The Interplay Between Poverty & Domestic Violence

Before delving into this article, it’s important to recognize the fact that intimate partner violence occurs at every income level. This article is by no means meant to restrict the issue to those living in poverty, but simply aims to highlight relevant risk factors associated with one community. 

Poverty can interact with the issue of intimate partner violence on many levels. In many cases, this interaction gives way to a dangerous cycle: while poverty increases the risk of domestic violence, domestic violence worsens economic conditions. This interplay entrenches victims in a cycle where it becomes more and more difficult to leave an abuser.  

Poverty can impact all kinds of abuse. Financial abuse is just one example of how an abuser can use their partner’s economic instability to maintain power and control. Financial abuse can take various forms including, but not limited to, “withholding access to or information about finances, generating credit card debt, destroying property, committing identity theft, or purposefully ruining credit scores.” This kind of abuse is common and can occur even among those who do not live in poverty. In one study of survivors of intimate partner violence, 94% of them had experienced financial abuse, with 88% experiencing employment sabotage and 79% experiencing economic exploitation. Because of their already precarious economic state, those in poverty tend to experience the impact of this abuse to a greater degree. 

While not all victims of domestic violence experience financial abuse, economic instability on its own can have equally harmful effects. For instance, poverty often increases stress and conflict between two partners, which can, in turn, exacerbate other forms of abuse. 

Additionally, a victim’s financial dependence on an abuser might lead them to minimize or further endure other forms of abuse. In fact, “74 percent of survivors report staying with an abuser for economic reasons.” In these cases, a victim may feel that, in order to provide for themselves or their children, they must put up with the physical or psychological abuse perpetrated by their partner. This is especially true if the abuser is the main source of income and/or if the victim does not work. Victims who do not work, who have primarily concerned themselves with caring for children or have been prevented from working by their abuser, have probably developed very few marketable skills and have not learned how to navigate the job market. But even those who do possess such skills, who do work, may fear the instability that would result in leaving their partner.

One survivor reflects on this, explaining how her economic condition led her to hesitate in reporting her abuser: “There was that chance I was taking [by calling police] that everything was going to change–knowing if he gets taken off, that’s one less person helping me. What do I do? How do I afford rent on my own?” 

Such concerns are not without warrant. In fact, the connection between domestic violence and homelessness is quite strong. In Missouri, “27 percent of individuals in homeless shelters were survivors of domestic violence.” Throughout the U.S., fifty percent of surveyed cities listed domestic violence as a primary cause of homelessness. Another study revealed that “half of all homeless women and children are fleeing abuse,” and that 57% percent of homeless parents who had lived with a spouse or partner had left their most recent residence because of domestic violence. While the threat of homelessness may lead one to depend on and stay with an abuser, experiencing and escaping the abuse may lead one to become homeless. It’s another dangerous cycle stemming from the interplay between poverty and domestic violence, and one that causes many victims to return to their abuser again and again.  

On the other side of the spectrum, research reveals that many “women with greater financial means can flee abuse without supportive services, and individuals of greater SES receive more respect from law enforcement and the greater society.” Thus, financially stable women may also feel more confident in reporting or seeking help from the system. They also tend to experience less domestic violence to begin with. The ACLU reveals that, “women with household incomes of less than $7,500 are 7 times as likely as women with household incomes over $75,000 to experience domestic violence,” and “women living in rental housing experience intimate partner violence at three times the rate of women who own their homes.” Financial abuse and economic instability, however, do not occur only among low-income women. John, a survivor of domestic violence, is an example of such. 

Despite being the money maker of the family, John, who suffered physical, sexual, and psychological abuse at the hands of his wife, also experienced financial abuse. He explains, “although I worked full time and made 80,000 dollars a year, my wife wouldn’t even give me money for gas.” His wife began to control his income and refused to give him money for his basic needs. She was also, “spending huge amounts on credit cards so that the bills were so high I would be unable to pay them and no money to escape or pay a lawyer.” John did, however, discover that resources were available for him, and he was able to leave his abusive marriage. Although he is still healing from the abuse, he reflects on the way his Harmony House case manager was able to assist him in safely escaping and reentering society. These same resources are available to survivors today. Whether suffering economic abuse or trapped by financial instability, your economic condition does not have to be the reason you continue to endure abuse.  

This article not only illustrates that poverty plays a serious role in domestic violence, but reminds us that an attack on domestic violence must be multi-faceted. It cannot simply seek to educate and provide resources surrounding the issue of domestic violence alone. To successfully combat abuse, we must recognize the many conditions that lead to and exacerbate it and work to educate and implement prevention among groups that are particularly at-risk. 

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Harmony House

The mission of Harmony House is to provide shelter, advocacy and education to survivors of domestic violence and promote the principle that all individuals have the right to life free of abuse.

Since 1976, our emergency shelter and supportive outreach case management programs have offered individuals and their children the opportunity to rest and heal both emotionally and physically in a supportive environment. We believe you. You are not alone and we can help!

If you or someone you know is living in an abusive situation, call 417–864-SAFE (7233) to speak with an advocate.

Click here to learn more about Harmony House

References 

1. DuMonthier, Asha & Dusenbery, Malore. (2016, October). Intersection of Domestic Violence and Economic Security. Institute for Women’s Policy Research. https://iwpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/B362-Domestic-Violence-and-Economic-Security.pdf 

1. Gibbs, A., Jewkes, R., Willan, S., Washington, L. (2018, October 3). Associations between poverty, mental health and substance use, gender power, and intimate partner violence amongst young (18-30) women and men in urban informal settlements in South Africa: A cross-sectional study and structural equation model. PLoS ONE 13(10): e0204956. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0204956 

1. Sabina C. (2013). Individual and national level associations between economic deprivation and partner violence among college students in 31 national settings. Aggressive behavior, 39(4), 247–256. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21479 

1. Niess-May, Barbara. (2019, October 22). The Intersection of Domestic Violence and Poverty. SafeHouse Center. https://www.safehousecenter.org/the-intersection-of-domestic-violence-and-poverty/ 

1. Holliday, C. N., Kahn, G., Thorpe, R. J., Jr, Shah, R., Hameeduddin, Z., & Decker, M. R. (2020). Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Police Reporting for Partner Violence in the National Crime Victimization Survey and Survivor-Led Interpretation. Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities, 7(3), 468–480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-019-00675-9 

1. American Civil Liberties Union Foundation. (n.d.). Domestic Violence and Homelessness. ACLU Women’s Rights Project. https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/dvhomelessness032106.pdf 

1. John. Standing Together. Randy Bacon Photography. https://www.randybacon.com/standing-together#e-1