Campbell Andrew M
Campbell Research & Consulting, United States.
Forensic Sci Int Rep. 2021 Jul;3:100179. doi: 10.1016/j.fsir.2021.100179. Epub 2021 Feb 12.
As feared by many, our dedicated actions to slow the spread of COVID-19 significantly impacted reporting for most forms of family violence. This concerning decline in reports was greatest during periods of lockdown, when risk of abuse was likely at its highest. A new theory termed, Opportunity to Abuse Theory, helps explain why family violence increased during the Covid-19 pandemic and after most prior natural disasters. The theory focuses on reducing opportunity to abuse by reducing victim vulnerability and increasing perpetrator accountability. Additional actions to improve detection of and reduce risk for family violence, such as improving partnerships with animal welfare organizations (animal abuse reporting was not as impacted during lockdown), enlisting the aid of non-traditional family violence report sources, better utilizing hotels to provide safety when shelter space is limited, and ensuring texting options for reporting abuse, must be considered during and after disaster.
正如许多人所担心的那样，我们为减缓新冠病毒传播而采取的专门行动对大多数形式的家庭暴力报告产生了重大影响。在封锁期间，报告数量的这种令人担忧的下降最为明显，而此时虐待风险可能处于最高水平。一种名为“虐待机会理论”的新理论有助于解释为何在新冠疫情期间以及大多数先前自然灾害之后家庭暴力会增加。该理论侧重于通过降低受害者的脆弱性和增强施暴者的责任感来减少虐待机会。在灾难期间及之后，必须考虑采取其他行动来改善对家庭暴力的发现并降低其风险，例如加强与动物福利组织的合作（动物虐待报告在封锁期间受影响较小）、争取非传统家庭暴力报告来源的帮助、在避难空间有限时更好地利用酒店提供安全保障以及确保提供短信举报虐待的选项。
