Spousal violence in Canada, 2019

by Shana Conroy, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics

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Highlights

  • Findings from the General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization) show that spousal violence in the provinces was significantly lower in 2019 than in 1999. While 3.5% of Canadians in the provinces with a current or former spouse or common-law partner experienced self-reported spousal violence in the five years preceding 2019, this was down from 7.5% 20 years prior, marking a 54% decrease. Between 2009 and 2019, spousal violence remained unchanged in the territories (10.2% versus 9.8%).
  • In 2019, spousal violence continued to be significantly more common among women, with 4.2% of women experiencing such violence compared with 2.7% of men. This represented approximately 432,000 women and 279,000 men in Canada.
  • Not only did overall self-reported spousal violence decrease between 1999 and 2019 in the provinces, but declines were noted among those who experienced the most severe type of spousal violence measured—beating, choking, threatening to use or using a gun or knife, or sexual assault—as well as those who experienced other types.
  • Among victims of spousal violence, women were more likely than men to report each of the negative emotional impacts measured by the 2019 GSS on Victimization, while men were more likely than women to say they felt no emotional impact. In particular, it was more common for women than men to report feeling fearful (38% versus 11%) and fearing for their lives (29% versus 3.8%), and to report impacts consistent with suspected Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (21% versus 9.8%).
  • In all, the large majority (80%) of spousal victims said the violence they experienced was not reported to police. Among victims in the provinces, reporting to police in 2019 was lower compared with 20 years prior (19% versus 28% in 1999).
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Spousal abuse—a form of intimate partner violence—can include a range of unhealthy and destructive behaviours, such as manipulation and coercive control, emotional and financial abuse, physical and sexual violence, even homicide. Intimate partner violence has been identified by the Government of Canada—and at the international level—as a serious public health issue (Public Health Agency of Canada 2016; United Nations n.d.; Women and Gender Equality Canada 2021; World Health Organization, n.d.).

Violence in the context of an intimate partner or spousal relationship can have immediate and long-term adverse physical and psychological consequences for victims (Brown et al. 2015; Dim 2021; Dutton et al. 2006; Public Health Agency of Canada 2016), and children who are exposed to such violence have higher rates of violent victimization later in life (Burczycka 2017; Cotter 2021a; Cotter 2021c). Further, in addition to individual impacts, there is a public cost of such violence for communities and society as a whole as health care, social support and legal systems must respond (Barrett et al. 2021; Demaris and Kaukinen 2005; Public Health Agency of Canada 2016). It should be noted that, while intimate partner violence and spousal violence are largely considered to be a form of gender-based violence perpetrated by men against women, such violence—for both victims and perpetrators—is not limited to those of one gender or sexual orientation (Dim 2021; Oliffe et al. 2014; Public Health Agency of Canada 2009).

Statistics Canada releases annual police-reported data about intimate partner violence, but not all incidents are reported to police.Note  Due to the complexities of intimate relationships, spousal violence is particularly susceptible to underreporting. As a result, self-reported data are critical to understand the true magnitude of this problem (see Text box 1).

This Juristat article examines self-reported experiences of spousal violence in Canada. Based on the 2019 General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization), this article discusses the nature and prevalence of spousal violence, victim characteristics, the physical and emotional consequences of such violence and how victims sought support. The GSS on Victimization began collecting information on spousal violence in 1999; as such, the 2019 cycle marks 20 years of comparable data on the issue of spousal violence in Canada, an important milestone for research and analysis.

The COVID-19 pandemic began to have a widespread impact on the lives of Canadians in March 2020, just as data collection for the 2019 GSS on Victimization was ending. The data presented in this article, therefore, do not include information about spousal violence during the pandemic, when—in the interest of public health—many were living in isolation, some with their abuser. The findings in this article, however, will serve as a baseline for future analysis on the issue of spousal violence in Canada.

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Measuring intimate partner and spousal violence

There are two primary methods of measuring spousal violence in Canada: administrative data collected from the police and survey data collected directly from Canadians. Many crimes are never reported to the authorities, and reasons for not reporting might vary by crime type. When it comes to spousal violence, victims could be reluctant to report to police due to reasons such as living arrangements, financial dependence and shared children. Victims might be unwilling or unable to seek out the police and, as a result, self-reported experiences of violence are an important complement to police-reported data.

