According to the „Macro-survey on Violence against Women 2019” conducted by the Government Delegation against Gender Violence, 1 in 2 women (57.3%) residing in Spain, aged 16 or older, have experienced violence throughout their lives because they are women. This amounts to 11,688,411 women. The survey includes all types of gender violence, from lewd looks to rape. Currently, gender violence is a serious social problem that claims the lives of a large number of women each year, in addition to the many who suffer serious physical and psychological injuries. It is a problem that has gained significant importance in recent years and has received much effort, programs, and social policies, although it is clear that much remains to be done.
What is Gender Violence? According to the Organic Law 1/2004, of December 28, on Comprehensive Protection Measures against Gender Violence, in its article 1.1., gender violence is defined as „violence that, as a manifestation of discrimination, the situation of inequality and power relations of men over women, is exerted on women by those who are or have been their spouses or those who are or have been linked to them by similar affective relationships, even without cohabitation.” It specifies in article 1.3 that gender violence „includes any act of physical and psychological violence, including sexual assaults, threats, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty.” However, it is important to note that gender violence is not only exercised by partners, ex-partners, or people connected to women by affective ties, but it goes beyond that, surpassing the close environment of a woman, as gender violence can be exercised by anyone, at any time and in any place. The World Health Organization defines violence against women as „any act of gender-based violence that results in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.” This definition does not refer to specific individuals or any type of affective bond, but rather to acts of gender violence themselves that are exerted on women by the mere fact of being women.
Why does Gender Violence occur? The reason gender violence occurs is the set of values that still prevail in current society. Gender violence has its origin in culture, education, religion, laws, language itself… that have kept women in a condition of supposed „inferiority.” For example, in the legal field, in many national legislations (even in Spain a few years ago), women are treated as individuals without the capacity to make their own decisions, without the right to decide on their education, marriage, economy, heritage… in short, without the right to decide about their own lives. Gender violence is thus configured as a social mechanism, justified by tradition, which keeps women „subdued” to men. This generates that the relationships between both sexes, and their position in society, are unequal, not only in the family environment but in all contexts: social, work-related, economic, sexual…
Causes of Gender Violence. There are two fundamental factors in which all causes of gender violence can be grouped: cultural factors, which are part of what would be called „Structural Gender Violence,” and control and social domination factors, which are part of „Instrumental Gender Violence.” Structural Gender Violence: Violence against women is structural, meaning it is not derived from unique characteristics of a series of individuals, but rather from a cultural way of defining identities and relationships between men and women. This perpetuates the idea of male superiority over women and assigns them different attributes and roles based on gender. Instrumental Gender Violence: Furthermore, violence against women is also instrumental. It is used as an instrument of domination, social control, a mechanism of subjection and subordination of women, reflecting basic traits of patriarchy, which has used violence as a means of conflict resolution. Men who exercise violence against women have „learned” through the socialization process that this is the best way to gain control and dominate women. Other factors such as alcohol and substance abuse are often mentioned as causes of gender violence, but these are more triggering factors rather than a cause in and of themselves. The characteristics of women who are victims of gender violence are also sometimes used as a reason for the violence, which is really another way of stigmatizing women. There is no unique profile for women who are victims of gender violence; women who suffer this type of violence come from different countries, socioeconomic levels, educational levels… The only common characteristics among victims of gender violence are those derived from abuse itself, such as low self-esteem, guilt, isolation, dependence, depression, constant vigilance, loss of identity, substance abuse… in addition to physical aggressions of varying severity.
Types of Gender Violence. Currently, different forms of violence against women are defined because there are many forms of abuse and mistreatment: physical violence, economic violence, sexual violence, psychological violence… Physical Violence: This includes any non-accidental act that involves the deliberate use of force, such as slaps, punches, beatings, shoves, wounds, fractures, or burns, which cause or can cause injury, harm, or pain to a woman’s body. It is important to remember that any form of physical violence is also psychological violence. Economic Violence: Limitations aimed at controlling economic income, as well as the perception of lower wages for the same work (employment discrimination). Sexual Violence: Any act carried out by the aggressor that violates the victim’s body and/or sexuality. It occurs whenever behavior sexual behavior against her will is imposed on the woman, whether by her partner or ex-partner, or by other individuals. The different manifestations of sexual violence include: Sexual violence that does not involve physical contact: Exhibitionism, obscene messages by email, phone, social networks…, obscene gestures and words, sexist insults, sexual harassment, unwanted sexual propositions, forcing someone to watch pornographic material, voyeurism. Sexual violence with physical contact: Fondling, imposing sexual relations or unwanted practices, forcing someone to adopt positions the woman considers degrading, rape, among others. Violence against women’s sexual and reproductive rights: This includes any action that restricts women from exercising their right to sexual and reproductive health (obstetric violence), affecting their freedom to enjoy a sexual life without risks to their health and freely exercise their right to maternity. Psychological Violence: Intentional and prolonged behavior that attacks a woman’s psychological and emotional integrity and her dignity as a person, with the aim of imposing behavioral patterns that the man considers his partner should have. Its manifestations include threats, insults, humiliations or abuses, demands for obedience, social isolation, blame, deprivation of freedom, economic control (economic violence), emotional blackmail, rejection or abandonment. This type of violence is not as visible as physical or sexual violence, it is more difficult to prove, and in many cases, victims do not identify it as such but rather as manifestations of the perpetrator’s character. It is important to keep in mind that any form of gender violence has consequences in all dimensions of health: physical, psychological, sexual, reproductive, and social.
