Psychological Aggression and Domestic Violence

Domestic violence doesn’t always involve physical abuse. Sometimes it includes forms of violence such as verbal abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse and economic abuse, in addition to or separate from physical abuse. A common definition of domestic violence is a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner.

Men are slightly more likely than women to be on the receiving end of psychological aggression by an intimate partner during their lifetime. Nearly half of men (48.8%) and half women (48.4%) have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner during their lifetime. Source: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010 Summary Report. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention, Atlanta, GA, and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The most common form of psychological aggression by an intimate partner that is experienced by male and female victims differs. For women it is being called names (like ugly, fat, stupid) (64.3%) and for men it is having one’s whereabouts tracked (63.1%). Source: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010 Summary Report. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention, Atlanta, GA, and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For women the next most common forms of psychological aggression by an intimate partner are “insulted, humiliated, made fun of” (58.0%), “acted very angry in a way that seemed dangerous” (57.9%), “told they were a loser, not good enough” (48.9%) and “made threats to physical harm” (45.5%). Source: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010 Summary Report. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention, Atlanta, GA, and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For men the next most common forms of psychological aggression by an intimate partner are “called names like fat, ugly, stupid” (51.6%), “told they were a loser, not good enough” (42.4%), “acted very angry in a way that seemed dangerous” (40.4%), and “insulted, humiliated, made fun of” (39.4%). Source: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010 Summary Report. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention, Atlanta, GA, and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.