Disability and domestic violence

This Policy Brief examines the results of the following research project: The prevalence of intimate partner violence and access to services experienced by persons with disabilities. The study examined quantitatively and qualitatively the intimate partner violence and access to services experienced by persons with disabilities. The research project was carried out between 1.3.2021 and 28.2.2022 under the leadership of the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, in cooperation with the Finnish Association of Invalids and Kynnys ry. 

Violence, intimate partner violence and ill-treatment experienced by persons with disabilities and persons with functional limitations are serious social phenomena and often cause human suffering, anxiety and fear to the person who has experienced them. Based on previous international literature, persons with disabilities experience intimate partner violence more often than persons without disabilities (e.g., Lund 2011, Breiding & Armour 2015, Dammeyer & Chapman 2018, Mamali et al. 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic has further increased the amount of violence (Courtenay & Perera 2020). 

In this Policy Brief, persons with disabilities and functional limitations refer to people who (a) perceive themselves as disabled or have functional limitations and (b) have  disabilities or functional limitations defined by using the Washington Group questions (Washington Group 2020).  

Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence, or other types of abuse, that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. Domestic violence is often used as a synonym for intimate partner violence, which is committed by one of the people in an intimate relationship against the other person and can take place in relationships or between former spouses or partners. In its broadest sense, domestic violence also involves violence against children, parents  or the elderly. Domestic violence can assume multiple forms, including physical, mental, sexual, economic or cultural violence, or in neglect of care or assistance. Neglect related to abuse is defined as violence in which a person is left without care, help,  or other basic needs to be met.

According to a previous national study, persons with disabilities, especially women, the elderly and children, are at greater risk of experiencing violence and abuse, both in the home and in housing services. Violence experienced by persons with disabilities and intimate partner violence are among the most underreported crimes. It rarely comes to the attention of the authorities or other people and is not always recognis ed. Domestic violence related to disability also has special characteristics that differ from intimate partner violence experienced by other people. Dependence on the help of another person increases the risk of domestic violence and abuse.  Domestic violence may be related to the impairment of a disabled person's functional capacity and the use of assistive devices. (Bishop 2013, KPMG & WoM 2018, Victim Support Finland 2020, Bildjuschkin et al. 2020, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare 2022.)

Material and methods

The main objective of the research project was to carry out a study on domestic violence experienced by children, young people and adults with disabilities, its prevalence and the availability of services. The sub-objectives were to research the forms of domestic violence, the consequences of domestic violence and the availability of services, as well as the used ways of seeking help. Part of the objective was also to identify risk factors specifically related to persons with disabilities that expose them to domestic violence and possibly prevent them from reporting the violence they have experienced, or prevent them from accessing services.

The research data used in the study include population study data sets, which are the School Health Promotion study (2019, 2021), National FinSote Surveys (2018, 2020) and the FinHealth 2017 follow-up study (2020). In addition, the Disability and Domestic Violence survey and interview data collected in the project (2021) was used as research data. 

Results

Prevalence and gendered nature of intimate partner violence experienced by persons with disabilities

Domestic violence is more common for persons with disabilities than in the rest of the population. There are differences between genders in the frequency of experiencing different forms of violence.

According to parents, more than half (52%) of four-year-old boys with disabilities had experienced bullying. Of the other boys and all girls, one in three (32 to 37%) had experienced bullying. At all comprehensive school levels, girls and boys with disabilities had experienced at least one form of physical violence by their parents, or other dependent adults, about twice as often as other girls and boys at the same level of education. Around half (48–57%) of girls with disabilities had experienced psychological violence from their parents – more often girls in 8th and 9th grades of comprehensive school. Boys with disabilities and girls without disabilities had equally experienced psychological violence from their parents (27–36%). Boys without disabilities (11–18%) experienced the least psychological violence.

At all school levels, the most common experiences of sexual harassment were among girls with disabilities, of whom three out of five (60 to 62%) had experienced sexual harassment. Experiences of sexual harassment were also common among other girls (42–46%). For girls, the school level had little effect on the prevalence of experiences of harassment. At all school levels, boys with disabilities (14–20%) had experienced sexual harassment more often than other boys (6–8%). At all school levels, experiences of sexual violence were twice as common among girls with disabilities and three times more often among boys with disabilities than among other girls and boys. The most common experiences were among girls with disabilities. One in four (26%) of those studying at a vocational institution, and one in five (22%) girls with disabilities at other levels of education, had experienced sexual violence. Boys with disabilities (6–12%) had experienced more sexual violence than other boys (2–3%). Only those in grades 8 and 9 of comprehensive school had experienced sexual violence less often than other girls in the same level of education (9–14%).

A population survey of people aged 21 and over found that 12% of women with disabilities and 5% of men had experienced sexual harassment, compared with 10% and 2%, respectively. Both disabled and other men felt more often than women that they had been threatened with physical harm. In the second population survey, experiences of violence were most common among people aged 20 to 49 and rarest among people aged 70 or over, both in the disabled population and in the general population. For those aged 20 to 49, the differences between people with disabilities and others were as much as double in all forms of violence. The perpetrator of violence in both people with disabilities and other people was typically either another familiar person or an unknown person, but rarely another family member or relative. Persons with disabilities who received insufficient assistance in their daily activities had more frequent experiences of violence than those who did not need help or those who received enough help.