Police-reported data

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey collects information from police services in Canada on an annual basis. Administrative data include all incidents that come to the attention of police in a given year, and include victims of all ages. The UCR was designed to measure the prevalence of crime and its characteristics. It collects information about criminal incidents, victims and accused persons, and allows for trend analysis of crime and comparisons of crime between regions. According to the 2019 UCR, 11% of all victims of police-reported violence that year were victimized by a current or former spouse (Conroy 2021).Note 

Self-reported data

Another source of data on spousal violence is self-reported responses collected from surveys. At Statistics Canada, there are two large-scale instruments that capture information about intimate partner violence: the General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization) and the Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces (SSPPS).

This article is based on data from the 2019 GSS on Victimization, which has collected information on self-reported spousal violence every five years since 1999. In order to measure spousal violence, the GSS on Victimization asked those who are married or living common law, and those who are separated or divorced and have had contact with their former partner in the previous five years, about a series of violent behaviours in the context of their spousal relationship both in the past year and in the past five years.Note  The GSS on Victimization asks the following:

Has your current or former spouse or partner done any of the following?

  • Threatened to hit you with their fist or anything else that could have hurt you
  • Thrown anything at you that could have hurt you
  • Pushed, grabbed or shoved you in a way that could have hurt you
  • Slapped you
  • Kicked you, bit you or hit you with their fist
  • Hit you with something that could have hurt you
  • Beaten you
  • Choked you
  • Used or threatened to use a gun or knife on you
  • Forced you into any unwanted sexual activity by threatening you, holding you down or hurting you in some way
  • Subjected you to a sexual activity to which you were not able to consent because you were drugged, intoxicated, manipulated or forced in other ways than physically

Not all spousal abuse reaches the criminal threshold. The GSS on Victimization also includes questions about emotional and financial abuse (see Text box 2). While these do not factor into the calculations for spousal violence specifically, they do provide insight about the circumstances in which spousal violence may occur.

The SSPPS, first conducted in 2018, also collects information about self-reported intimate partner violence. It includes violence perpetrated by spousal and non-spousal intimate partners in the year preceding the survey, and the lifetime experiences of such violence since age 15. The SSPPS included a broader range of physically and sexually violent behaviours—in addition to emotional, psychological and financial behaviours—within the scope of intimate partner violence. The Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics recently released several articles based on data from the SSPPS about intimate partner violence focusing on specific populations of interest (Cotter 2021b; Cotter 2021c; Heidinger 2021; Jaffray 2021a; Jaffray, 2021b; Savage 2021a; Savage 2021b).

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Spousal violence significantly lower in the provinces in 2019 than 20 years prior

Findings from the GSS on Victimization show that self-reported spousal violence was significantly lower in the provinces in 2019 than in 1999 (Chart 1; Table 1).Note  While 3.5% of Canadians in the provinces with a current or former spouse or common-law partner experienced spousal violence in the five years preceding 2019, this was down from 7.5% 20 years prior, marking a 54% decrease.Note  This downward trend was seen in the context of both current and former spousal relationships. Most notably, while one-quarter (25%) of Canadians reported that they had experienced violence by a former spouse in the five years preceding the 1999 GSS on Victimization, by 2019, this had fallen to just over one in ten (11%).

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Chart 1 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by status of spousal relationship and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Data table for Chart 1 
Data table for Chart 1
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 1. The information is grouped by Status of spousal relationship (appearing as row headers), 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019 (appearing as column headers).
Status of spousal relationship 1999 2004 2009 2014 2019Data table for Chart 1 Note 
percent standard error percent standard error percent standard error percent standard error percent standard error
Current spousal relationship 3.8Note * 0.35 3.5Note * 0.33 3.8Note * 0.43 2.3 0.31 2.0 0.39
Former spousal relationship 25.2Note * 1.63 18.9Note * 1.43 17.4Note * 1.78 13.2 1.55 10.8 1.90
Current and/or former
spousal relationship
7.5Note * 0.43 6.6Note * 0.41 6.2Note * 0.51 3.9 0.35 3.5 0.45

Chart 1 end

In the provinces, spousal violence decreased for both women and men: in 1999, 8.3% of women and 6.6% of men were victims of spousal violence in the preceding five years, proportions that dropped to 4.2% and 2.7%, respectively, in 2019 (Table 1). This marked a 49% decrease in spousal violence for women and a 60% decrease for men. For both current and former relationships, spousal violence decreased for women and men between 1999 and 2019.

