years old or younger and in Central America women are most likely to be killed by their intimate partner or relatives.

These experiences of abuse are not isolated incidents either; they have lasting impacts on the survivors and those closely connected to them.

The experiences can have long-term effects on survivors' lives and mental health. Studies show that survivors of abuse are 6 times more likely to have a substance use disorder, 3 times more likely to have suicidal thoughts, and 4 times more likely to attempt suicide. This reflects the toll taken on survivors' mental health, even after they have left their abuser, and the lack of effective support for survivors to address the trauma they have experienced, heal, and move forward with healthy coping mechanisms.

Domestic violence can also be an indicator of what the children exposed to that violence may struggle with later in life. It has been found that, globally, children who are exposed to violence in the home are 15 times more likely to be physically and/or sexually assaulted than the national average. In the US, domestic violence is the single major precursor to fatalities from child abuse and neglect. Younger children21 often face immediate behavioral issues and cognitive disruptions; older children are more likely to experience complex emotional challenges, including depression, anxiety, and PTSD. It was also found that boys typically display externalizing behaviors (i.e., aggression) while girls are more commonly internalizing their distress, leading to higher rates of anxiety and depression.

Knowing the facts and understanding the repercussions of one of the most widespread and underreported31 violent crimes is the first step to being able to put an end to domestic and sexual violence. Knowing this information could allow you to help a friend who is being abused, be an engaged bystander, and speak up when you see the abuse happening.

Global:

  • Globally, 1 in 3 women has experienced some form of physical or sexual violence.1
  • Globally, more than 26% of women aged 15 and older have experienced intimate partner violence.2
  • Globally, 38% of all murders of women are committed by intimate partners.1
  • Globally, less than 40% of women who experience violence seek help of any kind. Fewer than 10% of those who seek help report to the police.2
  • Globally, 61% of detected trafficking victims are women and girls.2
  • Children exposed to violence in the home are 15 times more likely to be physically and/or sexually assaulted than the national average.3
  • Survivors of abuse are 3 times more likely to have suicidal thoughts and 4 times more likely to attempt suicide.4
  • Survivors of abuse are 6 times more likely to have a substance use disorder.5, 6

US:

  • In the US, 24% of female stalking victims and 19% of male stalking victims were targeted as minors.7
  • An average of 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in the US–more than 12 million women and men each year.8
  • Domestic violence is the single major precursor to fatalities from child abuse and neglect in the United States.9
  • More than half of female victims of rape report being raped by an intimate partner; 40.8% report being raped by an acquaintance.10
  • 28% of male victims of completed rape were first raped when they were 10 years old or younger.11
  • The presence of a gun in domestic violence situations increases the risk of homicide by 500%. More than half of women killed by gun violence are killed by family members or intimate partners.12, 13
  • In the US, one in five women has experienced completed or attempted rape.10
  • In the US, over half of female homicide victims are killed by a current or former male intimate partner.7

UK:

  • In England and Wales, one woman is killed by an abusive partner or ex every 5 days on average.14
  • It is estimated that less than 24% of domestic abuse crime is reported to the police, yet the police receive a domestic abuse-related call every 30 seconds.14
  • Domestic abuse can begin or escalate during pregnancy; 1 in 3 pregnant women experience domestic abuse.14
  • Nearly 20% of young people, aged 16-19 had experienced domestic abuse in the last year.15
  • 1 in 5 adults experience domestic abuse during their lifetime. 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6-7 men.16, 17
  • Each year, more than 75,000 people in the UK are at high and imminent risk of being murdered or seriously injured because of domestic abuse.17, 18
  • In Scotland, 42% of female victims were more likely to be killed by a partner or ex-partner over the past 10 years, men had a likelihood of 4% of being killed by a partner or ex-partner. 
  • It is estimated that every day almost 30 women attempt suicide as a result of experiencing domestic abuse, and every week three women take their own lives.19, 20

Central America:

  • 95% of crimes against women and girls go unpunished.21
  • 64% of respondents to The National Survey of Violence against Women described direct threats and attacks by criminal armed groups as “at least one of the primary reasons for their flight”.22
  • 15% of women didn’t think the police would believe them, 11.5% were threatened to not report at all, 9% didn’t know where to go, support was provided to 6%, 48% involved not reporting due to difficulty accessing public services.22
  • At least 25% of Central American women are sexually assaulted as they try to reach the US.23
  • Women are most likely to be killed by their intimate partner or relatives.24
  • In Honduras, 380 femicides were recorded in 2023, indicating that a woman loses her life every 23 hours and 3 minutes.25
  • In El Salvador, the most at-risk group is women aged 18-30.25
  • Intimate partner/family member femicide rate is consistently higher in Central America than in the other parts of the Americas, and has the second highest rate of intimate partner and family-related femicide in the world.2

South America:

  • In Latin America, 70% of femicides occur in the victim’s home.26, 27
  • In Mexico, 10 women die a day due to femicide, 4x that of other homicides.26
  • In Mexico fewer than 3% of femicides are prosecuted and 1% are sentenced.26
  • In Mexico, 66.1% of women experienced violence in their lifetime, half experienced emotional violence, 4 out of 10 experienced sexual violence. of women experienced violence in their lifetime; half experienced emotional violence, and 4 out of 10 experienced sexual violence.
  • In El Salvador, in 2018, for every 100,000 women, 6.8 were victims of femicide, nearly 10x the global average and the highest femicide rate in Latin America.28
  • In El Salvador, more than 3 in 4 cases of femicide are never taken to court, and only 7% lead to a conviction.26
  • In Brazil, approximately every 7 hours a woman dies due to femicide.29
  • In Brazil, 88.8% of femicides were perpetrated by an intimate partner, and 65.6% occurred in the home.26, 30

References:

  1. World Health Organization (WHO) 
  2. UN Women
  3. Domestic Violence Services Network (DVSN) 
  4. The Lancet
  5. Science Direct 
  6. Recovery.com 
  7. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 
  8. National Domestic Violence Hotline 
  9. Cornell Law School 
  10. National Sexual Violence Research Center (NSVRC) 
  11. Time Magazine 
  12. U.S. DOJ 
  13. National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) 
  14. Refuge 
  15. Domestic Abuse Commissioner 
  16. Office for National Statistics 
  17. National Center for Domestic Violence (NCDV) 
  18. SafeLives 
  19. Grassroots Suicide Prevention 
  20. Hope After Harm 
  21. George W. Bush Presidential Center 
  22. US Institute of Diplomacy and Human Rights (USIDHR) 
  23. Sage Journals 
  24. Statista 
  25. Medium 
  26. Wilson Center 
  27. Clarín 
  28. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 
  29. Catraca Livre 
  30. Brazilian Public Security Yearbook
  31. European Journal of Public Health