Physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, financial abuse, coercive control, social abuse & more
Types of Domestic Violence
Recognise the types of domestic violence affecting our community
Domestic and family violence can involve a range of different behaviours, so being able to recognise when violence is occurring enables you to take the appropriate steps to intervene.
Physical abuse refers to any direct assault on someone’s body.
This includes using weaponry, driving dangerously, destruction of property, abuse of pets in front of family members, assault of children, and forced sleep deprivation.
Emotional abuse refers to using negative behaviour to impact someone’s self-esteem.
This can include blaming the spouse for all problems in the relationship, undermining self-esteem and self-worth, and withdrawing all interests and engagements.
Sexual abuse is intentional and unwanted sexual contact (or attempts) through the use of force, threats, intimidation, abuse of authority, coercive sex, sexually degrading insults, and criticism.
Financial abuse also referred to as economic abuse is coercive control of a spouse's financial independence.
This can include restricting access to money, stopping a spouse from getting a job, and forcing a spouse to get an unwanted loan.
Coercive control involves people using abusive behaviours in a pattern over time in a way that creates fear and denies liberty and autonomy.
Signs of coercive control include isolating partners from their support system, monitoring activity, criticism, threatening children and pets, and more.
Social abuse refers to the systematic isolation from family and friends through techniques such as offensive behaviour toward family and friends, moving locations where the partner knows nobody, and preventing social interaction such as meeting new people.
Spiritual abuse happens when someone uses spiritual and religious beliefs to harm, scare or control a partner.
This form of abuse includes denying access to ceremonies, land or family, preventing religious observance, forcing to act against instilled beliefs, and denigrating cultural background.
What are the types of domestic & family violence?
Often mistaken for physical abuse, domestic violence can take many different forms of harmful behaviour and knowing the signs can help you Recognise, Respond and Refer.
