Technology-facilitated Intimate Partner Violence

According to a 2021 study by the World Health Organization (WHO), two of the most common forms of violence against women globally are intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-partner sexual violence (NPSV). The study found that almost one in three women worldwide have experienced either or both of these types of violence at least once in their lifetime.

What is intimate partner violence?

Intimate partner violence (IPV) includes psychological, sexual, and physical violence committed by a current or former intimate partner or spouse. This type of violence encompasses a range of behaviours that can harm, threaten, or control an intimate partner.

What is technology-facilitated intimate partner violence?

Technology-facilitated intimate partner violence (IPV) refers to the use of technology to control, harass, stalk, or abuse a current or former intimate partner.¹

Intimate partner violence in New Zealand

According to a 2021 World Health Organization (WHO) study² that analysed data from 2000 to 2018 across 161 countries, including New Zealand, 23% of New Zealand women and girls aged 15 – 49 have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their lifetime. The study further breaks down the statistics by age groups, revealing that 7% of those aged 15 – 19 and 26% of those aged 30 – 39 have experienced IPV in the previous year.

The study also provides specific rates for different types of IPV among New Zealand women aged 18 – 64: 19.9% reported experiencing sexual IPV, 23.4% reported experiencing physical IPV, and 38.8% reported experiencing either or both.

Non-partner sexual violence (NPSV) shows a different pattern and is more prevalent in higher-income countries, according to the WHO study. In Australia and New Zealand, 19% of women and girls have been affected by NPSV, compared to 15% in North America.²³

These stats are in line with the 2021-22 New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey,⁴ which revealed that over their lifetime, around 24% of women in New Zealand have experienced IPV offences and 36% have experienced sexual assault. In addition, the survey revealed that when looking at offences by family members, there were significant disparities in the percentages of women from diverse backgrounds who experienced such offences. For instance, females who identify as LGBT+ (8.2%), those with disabilities (6.6%), and women facing financial difficulties (6.5%) are much more likely to experience offences from family members compared to the average adult in New Zealand.

In 2024, the National Collective of Independent Women’s Refuges (NCIWR) research unit conducted a multi-phase research project, exploring the risks women and children face due to family violence in New Zealand. The first phase⁵ involved analysing data from 3,500 risk assessments recorded in the Women’s Refuge client database from November 2022 to November 2023. This analysis focused on mapping risks and their implications for safety throughout a person's life. The findings revealed significant risks: one in three women reported being encouraged by the perpetrator to self-harm or suicide, 58% experienced stalking, and 51% received threats of death.

Technology-facilitated intimate partner violence

Technological tools can be utilised to commit online violence against women. The NCIWR’s 2024 study⁵ highlighted that 49% of women dealt with constant unwanted contact, 56% were subjected to tracking and monitoring of their movements, and 45% faced persistent invasions of privacy through their private messages.

In a 2023 study¹ by Nicola Henry, Nicola Gavey, and Kelly Johnson, 75 participants from Australia, New Zealand, and the UK were interviewed about their experiences with image-based sexual abuse (IBSA) by intimate partners. The majority, 77%, had suffered such abuse, with 40% (n=30) indicating they experienced IBSA as part of broader coercive and controlling behaviour.

Specifically, the analysis focused on 30 participants– 29 women and one gender-diverse person – who stated that intimate partners used intimate image abuse as a way to control them. The study revealed that abusive partners use intimate imagery as a means of exerting power and control. This tactic is employed not only to entrap victims within abusive relationships but also to intimidate, punish, and degrade them at or after the relationship's end. The researchers highlight the importance of recognising that some forms of IBSA are part of “a pattern of gendered violence” that often coincides with other abuses in coercive and controlling relationships.