Domestic Violence

Developed by Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence



Definition

Domestic violence (battering) is a pattern of abusive and coercive behavior used to gain dominance, power, and control over an intimate partner. It includes the use of illegal and legal behaviors and tactics that undermine the victim’s sense of self, free will, and safety. Battering behavior can impact other family members and can be used in other family relationships.

Domestic violence crosses all class, race, lifestyle, and religious lines. The only clear distinction is gender. Most victims of domestic violence are women, and most perpetrators of domestic violence are men. According to the National Institute of Justice, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, women are at significantly greater risk of domestic violence than men. Many academic leaders have identified domestic violence as a major criminal justice, health care, and social issue.

Signs of Domestic Violence

Perpetrators of domestic violence (batterers) use a combination of the following tactics to gain and maintain dominance, power, and control over the victim. Batterers choose the circumstances of their violence, including the amount of injury inflicted by their acts. Batterers bear sole responsibility for their actions.

Physical violence:
Pushing; grabbing; shoving; restraining; kicking; spitting; biting; pulling hair; pinching; hitting; punching; slapping; strangling (choking); cutting; stabbing

Sexual violence:
Unwanted touching or fondling; forced sexual contact; rape; accusing her of being unfaithful; humiliating or objectifying her body; restricting her access to reproductive health care; forcing her to engage in unwanted sex acts; threatening to have sex with someone else; coercing her into having sex

Coercion and threats:
Making or carrying out threats to do something to hurt her; threatening to leave her, to commit suicide, to report her to welfare, to have her deported or report her to immigration authorities; making her drop charges or not testify; making her do illegal things

Intimidation:
Making her afraid by using looks, actions, gestures; destroying her property; abusing pets; displaying weapons

Emotional abuse:
Putting her down; calling her names; making her think she’s crazy; playing mind games; humiliating her; making her feel bad about herself; making her feel guilty

Isolation:
Controlling what she does, who she sees and talks to, what she reads, where she goes; limiting her outside involvement; using jealousy to justify actions; withholding important documents (immigration paperwork, birth certificates, social security cards)

Using children:
Making her feel guilty about the children; using the children to relay messages; using visitation to harass her; threatening to take the children away, to fight for custody, to harm the children; undermining her parenting; teaching the children to treat her with disrespect

Economic abuse:
Preventing her from getting or keeping a job; making her ask for money; giving her an allowance; taking her money; not letting her know about or have access to family income

Male privilege/entitlement:
Treating her like a servant; making all the big decisions; making all the rules; being the one to define men’s and women’s roles

Minimizing, denying, blaming:
Making light of the abuse and not taking her concerns about it seriously; saying the abuse didn’t happen; shifting responsibility for abusive behavior; saying she caused the abuse; claiming to be the “real” victim

Considerations for Safety Planning

  • Threats to severely injure or kill her or her children if she leaves
  • Batterer promises that he will change
  • Access to transportation
  • Access to communication with friends and family
  • Access to a “safe” place in her home
  • Access to resources and supports
  • Access to affordable housing
  • Access to economic resources
  • Workplace safety (getting to and from work, safety while at work)
  • Cultural, social, or religious beliefs about marriage, families, and children
  • Concerns related to parenting
  • Immigration issues


RESOURCES

For support, contact one of the following:

The sexual and domestic violence program nearest you (see map)

Kansas Crisis Hotline
1-888-END-ABUSE
(1-888-363-2287)

National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-SAFE
(1-800-799-7233)


KANSAS SEXUAL and DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HELPLINE NUMBERS

Programs are listed below alphabetically by city with their HOTLINE phone numbers. The numbers on the map correspond to the programs listed. Call the program nearest you. You do not have to live in the city where the program is located to use their services.

Kansas map with areas of service covered by domestic violence and sexual assault advocacy programs

DV = domestic violence services provided    SA = sexual assault services provided

CITY SERVICES KCSDV MEMBER PROGRAM CRISIS HOTLINE NUMBER
1. Atchison DV/SA DoVES 800-367-7075 or 913-367-0363
2. Dodge City DV/SA Crisis Center of Dodge City 620-225-6510
3. El Dorado DV/SA Family Life Center of Butler County 800-870-6967 or 316-321-7104
4. Emporia DV/SA SOS, Inc. 800-825-1295 or 620-342-1870
5. Garden City DV/SA Family Crisis Services 620-275-5911
6. Great Bend DV/SA Family Crisis Center 866-792-1885 or 620-792-1885
7. Hays DV/SA Options: Domestic and Sexual Violence Services, Inc. 800-794-4624 or 785-625-3055
8. Hutchinson DV/SA Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Center 800-701-3630 or 620-663-2522
9. Iola DV/SA Hope Unlimited 620-365-7566
10. Kansas City - Wyandotte Cnty DV Friends of Yates Joyce Williams Center 913-321-0951
11. Kansas City - Johnson Cnty
DV/SA Safehome 888-432-4300 or 913-262-2868
12. Kansas City DV El Centro, Inc. ¡Si Se Puede! 913-281-1186
13. Kansas City DV/SA KCAVP 816-561-0550
14. Kansas City SA MOCSA 816-531-0233
15. Lawrence SA GaDuGi Safe Center 785-843-8985
16. Lawrence DV The Willow Domestic Violence Center 800-770-3030 or 785-843-3333
17. Leavenworth DV/SA Alliance Against Family Violence 800-644-1441 or 913-682-9131
18. Liberal DV/SA Liberal Area Rape Crisis and DV Services 620-624-8818
19. Manhattan DV/SA The Crisis Center, Inc. 800-727-2785 or 785-539-2785
20. Mayetta DV/SA Prairie Band Potawatomi Family Violence Prevention Program 866-966-0173 or 785-966-2932
21. Newton DV/SA Harvey County DV/SA Task Force 800-487-0510 or 316-283-0350
22. Pittsburg DV/SA Safehouse Crisis Center, Inc. 800-794-9148 or 620-231-8251
23. Salina DV/SA Domestic Violence Assoc. of Central Kansas 800-874-1499 or 785-827-5862
24. Topeka DV/SA YWCA Center for Safety and Empowerment 888-822-2983 or 785-354-7927
25. Wichita DV Catholic Charities Harbor House 866-899-5522 or 316-263-6000
26. Wichita DV StepStone 316-265-1611
27. Wichita SA Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center 316-263-3002
28. Wichita DV YWCA Women's Crisis Center 316-267-7233
29. Winfield DV/SA Safe Homes, Inc. 800-794-7672 or 620-221-4357


This project was This project was supported by Grant #2010-MU-AX-0003, awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

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