Intimate Partner Violence During SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Pandemic
Times in which natural disasters and crisis restrict movement of individuals are critical moments of increase in intimate partner violence. Well-described contributing factors in the literature are social isolation, stress, substance abuse, economic anxie
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Mallory Williams and Rahn Kennedy Bailey
Perhaps, there has been no greater impact on the context in which victims experience violence than that of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic. Mandated social policies that confine individuals to their domicile with their abuser greatly increase the opportunity for injury to victims. Estimates from the United Nations Population Fund suggest that 90 days of quarantine will result in a 20% global rise in IPV which is equivalent to 15 million new cases [1]. Key factors that drive these data are social isolation, stress, substance abuse, economic anxiety, and lack of accessible public resources for intervention.
Social Isolation Social isolation is defined as a state of being cut off from normal social networks. This can be the result of a loss of mobility, unemployment, or health-related issues. COVID-19 can lead to all of the causes of social isolation. Social isolation is one of the most common maneuvers performed on victims by their abusers. Once confined to a known location with an abuser, the risks of IPV can be exceedingly high [2, 3]. Furthermore, the ability for outside influences to intervene is low. In essence, COVID-19 or any other natural disaster that confines individuals with their abusers
M. Williams (*) Howard University Hospital, Washington, DC, USA Howard University College of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA Howard University National Center of Excellence for Trauma & Violence Prevention, Washington, DC, USA e-mail: [email protected] R. K. Bailey Department of Psychiatry, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA, USA © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 R. K. Bailey (ed.), Intimate Partner Violence, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55864-2_18
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M. Williams and R. K. Bailey
creates the preferred scenario for the abuser. Victims become susceptible to both physical and emotional abuse such as the practice of gaslighting. The term gaslighting originates from a 1938 stage play entitled Gas Light. The abuser seeks to exert power and control over the victim by having them doubt their thoughts and feelings and thereby defer to their abuser. This creates a dependence that only more complicates the victim’s ability to break free of the cycle of abuse. This of course is greatly facilitated by the lack of external encouraging or reassuring influences. James et al. (2004) in a social network study found that many of the women experienced physical and emotional aspects of isolation [4]. Furthermore, in each of these cases, this isolation was forced on these women [4]. Women with higher levels of social support are less likely to be victims of IPV, and this holds true across levels of neighborhood deprivation [5]. COVID-19 is not just a viral pandemic; it is also a powerful producer of social isolation for victims of IPV. COVID-19 unlike natural disasters has eliminated children’s ability to participate in school and families’ ability to practice their religious faith. Victims seeking to attend physician appointments are bein
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