Provinces each show a decrease in spousal violence between 1999 and 2019

Spousal violence in each of the provinces (with the exception of Prince Edward Island where sample size did not allow for a reliable estimate in 2019) was notably smaller in 2019 than 1999 (Chart 2; Table 2). Comparisons for the territories during the same time period are not possible. More recently, however, spousal violence did not decrease significantly in the territories between 2009 and 2019 (overall, 10.2% versus 9.8%) (Table 3).Note 

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Chart 2 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by province and year, provinces, 1999 and 2019

Data table for Chart 2 
Data table for Chart 2
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 2. The information is grouped by Province (appearing as row headers), 1999 and 2019 (appearing as column headers).
Province 1999 2019Data table for Chart 2 Note 
percent standard error percent standard error
N.L. 4.8Note * 1.43 1.4 0.69
P.E.I. 9.7Note E: Use with caution 3.47 Note F: too unreliable to be published Note F: too unreliable to be published
N.S. 7.3Note * 1.94 3.7 1.49
N.B. 8.0Note * 1.94 3.1 1.61
Que. 7.4Note * 0.98 3.7 1.33
Ont. 6.0Note * 0.69 3.2 0.73
Man. 7.8Note * 2.02 4.4 1.72
Sask. 9.6Note * 2.25 4.1 1.78
Alta. 9.9Note * 1.41 3.7 1.18
B.C. 9.4Note * 1.16 3.3 1.04
Provincial total 7.5Note * 0.43 3.5 0.45

Chart 2 end

Women more likely to be victims of spousal violence than men

According to the 2019 GSS on Victimization, 1.2% of Canadians were abused by a current or former spouse in the year preceding the survey (Table 4). In terms of gender, women were significantly more likely than men to experience spousal violence in the past year (1.5% versus 0.8%).Note 

In all, 3.5% of Canadians experienced self-reported physical or sexual violence from a spouse in the five years preceding the survey. Once again, spousal violence was significantly more common among women, with 4.2% of women experiencing such violence compared with 2.7% of men. This represented approximately 432,000 women and 279,000 men in Canada.Note 

In most provinces, spousal violence was similar to the national average (3.5%) (Table 5). Spousal violence, however, was significantly lower in Newfoundland and Labrador (1.4%), while it was significantly higher in the Northwest Territories (9.8%) and Nunavut (16%).

Violence more common in former spousal relationships than current spousal relationships

In 2019, a higher proportion of Canadians experienced spousal violence in the context of a former relationship compared with a current relationship. Just over one in ten (11%) people had been subjected to violence from a former spouse while 2.0% were victimized by a current spouse (Table 4). While there was no significant difference between women and men who experienced violence from a current spouse, women were more likely than men to experience violence from a former spouse (13% versus 7.7%).

Three-quarters (74%) of those who were abused by a former spouse reported that the violence occurred while they were still living together, and this was similar for women and men (75% and 74%E, respectively).Note  Almost half (45%) of victims of a former spouse said they experienced violence after separation and, of these, nearly four in ten (38%) said the violence occurred more than six months after their separation.Note  Research has shown that breakups or separations are a risk factor for violence in an intimate partner or spousal relationship (Brownridge et al. 2008; Burczycka 2016).

Among those who said that they had been separated from their spouse at some point, nearly four in ten (38%) victims of spousal violence said they had separated because of violent or threatening behaviour.Note  This was more common among women than men (49% versus 22%E) (for information about spousal violence and the Divorce Act, see Text box 3).

