Abusive Relationship Statistics

Relationships should be a blessing and not a curse! You get into a relationship to make your life better and happy. Sadly, this doesn't stand true for everyone in this world. And what is more sad is the fact that the statistics till now are not accurate in number. Not because the sources are not trustworthy, but because most of the people never report their sufferings considering the act to be a private affair. This is one of the main reasons for allowing the situation to get worse day by day! Therefore it is so very important to take corrective action against the abuse involved in the relationship, at the very beginning.

Abusive Relationship Signs

In order to make it much more visible to you, that what your loved one is doing is NOT out of care, concern or love, it is important to tell you how does an abusive relationship start! Below are some abusive relationship signs, which he/she will tend to do, which can be considered as the early start of a fatal end:

• Asking a lot of questions regarding your whereabouts.
• Being way too demanding.
• Getting highly upset when you are unable to meet his/her demands.
• Constant shouting and banging the stuff around.
• Trying to perform sexual activities forcibly without your consent.
• Drifting you away from family and friends by being way to possessive and jealous.
• Trying to dominate you every time.
• Taking decisions on your behalf without consulting.
• A slap or hit on your body is NOT normal!
• Blaming you for his/her worries and troubles.

If you are facing all these problems in your relationship, then it's my humble request to leave the "IT HAPPENS" attitude, and take some serious action against it. If you are thinking that there is no physical assault involved so it's OK to avoid the matter, think again! Many people are mistaken and don't know the fact that any torture done physically, financially, psychologically, or emotionally; comes under abuse, and all these can take a fatal and ugly shape. As a matter of fact, emotionally abusive relationships are just a sign of your abuser to go physically abusive very soon. So, don't mistake these signs as actions coming out of love and concern. Because they are NOT! In fact, many stay quiet and ignore the verbal abuse signs, just to face the worse form of abuse later on!

Statistics on Abusive Relationships

The following statistics show a vague, yet alarming picture, of how worse things actually are. These facts depict the scenario of the current, as well as the past situation. With people, especially women, going more independent and strong, things should be improving, but actually they are not. Let us go through the statistics.

Teenagers Involved in an Abusive Relationship
For many involved in a relationship, teenage is not at all the time for fun. Below are some statistics regarding teenage relationship abuse. According to the Liz Claiborne Inc. study conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited; February 2005:

• Out of every 3 teenagers, at least one knows someone of the same age who has been slapped, punched, kicked or physically hurt by their loved one.
• It's shocking, but almost 80% of girls in intimate relationships who have been physically abused, continue to be in a relationship with the abusive partner.
• Every 1 out of 4 teenage girls report to have suffer from verbal abuse in their relationships, rest don't!
• 73% of teenagers, if happened to be involved in an abusive relationship, say that they would ask for a friend's help. The rest 33% would choose to be silent about the matter!
• 1 out of every 4 girls who have had relationships, state that they were pressurized to perform oral sex or indulge in intercourse with their boyfriend.

According to the Liz Claiborne Inc. study conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited; Technology & Teen Dating Abuse Survey, 2007

• 71% of teenagers state that their boyfriends/girlfriends spread rumors about them through cell phones and social networking sites.
• 68% of the teenagers say that their boyfriends/girlfriends post and share embarrassing pictures/videos through social networking sites and cell phones.
• 30% of the teenagers say that they are text at least 10-30 times an hour by their partner to know about their whereabouts!

According to the City of New York, Teen Relationship Abuse Fact Sheet, March 1998, out of the teenagers between 15-19 years of age, 30% are killed by their partners. It's sad that at a tender phase of adolescence, some have to go through the shattering phase of abusive relationships. Imagine what would be the effect resulting from such trauma!

Women Involved in an Abusive Relationship
When it comes to women in abusive relationships, the statistics are even more shocking and disturbing. Read on the following statistics to know the consequences of being quiet and tolerant.

