Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on domestic violence against women in Germany

We study the impact of physical distancing measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic on domestic violence against women in Germany. The analysis draws on three data sources: First, we include primary data from an online survey with 3800 partnered women, conducted during the first wave of the pandemic to gain insights into the prevalence and household-level pandemic-specific risk factors of domestic violence. Second, we analyse administrative data on the number of help requests to hotlines, shelters and counselling services, which allows us to estimate the increase in violence help requests as a function of policy measures to contain COVID-19 infection rates. Third, we draw on primary qualitative data from an online survey with counsellors and domestic violence experts to gain more nuanced insights into domestic violence dynamics during the pandemic and to guide the interpretation of our results. We find that home quarantine, having to take care of young children, financial distress, and poor mental health increase the risk of domestic violence. Further, we find that the number of requests at hotlines increased significantly with the first physical distancing measures while ambulatory care services such as shelters and counselling services experienced an increase in help requests only after physical distancing restrictions were lifted before the second wave. Our findings highlight important policy lessons, including the provision of emergency child care services and easily accessible online counselling offers for survivors of violence.