More than one in four spousal violence victims experience the most severe type of violence

Spousal violence can take on many forms, and it can vary in terms of severity. To measure spousal violence, the GSS on Victimization includes a series of violent behaviours. Of those who had experienced spousal violence in the past five years, more than six in ten (64%) victims had been pushed, grabbed or shoved by their spouse, while about half said their spouse threatened to hit them (53%) or threw something that could have hurt them (46%) (Table 6).Note 

More than one in four (28%) victims of spousal violence experienced the most severe type of spousal violence included in the GSS on Victimization: beating, choking, threatening to use or using a gun or knife, or sexual assault. Meanwhile, for 19% of victims, being kicked, bit, hit or hit with something that could hurt was the most severe type of violence they experienced, and for 35%, being pushed, grabbed, shoved or slapped was the most severe. For nearly one in five victims (18%), the most severe type of violence was their spouse threatening to hit them or throwing something that could hurt them.

Among victims of spousal violence, experiences differed for women and men. For instance, it was more common for women who were victims to be pushed, grabbed or shoved (72% versus 52% of men), sexually assaulted (17% versus 7.4%) or choked (14% versus 3.4%) by their spouse (Chart 3). In contrast, it was more common for men who were victims to experience their spouse throwing something that could hurt them (60% versus 39% of women), kicking, biting or hitting them (43% versus 18%) or slapping them (37% versus 17%).

Chart 3 start

Chart 3 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim and type of violence, Canada, 2019

Data table for Chart 3 
Data table for Chart 3
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 3. The information is grouped by Type of violence (appearing as row headers), Women and Men (appearing as column headers).
Type of violence WomenData table for Chart 3 Note  Men
percent of victims standard error percent of victims standard error
Sexual assaultData table for Chart 3 Note 1 16.9 6.08 7.4Note * 6.10
Threatening to use or using a gun or knife 4.9 2.82 12.1 7.68
Choking 14.1 5.13 3.4Note * 3.47
Beating 12.4 6.19 10.0 6.37
Hitting with something that could hurt 17.9 6.17 26.2 8.39
Kicking, biting, hitting 17.7 6.40 42.8Note * 9.83
Slapping 17.2 5.53 36.9Note * 9.27
Pushing, grabbing, shoving 72.2 8.46 52.2Note * 9.37
Throwing something that could hurt 38.5 8.60 59.6Note * 9.89
Threatening to hit with fist 51.4 9.12 55.8 9.62

Chart 3 end

As spousal violence decreased over the past two decades in the provinces, declines were noted among those who experienced the most severe type of spousal violence measured—beating, choking, threatening to use or using a gun or knife, or sexual assault—as well as those who experienced other types (Table 7). The same trends generally applied for women and men.

Majority of spousal violence victims experience multiple incidents

Spousal violence is often a pattern of abuse that occurs over a period of time. Results from the 2019 GSS on Victimization show that while four in ten (39%) victims experienced a single incident in the past five years, the majority experienced multiple incidents (Table 6). Overall, nearly one in eight (13%) victims experienced two incidents, more than one in four (28%) experienced three to ten incidents and one in six (17%) experienced more than ten incidents. There were no significant differences between women and men in terms of the number of incidents of spousal violence they experienced.

An increased number of incidents was associated with more severe violence. Among those who had experienced one violent incident, one in ten (10%) experienced the most severe type of spousal violence measured by the GSS on Victimization—beating, choking, threatening to use or using a gun or knife, or sexual assault.Note  This proportion, however, grew to four in ten (40%E) of those who experienced more than ten violent incidents.

Four in ten women who experience spousal violence sustain physical injury

According to the GSS on Victimization, one-third (33%) of spousal violence victims were physically injured, and this was significantly more common among women than men (39% versus 23%) (Table 8). Overall, 38% of victims—and 47%E of women—who reported physical injuries from spousal violence had to take time off from daily activities.Note  A small proportion (6.0%) of victims said that someone else was harmed or threatened during the violence they experienced, and this was more common for women than men (8.5% versus 2.4%).

