Dataset Information

Examining Intimate Partner Violence-Related Fatalities: Past Lessons and Future Directions Using U.S. National Data

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

Among homicides in the United States, intimate partners kill almost 50% of female and 10% of male victims. Intimate partner violence (IPV) also contributes to an estimated 6% of suicides. These trends suggest that opportunities for IPV interventions prior to the fatalities may have been missed. Thus, researchers must investigate the context and circumstances of IPV-related fatalities to inform effective prevention strategy development. There are two primary national fatality databases that can be used to examine such factors: the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS, homicide and suicides); and the Uniform Crime Reporting-Supplementary Homicide Reports (UCR-SHR, homicides). These datasets include data on many IPV-related violent deaths but are limited by variations in data quality.

Method

This critical review summarizes opportunities and challenges when examining IPV-related fatalities using these national datasets. To document how the current literature is conceptualizing IPV, a rapid review on IPV-related homicide and suicide articles was performed (2019–2022). Missingness analyses were conducted to describe limitations in key dataset variables.

Results

These datasets enable tracking IPV-related fatalities nationally over time. However, issues with the operationalization of variables that record IPV circumstances, particularly in the UCR-SHR, and high levels of missingness represent significant barriers to research. Novel methodologies can optimize the use of these datasets.

Conclusion

National-level datasets enable researchers to examine IPV-related fatalities, evaluate policy differences between states, and monitor trends and disparities. This research can inform key recommendations for interventions to prevent IPV-related fatalities.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10896-022-00487-2.

SUBMITTER: AbiNader M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9838333 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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