Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence and Technology-Based Abuse

Background & Purpose: Evidence about the connections between dating violence and experiences of online abuse are well documented among youth populations (Borrajo, Gámez-Guadix, Pereda,  & Calvete, 2015; Reed, Tolman, & Ward, 2016; Reed, Tolman, & Ward, 2017). There is a growing body of literature examining the relationship between intimate partner abuse and forms of technology-based abuse for adult victims of intimate partner violence (Brown, Messing, & Reed, 2018; Freed, Palmer, Minchala, Levy, Ristenpart, & Dell, 2018; Dragiewicz, Burgess, Matamoros-Fernández, Salter, Suzor, Woodlock, & Harris, 2018 ).Qualitative studies and exploratory findings stress the importance of contextualizing these experiences within existing frameworks of intimate partner abuse and gender based violence (Dragiewicz et al., 2018). This study examined the relationship between specific forms of intimate partner violence and experiences of technology-based abuse.

Methods: Our sample is comprised of 249 women who were in domestic violence programs throughout a metropolitan region in the southwestern U.S. Participants ages ranged from 18-66 years (M = 38 years, SD = 11 years) and they were primarily low income with 35% earning less than $100 per month. Using a series of Pearson's Chi-Square tests, we examined associations between experiencing various forms of technology-based abuse and: physical violence, severe physical violence, and lethality risk.

Results: Findings show that, for women in shelter, 33% experience digital sexual coercion, 75% experience digital direct aggression, and 79% experience digital monitoring/control. Results also indicate that physical violence was positively associated with digital monitoring/control, 𝒳² (1) = 26.433, p < .001 and digital direct aggression, 𝒳² (1) = 8.364, p = .004. Those that experience physical violence are 11.5 times more likely to experience digital monitoring/control and 4.5 times more likely to experience digital direct aggression. Also, severe violence was significantly positively associated with digital monitoring/control, 𝒳² (1) = 37.631, p < .001 and digital sexual coercion, 𝒳² (1) = 6.808, p = .009. Women that experience severe violence are 16.4 times more likely to experience digital monitoring/control and 5.9 times more likely to experience digital sexual coercion. Lastly, findings demonstrate a significant association between lethality risk and digital direct aggression, 𝒳² (1) = 8.585, p = .003. Those with high lethality risk are 4.6 times more likely to experience digital direct aggression. 

Conclusion and Implications: Findings suggest the importance of screening for online harassment, especially monitoring and direct threats. Understanding more about the relationship between technology-based abuse and escalating violence could impact the way early intervention services and prevention programs target intimate partner violence. Experiences of technology-based abuse may have increased when women left their partners (Freed et al., 2018) demonstrating the need for training and curriculum for online safety practices.