Domestic violence can be long-lasting and assume multiple forms

In the disability and violence survey, a large majority of respondents reported experiencing violence, which indicates that the survey mainly selected respondents with experiences of violence. Many respondents had experiences with different forms of violence, and only a few had only one form of violence. In addition, most respondents who had experienced violence had experienced it both within the past 12 months and more than 12 months ago. For most cases, the perpetrator of the violence was a person familiar to the person with a disability. Professionals, such as home care workers and personal assistants, were also reported as the perpetrators of violence and were neglecting help.

The persons with disabilities who participated in the interviews had experienced worsening violence, beatings and rapes. Violence experienced by persons with disabilities can span many stages of life, be long-lasting and lead to violence in different environments. Discrimination, abuse and intimate partner violence that began in childhood and adolescence can continue into adulthood when the perpetrators change. In addition, abuse, neglect and violence experienced in childhood and adolescence can increase the susceptibility to experiencing something similar in adulthood.

”… pääsen vaan kaks kertaa päivässä vessaan…tällästä hodon laiminlyöntiä.” I can only go to the bathroom two times a day... this kind of neglect of care” (Haastateltava)

It is often difficult to get help for domestic violence

Persons with disabilities who have experienced domestic violence have difficulties in seeking and receiving help. Persons with disabilities often feel that they had received insufficient help for their violent experiences. Disability, the people around you and the circumstances can affect whether you feel comfortable seeking help.  In persons with disabilities who had experienced violence, 60-63% felt that it was challenging or difficult to get help. Similarly, some persons with disabilities had successfully received assistance. It was not easy for a person with a disability to go and seek help due to, for example, inadequate services, an inaccessible environment, the constant control of the aggressor or the need for help from the person seeking help. The person with a disability did not always know where to seek help, or seeking help was hampered by a previous negative experience of encountering an authority, for example.

The worrying result was also that young people with disabilities across all school levels felt that they had received assistance for matters weighing on their minds twice as rarely as other young people of the same age. This means that inequalities in access to assistance for disabled persons may begin to develop at a young age.

Consequences of intimate partner violence

Among other things, intimate partner violence had social consequences, such as increased intercourse difficulties and isolationism. Young people with disabilities felt lonely more often than other young people at all school levels. Young people with disabilities who experienced violence were most commonly lonely in vocational colleges. Disabled adults who experienced violence also often reported loneliness and psychological load. They also felt their quality of life was inferior.

Access to services is central to preventing intimate partner violence experienced by persons with disabilities

According to the results of the study, proposals for measures can be put forward which should be considered when designing, restoring and implementing disability services, health care, social work and violence-related work. The key premise of the proposed measures is that the perspective should be broadened both in disability services and in regard to the status of the disabled person. 

The proposed measures include three main themes: improving the identification of violence, preventing violence and ensuring access to assistance. Disability does not appear to protect against violence, according to our data, but rather is a risk factor. This should be considered in policy, legislation and planning measures and services. Proposals for measures require resources for anti-violence work and accessibility to services. There are great difficulties in identifying the experiences of violence of persons with disabilities, as persons with disabilities often fall short of adequate assistance when faced with violence. There are consequences for intimate partner violence, such as depression, anxiety and fear, and it can cause a long-term need for help, such as psychotherapy. In public health and ethically, the most sustainable solution would be to increase resources for preventive work and information and to ensure low-threshold access to assistance.

In general, the threat of intimate partner violence experienced by persons with disabilities should also be understood in welfare areas when designing different services and their accessibility. Services in welfare areas should be attentive to persons with disabilities; they should be disability inclusive. For example, the Disability Council could be used to strengthen the disability-inclusive perspective in services, and this could improve the inclusion of persons with disabilities. In services, the disabled person should be asked about his or her own life and experiences.

Proposals for actions

Improving Violence Identification

• Resources  should be allocated to persons with disabilities in order to identify bullying, discrimination, abuse and violence; and related training should be directed at social and health care professionals, early childhood education and teaching professionals, and rescue and safety authorities.
• Teaching violence identification, boundaries and safety skills to persons with disabilities from childhood to adulthood should be ensured with accessible materials.
• Already-existing professional violence identification tools can be customized to make them more suitable for disabled persons.
• Professionals should bring up the experiences of violence with a disabled person in a safe environment.
• Safety and rescue authorities must always respond seriously to a report of violence. Authorities should take note of the fact that a disabled person is often particularly vulnerable, and the perpetrator of violence is often a person close to them.

Preventing violence and ensuring access to assistance

• Increase information on the forms and prevention of violence against persons with disabilities and the possibilities of seeking assistance. If necessary, you can take advantage of the Know and Act (tiedä ja toimi kortti) card from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare.
• Violence prevention measures are recommended for welfare areas, in particular a process for identifying where to get help in the event of violence, how the customer is referred for assistance and ways to ensure continuity of assistance and support.
• When a professional encounters a disabled client who has experienced violence, he or she must ensure access to the client's assistance, for example by helping the client contact social services.
• Accessibility to seeking assistance should be considered. We recommend that the accessibility of crisis services in 112, Null Line and the crisis services of municipalities and welfare areas should be considered so that they are accessible to those communicating in different ways. In addition, all shelters should be accessible. Access to necessary services should also be safeguarded during the period of being in the shelter.
• Awareness of violence against children and young people with disabilities should be raised, and special attention should be given to the prevention of bullying and discrimination in children and young people with disabilities in early childhood education and schools.