By Kayla Woody, CPN House of Hope Prevention Specialist
Intimate partner violence, better known as domestic violence, can be defined as a pattern of abusive behavior in an intimate relationship that is used by one partner to intentionally gain or maintain power and control over another partner. Multiple forms of abuse often happen at the same time and can be difficult to identify. Nobody understands the reality of being abused by an intimate partner better than someone who has lived through it.
In 1984 in Duluth, Minnesota, the power and control wheel was developed by the Domestic Abuse Intervention Project (DAIP). The organization created focus groups with female survivors of domestic violence and discussed many of the behaviors that they were experiencing. With this information, they were able to develop a diagram outlining the most common tactics used by abusive partners. The wheel has since been translated into over 40 languages and is used as a tool to help survivors identify the abuse they have experienced and develop an understanding of the dynamics of abuse.
DAIP chose to represent female survivors on the wheel because the battering of women by men continues to be a significant problem and states, “Men commit 86 to 97 percent of all criminal assaults, and women are killed 3.5 times more often than men in domestic homicides.” However, abusive behaviors that are detailed in the diagram can happen to people of any gender or sexuality.
At the center of the wheel is the aspect of power and control. The need for power and control is what influences the behaviors found in the middle of the diagram. The inside of the wheel, or the spokes, makes up subtle, continual behaviors over time, while the outer ring represents physical and sexual violence. Abusive actions like those depicted in the outer ring reinforce the regular use of other, more subtle methods found in the inner ring.
A domestic abuser systematically uses threats, intimidation and coercion to instill fear. These tactics are outlined on the spokes of the wheel with examples of specific types of behavior used. The types of abuse featured on the wheel include:
- Using intimidation (making her afraid)
- Using emotional abuse (putting her down)
- Using isolation (limiting outside involvement)
- Minimizing, denying and blaming (saying abuse didn’t happen or blaming her)
- Using children (using contact to continue to harass)
- Using male privilege (treating her like a servant)
- Using economic abuse (restricting access to household finances)
- Using coercion and threats (threatening to report her to social services)
The wheel has also been adapted culturally to reflect the tactics used against Native American survivors of domestic violence. Sacred Circle: National Resource Center to End Violence Against Native Women has revised the non-Native diagram to reflect the root causes of violence in tribal communities. In Native spirituality the circle is sacred. Using a circle to show the unnatural power and control present in domestic violence is a misuse of a sacred symbol. The triangle also includes cultural and ritual abuse and is reflective of colonization and the oppression that Native people continue to endure.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, stalking, and/or sexual assault and would like more information, contact CPN House of Hope at 405-275-3176 or visit us online at facebook.com/cpnhouseofhope.