Among those who reported being injured, bruises were most common (83%).Note  More than four in ten (44%) victims sustained cuts, scratches or burns while about one in six (16%) suffered internal injuries (Table 8). Nearly one in ten (8.9%) victims had fractures or broken bones resulting from spousal violence. In all, just over one in ten (11%) victims who reported physical injuries were hospitalized as a result of the spousal violence they experienced.Note 

Women more likely than men to suffer from negative emotional impacts after spousal violence

In addition to physical injury, research has shown that spousal violence victims often suffer from negative emotional impacts (Demaris and Kaukinen 2005; Dim 2021; World Health Organization n.d.). According to the GSS on Victimization, victims of spousal violence often reported suffering emotional consequences as a result of the abuse they experienced. The most common emotional impacts cited by victims were feeling upset (52%), hurt or disappointed (48%) and angry (44%) (Table 8).Note  More than one-quarter of victims reported feeling isolated (27%) or experienced depression or anxiety attacks (29%). About one in six (14%) victims said that they were afraid for their children and one in ten (10%) said they had suicidal thoughts.

Among victims of this type of violence, women were significantly more likely than men to report each of the negative emotional impacts measured by the survey, while men were more likely than women to say they felt no emotional impact (Chart 4).

Chart 4 start

Chart 4 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim and emotional impact, Canada, 2019

Data table for Chart 4 
Data table for Chart 4
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 4. The information is grouped by Emotional impact (appearing as row headers), Women and Men (appearing as column headers).
Emotional impact WomenData table for Chart 4 Note  Men
percent of victims standard error percent of victims standard error
Upset 62.7 8.79 35.7Note * 9.14
Hurt, disappointed 59.2 9.35 31.5Note * 9.44
Angry 52.1 9.32 31.2Note * 8.64
Annoyed 41.2 9.34 24.6Note * 9.32
Lowered self-esteem 41.1 8.67 21.7Note * 8.15
Sleeping problems 42.7 8.97 16.8Note * 7.48
Shock, disbelief 41.9 9.77 14.6Note * 5.91
More cautious, aware 40.3 8.80 14.4Note * 5.77
Depression, anxiety attacks 38.8 8.59 15.5Note * 7.54
Fearful 37.8 8.68 11.0Note * 5.90
Isolated 36.7 8.69 11.2Note * 5.38
Ashamed, guilty 29.1 8.12 15.1Note * 6.84
Increased self-reliance 26.8 7.60 10.7Note * 5.52
Victimized 28.1 7.88 9.9Note * 5.57
Afraid for children 17.6 5.89 8.6Note * 5.58
Suicidal thoughts 13.3 5.05 5.6Note * 4.83
Problems relating to men, women 13.5 4.87 3.4Note * 3.39
Other 2.6 2.15 Note F: too unreliable to be published Note F: too unreliable to be published
Not much 10.7 7.63 14.8 6.42
Nothing 7.5 5.60 22.4Note * 8.40

Chart 4 end

Three in ten women who experience spousal violence report symptoms related to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Fear, and fear of an escalation in violence, was noted among victims of spousal violence. According to the GSS on Victimization, feeling fearful was reported by one-quarter (27%) of victims of spousal violence (Table 8) and one in five (19%) reported fearing for their lives.Note  Both feeling fearful and fearing for their lives were significantly more common for women than men (38% versus 11% and 29% versus 3.8%, respectively).

Women are overrepresented among victims of spousal violence in its most extreme form, homicide. According to police-reported data from the Homicide Survey, there were 497 victims of intimate partner homicide between 2014 and 2019 (Conroy 2021). Eight in ten (80%) victims were women, three-quarters (75%) of whom were killed by a current or former spouse or common-law partner (as opposed to 25% of whom were killed by a non-spousal intimate partner—such as a current or former boyfriend or girlfriend, or an extra-marital lover). During the same period, among the victims of intimate partner homicide who were men, nearly two-thirds (65%) were killed by a spouse (while 35% were killed by a non-spousal partner).

