Volume 21, Issue 2 (2021) COVID 19 and the Increase in Domestic Violence

Sharlette Kellum Gilbert, PhD

Has COVID-19 caused a disaster within a disaster? While many were focused on saving the lives of those stricken by the virus, others were being killed by their intimate partners. What happens when there is nowhere to run? How can one reach out for help, when everyone they would have reached out to is also isolated? How did domestic violence prevention change during the pandemic? How did changes in employment and family finances impact domestic violence trends? How did depression, anxiety, and low self-control influence the manifestation of violence in families in 2020 to 2021? What needs to change if these pandemic circumstances are prolonged or repeated at some point to save lives?