In this section
What does it look like?
Domestic violence, also called intimate partner violence, includes behaviors used by one person in a relationship to control the other. Partners may be married or not married; heterosexual, gay, lesbian, or transsexual; living together, separated, or dating.
Examples of controlling behaviors include:
Emotional Control
- Intimidating a partner
- Accusing a partner of having other relationships
- Threatening a partner, children, family members, or pets
- Always putting a partner down or making him/her feel bad
- Keeping a partner from contacting friends and family
Verbal Control
- Accusing and blaming a partner
- Name calling
- Hiding abuse as a joke
- Denying anger or abuse
- Threatening to commit suicide to convince a partner to do something
Financial Control
- Taking a partner’s ID, paycheck, money, credit cards, or property without permission
- Bothering a partner at work to negatively impact a job
- Denying basic needs of life to a partner and/or children
Physical Control
- Pushing, hitting, slapping, choking, kicking, or biting
- Damaging property
- Forcing a partner to have sex or to do sexual acts she or he does not want or like
- Refusing to leave or allowing someone to leave
