Gender-based violence (GBV) is any maltreatment directed towards an individual against his or her will based on gender identity, perceived gender, or gender expression. It occurs due to unequal power associations between women, men, girls, and boys. GBV mainly affects females due to the existing social beliefs and norms that are unfavorable to them. In Canada, women are at a higher risk of experiencing gender-based violence compared to men. GBV involves mental, emotional, physical, or sexual abuse and mainly occurs in intimate relationships between partners.
The present paper investigates the issue of gender-based violence with a focus on domestic violence in Canada by examining the existing statistics, the risk factors that encourage violence, and recommendations for dealing with the issue.
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The incidences of domestic violence in Canada have increased following an eight-year decrease based on the most recent reports (Statistics Canada, 2018). A slight increase in police-based abuse for different groups including intimate partners, youth, children, and seniors was observed in the 2018 statistics. Seniors saw the rate of violence against them increase by four percent from 2016 to 2017. 33 percent of the 11,380 examined seniors experienced maltreatment from family members. Slightly over 50 percent of the abused seniors included women in which husbands perpetuated 32 percent of abuse cases. The report also found that a significant number of police-reported violent cases against partners in a romantic relationship had a history of family violence aspect. For instance, quarrels preceded 50 percent of homicides among partners, despair or frustration preceded 24 percent of homicides, while jealousy preceded 17 percent of homicides. Based on the report, women made up of 79 percent of the 933 intimate-partner homicide victims in which an existing or past husband committed 75 percent of the homicides.
The report also found that wives had a higher likelihood of killing their husbands than a girlfriend in which wives perpetuated 59 percent of deaths among men in relationships while girlfriends perpetuated 27 percent of the deaths. For same-sex relationships, 14 percent of the deaths involved men. The most affected groups included people aged between 25 and 34 years in which intimate partner violence entailed the dominant violence type for a majority of men in that range. About 50 percent of violence cases against women originated from their partners. Among youth and children, the rate of domestic violence increased by 6 percent between 2016 and 2017 in spite of a seven-year reduction of 7 percent from 2009 to 2017. Families perpetuated nearly a third of the approximately 60,000 reported cases of violence against youth and children in which parents perpetuated 58 percent of the cases. The most common abuse types in these groups involved physical abuse (56 percent) and sexual abuse (32 percent). Despair, anger, and frustration motivated 63 percent of homicide cases among children.
Other studies have found that the Statistics Canada reports ignore other data regarding domestic violence especially concerning the fact that both women and men can be victims of violence in equal terms. The study by Lysova, Dim, and Dutton (2019) found that men had a higher likelihood of reporting domestic violence victimization than women in which only 1.7 percent of women report assault cases compared to 2.9 percent of men. Men are also more likely to face extreme domestic violence forms (kicking or hitting) than women in which only 0.5 percent of women reported severe violence forms compared to 1.1 percent of men. Males were also found to report short term emotion effects and physical injuries due to domestic violence less often than women in which only 12 percent of men faced physical harm compared to 27 percent of women. Both genders were found to be likely to experience long-term psychological health issues due to violence in equal terms including PTSD associated symptoms. Bisexual and lesbian women were found to experience violence at 11 percent, which was the highest rate. Compared to previous statistics, domestic violence has decreased in general (2004 (7 percent), 2009 (6 percent), 2014 (4 percent)) (Lysova, Dim & Dutton, 2019).
The key to the understanding of any social issue is identifying the risk factors that contribute to its occurrence since this helps in implementing the required prevention measures. Regarding the risk factors for domestic violence in Canada, alcohol has been found to significantly contribute. People who drink frequently (over five drinks in each session) have been found to have a higher likelihood of being violent towards their partners, especially for men. Most intimate-violent acts occur when one partner is drunk or had been drinking (Graham & Bernards, 2008). The use of alcohol during the violent act is related to extreme violence with a greater risk of harm. Age has also been shown to contribute to domestic violence. The age group at the highest risk for domestic violence has been identified as ranging from 25 to 34 years old. Other identified risk factors include quarrels, jealousy, and frustration.
Based on reports and studies identified in the present paper, authorities need to develop intervention programs, public policy, and research that also consider that women also perpetrate domestic violence. These measures should also be gender-sensitive and gender-inclusive given that domestic violence affects different groups including seniors, youth and children, partners in same sex relationships, and partners in heterosexual relationships. While women have a higher risk of experiencing severe injuries and death due to domestic violence, men, children and youth also experience severe violence with severe outcomes. Intervention programs should prioritize women while focusing enough resources on men, children, and youth. It is also vital to invest more on research into male victimization to understand how domestic violence affects men. Authorities and agencies including the government, the police and hospitals should also use gender-inclusive policies regarding domestic violence by using common procedures when addressing female and male domestic violence issues instead of focusing on gender lenses that consider men to be the perpetrators. Since society still does not accept that men are also victims of violence, victim support agencies can raise awareness of the issue to widen the understanding of the issue.
While domestic violence in Canada has generally decreased since 2009, there have been recent increases in the rate of its occurrence between 2016 and 2017. Data shows that all forms of domestic violence increased between 2016 and 2017 after an 8-year decrease. The incidents involve both male perpetrators and female perpetrators. Children and youth are also adversely affected as both direct and indirect victims. Besides severe injuries, emotional issues, and mental problems, intimate partner violence has been found to cause the death of some victims. Earlier reports have also been found to underreport the extent to which men experience severe domestic violence cases perpetrated by women. While it is rare to find direct male victims of family violence, studies show that they exist even though most existing reports indicate men to be the perpetrators of domestic violence. Studies have also demonstrated that most perpetrators had a history of domestic violence. Studies, nevertheless, show that the majority of victims of domestic violence involve women.
References
Graham, K., & Bernards, S. (2008). Canada: alcohol and partner physical aggression in the 10 provinces. UNHAPPY , 91.
Lysova, A., Dim, E. E., & Dutton, D. (2019). Prevalence and Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence in Canada as Measured by the National Victimization Survey. Partner Abuse , 10 (2), 199-221.
Statistics Canada. (2018, December 5). Family violence in Canada: A statistical profile, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2019, from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002- x/2018001/article/54978-eng.pdf.
