Here are some of the most recent global estimates and statistics on physical, emotional/psychological, and financial abuse, including intimate partner, elder, children-abuse, etc. These are prevalence figures, not always “reported crimes,” because underreporting is a major issue.
Key Global Prevalence Figures
| Population / Type | Abuse Type | Prevalence / Key Stats |
|---|---|---|
| Violence against women (intimate partner / non-partner sexual violence) | Physical and/or sexual violence | ~30% of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or non-partner sexual violence during their lifetime. WHO Dev CMS |
| Intimate Partner Violence, low-/middle-income countries (53 LMICs) | Any IPV (physical, sexual, or psychological) in last 12 months | 37.2% (95% CI 36.6-37.8) of women in LMICs. The Lancet |
| Physical IPV in last 12 months | 29.6% (95% CI 29.0-30.2) in those LMICs. The Lancet | |
| Psychological IPV in last 12 months | 25.0% (95% CI 24.5-25.6) in those LMICs. The Lancet | |
| Child maltreatment (under 18) | Physical, sexual or emotional violence or neglect in past year | Up to 1 billion children aged 2-17 globally. WHO Dev CMS |
| Child maltreatment (under 5) | Regular physical punishment and/or psychological violence by caregivers | ~6 in 10 children under 5 years (~400 million) suffer such abuse. test-cms.who.int |
| Childhood exposure to domestic/family violence | Physical violence (victim or witness) | ~17.3% globally as victim; ~16.5% as witness by age 18. PubMed |
| Elder abuse | All types (emotional, financial, physical etc) among older adults | ~27.6% overall prevalence (across 94 studies, 35 countries), meaning more than one in four older people experience some abuse. BioMed Central |
| Emotional/psychological abuse among elders | ~20.9%. BioMed Central | |
| Financial / material exploitation among elders | ~11.7%. BioMed Central | |
| Physical elder abuse | ~7.9%. BioMed Central |
Select Examples of Financial / Economic Abuse
- In a UK survey (younger women, 18-24), 38% had experienced economic abuse from a partner or ex-partner in the past 12 months. Ipsos
- In intimate partner settings in the Arab world, studies that measured “economic abuse” separately found rates between 12% (Lebanon) and 53% (Jordan), depending on definitions. BioMed Central
- In Alberta (Canada), a sample of adults found 36% of all adults had experienced economic abuse, with 17%experiencing severe economic abuse. SAGE Journals
Notes, Limitations & “Reported Crimes” vs Surveys
- Many of these numbers come from surveys (self-reported experiences), not formal criminal reports. Reporting varies widely by country, culture, legal system, stigma, etc.
- “Emotional / psychological abuse” is especially under-counted or inconsistently defined. What one survey counts as “insults, humiliation, controlling behavior” another may or may not.
- “Financial abuse” or “economic abuse” also have varying definitions: controlling expenses, withholding income, preventing access to work, debt coercion, etc. That means comparability is imperfect.
- Police / court statistics (reported crimes) are much lower than true prevalence, often representing a small fraction of actual abuse cases.