Research has linked intimate partner violence to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Brown et al. 2015; Demaris and Kaukinen 2008; Dutton et al. 2006; World Health Organization n.d.). Using questions from the Primary Care PTSD Screen Tool—a frontline assessment tool to identify those who might need treatment—the GSS on Victimization asked a series of questionsNote  related to nightmares and invasive thoughts, avoidance behaviours, and guarded and detached feelings.Note  Of those who had experienced spousal violence in the past five years, 16% reported at least three of these psychological impacts, which would be consistent with suspected PTSD.Note  Among victims, it was significantly more common for women than men to report experiencing three or more impacts (21% versus 9.8%).

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Spousal emotional and financial abuse

While not always criminal in nature, emotional and financial abuse might be part of a larger pattern of harmful behaviour that could, for many, lead to violence or co-occur with violence (Johnson and Leone 2005; Public Health Agency of Canada 2016; United Nations n.d.). Even if these types of abuse do not involve or escalate to the point of physical or sexual violence, such toxic behaviours contribute to coercive control, intimidating and instilling fear among victims.

According to the GSS on Victimization, 11% of Canadians reported experiencing emotional abuse by a current or former spouse in the past five years, and the proportions of women and men who experienced this type of abuse were similar (12% versus 11%).Note  This manifested as a spouse putting the other down or calling them names to make them feel bad (60%), being jealous or not wanting their spouse to talk to other men or women (47%), demanding to know who their spouse is with or where their spouse is (38%) and trying to limit their spouse’s contact with family or friends (30%).Note  Less commonly, victims of emotional abuse reported that their spouse damaged or destroyed possessions or property (13%), harmed or threatened to harm someone close to them (7.3%) and harmed or threatened to harm pets (5.0%).

Overall, 2.2% of people reported experiencing financial abuse from their spouse, including being prevented from having access to family income and being forced to give money, possessions or property. Financial abuse was more commonly experienced by women than men (2.7% versus 1.6%). While 2.7% of people living in the provinces said that their spouse prevented them from knowing or having access to the family income in 1999, it was significantly lower in 2019 (1.6%).Note  Differences were also significant for women and men over the same period: being prevented from having access to the family income decreased from 3.9% to 2.1% of women and from 1.5% to 1.0% of men.

In 2019, emotional and financial abuse by a spouse often coincided with spousal violence. One in four (26%) victims of spousal emotional or financial abuse also experienced spousal violence—and this was higher among women than men—while less than one percent (0.6%) of those who had not experienced emotional or financial abuse were victims of spousal violence (Text box 2 chart). Inversely, the large majority (84%) of spousal violence victims had also experienced emotional or financial abuse, and less than one in ten (9.0%) of those who were not victims of spousal violence had experienced emotional or financial abuse.

Text box 2 chart start

Text box 2 chart Spousal emotional and financial abuse, and spousal violence, in the past five years, by gender of victim and type of victimization, Canada, 2019

Data table for Text box 2 chart 
Data table for Chart 5
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 5. The information is grouped by Type of victimization (appearing as row headers), Women, Men and Total (appearing as column headers).
Type of victimization WomenData table for Chart 5 Note  Men Total
percent standard error percent standard error percent standard error
Victims of emotional or financial abuse who were also victims of spousal violence 30.6 4.70 20.1Note * 3.93 25.6 3.13
Were not victims of emotional or financial abuse but were victims of spousal violence 0.7 0.38 0.6 0.26 0.6 0.23
Victims of spousal violence who were also victims of emotional or financial abuse 86.2 6.96 81.0 7.83 84.3 5.17
Were not victims of spousal violence but were victims of emotional or financial abuse 8.8 0.99 9.1 1.02 9.0 0.71

Text box 2 chart end

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Large majority of spousal violence not reported to police

According to the GSS on Victimization, 35% of household victimization (i.e., break and enter, motor vehicle or parts theft, theft of household property and vandalism) and 24% of non-spousal violent victimization was reported to the police in 2019 (Cotter 2021a). Meanwhile, one in five (19%) spousal violence victims said the violence they experienced in the past five years was reported to police, either by the victim or by someone else (Table 9). In all, the large majority (80%) of spousal victims said the violence they experienced was not reported to police.

Among spousal violence victims in the provinces, reporting to police in 2019 was lower compared with 20 years prior (19% versus 28% in 1999) (Table 10). Compared with 1999, reporting to police in 2019 was lower for victims who were women (38% versus 22%) while there was no difference among men (15% versus 14%).

