Bulletin Reports

Intimate Partner Violence, 1993-2010 

This study provides data on nonfatal intimate partner violence among U.S. households from 1993 to 2010. Intimate partner violence includes rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault by a current or former spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend. This report presents trends by gender and information on violence against women by the victim’s age, race, national origin, marital status, and household composition.

  • From 1994 to 2010, the overall rate of intimate partner violence in the United States declined by 64 percent, from 9.8 victimizations per 1,000 persons age 12 or older to 3.6 per 1,000.
  • From 1994 to 2010, about 4 in 5 victims of intimate partner violence were female.
  • Women aged 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 generally experienced the highest rates of intimate partner violence.
  • Women living in households comprised of one female adult with children experienced intimate partner violence at a rate more than 10 times higher than households with married adults with children and 6 times higher than households with only one female.

Data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) collects information on nonfatal crimes from a nationally representative sample of U.S. households. For additional information go to http://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=4536 (NCJ 239203).