Understanding Domestic Violence

Knowledge is Power

Our Domestic Violence Toolkit gives you the information and guidance you need to understand abuse, recognize warning signs, and know how to respond safely.

Domestic Violence Awareness Resources

Domestic violence is a pattern of coercive behavior used by one person to gain power and control over another in an intimate, or familial, relationship. Initiating discussions on domestic violence with friends, family, or colleagues can help create a supportive environment for addressing relationship issues and seeking guidance.

It is important to note, that while this page touches on a few important topics of domestic violence, our toolkit provides a more in-depth guide to understanding and responding to domestic violence.

Types of Abuse

Domestic violence occurs in various types of abuse, each deeply affecting the survivor's well-being.

Understanding these different types of abuse is critical to recognizing the signs and providing appropriate support. By being aware of the various types of domestic violence, we can better identify when someone is in need of help and take steps to offer resources and support to aid in their safety and healing.

Physical Abuse

Physical abuse involves deliberate and unwanted physical contact that may result in harm or, in severe cases, fatality. Forms of physical abuse encompass:

Punching, kicking, striking, biting, shoving
Choking or strangling
Yanking hair or forcefully grabbing clothes
Hurling items
Blocking someone's exit or coercing them to move
Forcing sexual interaction or demanding sexual acts
Employing firearms, blades, or other implements to intimidate or cause harm
Intimidation and throwing items within your space without actual contact
Withholding medical needs and healthcare essentials

Emotional Abuse

Emotional or psychological abuse is a method abusers use to dominate someone. It can lead someone to mistakenly hope for change from the abuser and undermine their self-esteem, complicating safety planning. Various tactics of emotional abuse include:

Insults and derogatory names
Public humiliation
Guilt-tripping and fault-finding
Actions and remarks that chip away at self-confidence
Psychological manipulation

Verbal Abuse

As a form of verbal and emotional abuse, abusers might use threats, yelling, and screaming to intimidate someone. They often belittle their appearance, intelligence, or value with demeaning remarks, such as claiming "no one else would ever want you."

Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse is not about sex. It is about power, and includes any sexual behavior performed without a partner’s consent. Sexual abuse tactics can include:

Forcing a partner to have sex
Sexual harassment
Forcing a partner to have sex with other people (human trafficking)
Engaging in sexual activity when the person is not fully conscious or is afraid to say no
Hurting partner physically during sex
Coercing partner to have sex without protection

If you or someone you know may be experiencing sexual abuse and need support, contact Florida Council Against Sexual Violence (FCASV) at 1-888-956-7273

Financial Abuse

Financial abuse is a form of domestic abuse where one person controls another's access to financial resources, limiting their ability to support themselves and undermining their independence.

Examples of financial abuse:

Providing a restricted allowance
Denying access to personal funds
Concealing family finances
Accumulating debt in the person's name
Disrupting the person's job opportunities
Damaging the person's credit score

Technological Abuse

Technological abuse involves using technology to control or stalk a partner. It can occur across all age groups, but more prevalent among teenagers.

A few signs of technology abuse can look like this:

Hacking into a partner's email and personal accounts.
Using tracking devices on a partner's cell phone to monitor their movements and communications.
Keeping tabs on a partner's social media interactions.
Insisting on access to a partner's passwords.

Spiritual Abuse

Spiritual (or religious) abuse can refer to a church elder or faith leader inflicting abuse on congregation members, often by creating a toxic culture within the church or group by shaming or controlling members using the power of their position. Signs of spiritual abuse between intimate partners include when an abusive partner:

ridicules or insults the other person’s religious or spiritual beliefs
prevents the other partner from practicing their religious or spiritual beliefs
uses their partner’s religious or spiritual beliefs to manipulate or shame them
forces the children to be raised in a faith that the other partner has not agreed to
uses religious texts or beliefs to minimize or rationalize abusive behaviors (such as physical, financial, emotional or sexual abuse/marital rape)

Common Signs of Abuse

Recognizing that you or someone you know is experiencing abuse can be extremely challenging. Abusers go to great lengths to control someone, managing their interactions and dictating their everyday lives. Early recognition of abuse can lead to timely intervention, potentially saving lives and preventing further harm.

Recognizable signs of abuse include:

Name-calling
Demeaning and insulting comments
Minimizes feelings and experiences
Phone calls, texts, and video chats frequently occurring
Threatens to physically or emotionally harm or kill the person, their pet(s) or family members
Blames the person for toxic behaviors and abuse
Prevents and creates reasons or situations so the person cannot spend time with family, friends, or activities
Damages credit by exceeding limits, purposely not paying bills, etc.
Restricting access to financial resources
Rigid roles in the relationship; no compromising and strict rules
Jealousy and possessive behavior

Power and Control

The Power and Control Wheel is a tool developed by the Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs in Duluth, MN, to help understand the patterns of behavior abusers use to control someone. View the Power and Control Wheel below.

Knowledge is Power