The Prevalence of Intimate Violence
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- Women’s greatest risk of assault is from their intimates, particularly male partners.
- Women are more likely to be attacked, raped, injured or killed by current or former male partners than by any other type of assailant.
- Between 21% and 34% of all women will be assaulted by an intimate male during adulthood.
- A study of more than 6,000 randomly selected households found that 28% of women reported at least one instance of physical assault during their current relationship; 16% reported at least one aggressive incident in the year before the survey; 3% of the sample, which translates into almost two million women nationwide, reported being severely assaulted during the preceding twelve months. These assaults included being punched, kicked, choked, hit with an object, beaten up, threatened with a knife or gun, or assaulted with a knife or a gun.
- A study of dating violence, which surveyed 2,600 women nationwide at 32 colleges and universities, found that 32% reported experiencing physical aggression from a date or other intimate partner.
- For 73% - 85% of abused wives, the onset of violence did not occur until after they had married the abuser. Violence often comes at the time of increased commitment – e.g., engagement, moving in together, marriage, pregnancy.
- A study of more than 6,00 randomly selected households found that when an assault by a husband occurs, it tends to be part of a recurrent patter, rather than an isolated incident.
- Sexual assault has been reported by 34% - 59% of women who have also been nonsexually assaulted by their intimate partners.