In 2019, the vast majority (90%E) of victims who reported the violence they experienced to police themselves said they did so to stop the violence and receive protection.Note  Almost half (47%E) said they felt a duty to notify police, while 36%E reported following the recommendation of someone else, and 31%E reported so that their spouse would be arrested or punished.

Of the victims who did not report spousal violence to police, the most common reasons for not doing so were that the incident was a private or personal matter and handled informally (68%), the crime was minor and not worth taking the time to report (61%) and no one was harmed (55%) (Table 9).Note  These were the most common reasons for women and men, respectively. Men were more likely than women to say they did not report to police because no harm was intended (56% versus 37%) and no one was harmed (64% versus 49%).

Nearly three-quarters of spousal violence victims who reported to police were satisfied with the police response

The large majority (88%E) of victims who said the violence they experienced was reported to police stated that the police visited the scene, and three-quarters (74%E) said the police made a report or conducted an investigation.Note  Around four in ten said their spouse was given a warning (42%E) or taken away (38%E) by police. One-third (32%E) of victims reported that police laid charges against their spouse.

Where spousal violence was reported to police, nearly three-quarters (73%E) of victims were satisfied with the police response (Table 9). More specifically, 32%E of victims who reported were very satisfied, 41%E were somewhat satisfied, 12%E were somewhat dissatisfied and 15%E were very dissatisfied with the police response.Note  Satisfaction with police response did not change significantly among victims in the provinces between 1999 and 2019 (Table 10).

Over one in three victims of spousal violence used formal support services

Regardless of whether violence is reported to the police, victims of violence may seek support in other ways. In 2019, more than one in three (37%) victims of spousal violence in the past five years used formal support services, and this was more common among women than men (44% versus 26%) (Table 9). This is likely impacted by several factors, including women experiencing more negative emotional impacts following violence and an increased availability of services for women. For instance, the large majority of shelters that serve victims of abuse provide services to women and their accompanying children or to women only (Moreau 2019). In addition, cultural norms around masculinity—particularly in the context of heterosexual relationships—might prevent men from seeking support following victimization (Dim 2021; Oliffe et al. 2014; Public Health Agency of Canada 2009).

Most often, victims reached out to a counsellor, psychologist or social worker for support (34%), and this was more common for women than men (42% versus 23%).Note  Other reported support services included a crisis centre or crisis line (11%), a victim service or witness assistance program (7.4%), a victim support group or centre (6.1%), a shelter or transition house (5.6%), a community, family or cultural centre (4.6%), a sexual assault centre (1.6%) or another type of support group (8.0%). Between 1999 and 2019, the use of formal support services did not change significantly among victims in the provinces (Table 10).

Two-thirds of victims of spousal violence sought informal support

Aside from formal support services, two-thirds (66%) of spousal violence victims sought informal support by speaking with someone about the violence they experienced, and this was also more common for women than men (72% versus 55%) (Table 9). Almost half of victims said they spoke with a family member (47%) or a friend or neighbour (45%), and these were most common for both women (54% and 49%, respectively) and men (34% and 37%, respectively).Note  Less than one in five victims spoke with a co-worker (19%), a doctor or nurse (17%) or a lawyer (15%), while a small proportion reported speaking with a priest, rabbi, imam or another spiritual advisor (6.2%). It was more common for women than men to speak with a family member (54% versus 34%) or a doctor or nurse (24% versus 6.1%).

It should be noted that one-third (34%) of spousal victims did not speak with anyone about the violence they experienced, and this was more common among men than women (44% versus 28%). Among victims of spousal violence in the provinces overall, seeking informal support did not change significantly between 1999 and 2019 (Table 10).