• A woman is physically assaulted every nine seconds in the United States according to the Family Violence Prevention Fund Report 1994.
• According to the Surgeon General 1992, relationship/ domestic violence is the leading cause of women injuries in women aged between 15-44 in the United States, which was more than rapes, muggings and automobile incidents when combined together!
• According to Commonwealth Fund survey 1998, Nearly one-third of American women report being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.
• According to the Journal of American Medical Association 1992, Over 50% of women killed in the United Sates were killed by male intimate partners or ex-partners. Also, 22-35% of women visiting medical emergency rooms are there from injuries resulting from ongoing abusive relationships.
• According to the Commonwealth Fund 1993, 3.9 million American women, either married or living with a partner,were physically abused. Also, 20.7 million were emotionally or verbally abused by their partner.
• In 2003, 30% of the female murder victims in the United States were slain by their husbands or boyfriends. - Uniform Crime Reports of the U.S. 1996, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2003 (January - June).
• According to Barbara Hart, National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 1988, Women who leave their batterers are at 75% greater risk of severe injury or death than those who stay.
• The National Institute of Justice, July 2000 states that it is estimated that 503,485 women are stalked by an intimate partner each year in the United States.
• Every 2 out of 3 female victims of violence and physical assault, were related to or knew their attacker.- From the research of U.S. Dept. of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, "Violence against Women: A National Crime Victimization Survey Report, January 1994"
• According to a national survey Kathleen C. Basile, Prevalence of Wife Rape and Other Intimate Partner Sexual Coercion in a Nationally Representative Sample of Women, 17 Violence and Victims 511 (2002) , 34% of women were victims of sexual assault by a spouse or intimate partner
• Out of all women murdered with a firearm, almost 2/3rd were murdered by their intimate partners. The number of females shot and killed by their husband or intimate partner was thrice as higher than the total number of women murdered by male strangers using all weapons combined in single victim/single offender incidents in 2002.

Some Other Facts on Abusive Relationships

Abusive relationship not only affects the life of the one being abused, but also others who are related to them. Read on the following statistical Facts.

• Abusiveness and physical assaults resulting in family/domestic violence, costs the nation from $5 to $10 billion annually in medical expenses, police and court costs, shelters and foster care, sick leave, absenteeism, and non-productivity. Source: Medical News, American Medical Association, January, 1992.
• According to the "Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family", APA, 1996, children exposed to the father abusing the mother both physically or mentally, is at the strongest risk for transmitting violent behavior to the generations to come, making abusive nature a heredity behavior.
• In a research done in the year 1995-1996 in the 50 States and the District of Columbia, nearly 25% of women and 7.6% of men were raped and/or physically assaulted by an existing or former spouse, cohabiting partner, or dating partner/acquaintance at some time in their lifetime (based on survey of 16,000 participants, equally male and female).
• Among the non-fatal violence committed by inmate partners, 3% are done against men.
• In the year 2000, the number of women killed by an intimate partner was 1,247. Even, 440 men were killed in the same context. In recent years, statistics show that approximately 33% of female murder victims and 4% of male murder victims were killed by an intimate partner.
• The National Violence Against Women Survey states that most perpetrators of sexual violence and abuse are men. Among acts of sexual violence committed against women since the age of 18, 100% of rapes, 92% of physical assaults, and 97% of stalking acts were perpetrated by men. Sexual violence against men too is considered an abusive conduct: These assaults accounted for 70% of rapes, 86% of physical assaults, and 65% of stalking acts perpetrated by men.

It's not only men who abuse in a relationship, you also find abusive women in relationships, who can be equally abusive as men. Therefore, taking necessary measures is extremely important. Don't ignore verbal abuses also. Try to talk to your partner about it before things get worse. If the situation has risen to beating and physical assaulting, then do not hesitate to get help from Law Enforcement Authorities and the Police. Clearly there is no "love" and "respect" left! So why suffer and live under constant fear and threatening? No one can control you, if you don't allow them too! Think about it...