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Text box 3
Child maltreatment and changes to the Divorce Act

According to the 2019 General Social Survey (GSS) on Victimization, spousal violence often occurred in the presence of children. Half (50%) of spousal violence victims who had children living in the household said that children witnessed the violent incident.Note  Further, research has shown a link between childhood maltreatment and experiences of violence later in life (Brown et al. 2015; Burczycka 2017; Cotter 2021a; Cotter 2021c; Cotter and Savage 2019; World Health Organization n.d.). The GSS on Victimization asked respondents about their experiences of childhood physical and sexual abuse, harsh parentingNote  and witnessing parental violence prior to age 15.Note 

Those who had been abused by an adult during childhood were more likely to report experiencing spousal violence in the past five years than those who were not abused as children (6.4% versus 2.4%) (Text box 3 chart). Spousal violence was more common among those who had experienced harsh parenting (4.5% versus 1.3% of those who had not experienced harsh parenting) and those who had witnessed violence between their parents during childhood (6.9% versus 3.1% of those who had not witnessed such violence).

Text box 3 chart start

Text box 3 chart Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by type of childhood victimization, Canada, 2019

Data table for Text box 3 chart 
Data table for Chart 6
Table summary
This table displays the results of Data table for Chart 6. The information is grouped by Type of childhood victimization (appearing as row headers), Yes and No (appearing as column headers).
Type of childhood victimization Yes NoData table for Chart 6 Note 
percent standard error percent standard error
Experienced childhood abuseData table for Chart 6 Note 1 6.4Note * 1.14 2.4 0.48
Experienced childhood physical abuse 6.6Note * 1.25 2.5 0.47
Experienced childhood sexual abuse 8.8Note * 2.39 3.1 0.47
Experienced harsh parentingData table for Chart 6 Note 2 4.5Note * 0.66 1.3 0.44
Witnessed violence between parents 6.9Note * 1.74 3.1 0.48

Text box 3 chart end

On March 1, 2021, changes to the Divorce Act—as part of Bill C-78—came into force, emphasizing the best interests of the child (Department of Justice 2020a; Department of Justice 2020b). The Divorce Act, which pertains to married couples who are divorcing (not common-law couples nor married couples who are separating), now includes measures that cover family violence and its impacts on child well-being. The nature and seriousness of family violence will be taken into account by courts when determining parenting arrangements, as will ongoing or pending proceedings and orders involving the parties (e.g., criminal court proceedings and restraining orders).

The Divorce Act includes a broad range of behaviours under family violence, including physical and sexual violence, threats, coercive and controlling behaviours, behaviours that lead family members to fear for their safety and exposing children to such behaviours, both directly and indirectly. Under the Divorce Act, family violence includes single and recurring incidents that happen before, during or after separation. In order for family violence to be taken into account by judges, evidence must be presented—such as witness statements, injury photographs, incident recordings, 9-1-1 calls and medical records (Department of Justice 2020a).

While these legislative changes came into effect beyond the reference period of the 2019 GSS on Victimization, they will likely have an impact for victims of spousal violence in Canada moving forward.

End of text box 3

Spousal violence associated with age, no difference by sexual orientation

Demographic patterns for spousal violence were often similar to violent victimization. For instance, compared with those aged 55 and older, spousal violence was generally more prevalent among younger age groups (Table 11). Among those aged 55 and older, a small proportion (1.3%) were victims of spousal violence in the past five years, lower than any other age group. Past research has shown that younger people are at greater risk of almost all types of violence (Cotter 2021a; Cotter and Savage 2019; Perreault 2015; Savage 2021b).

Spousal violence did not differ significantly by sexual orientation. Other research, however, has shown a higher prevalence of intimate partner violence among those who are non-heterosexual (Cotter 2021a; Jaffray 2021a; Jaffray 2021b). Spousal violence among the sexual minority population—that is, those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or another sexual orientation other than heterosexual—in the provinces was significantly lower in 2019 than 2009 (5.3% versus 20%E) (Table 12).Note 

A higher proportion of Indigenous people experience spousal violence

According to the 2019 GSS on Victimization, a higher proportion of the Indigenous population—that is, those who are First Nations people, Métis and Inuit—experienced spousal violence. While 3.4% of non-Indigenous people experienced spousal violence in the past five years, the prevalence was more than twice as high for Indigenous people (7.5%) (Table 11). In particular, this difference reflected the experiences of the Inuit and Métis, 15%E and 9.4% of whom experienced this type of abuse, respectively. The proportion of First Nations people who were victims of spousal violence did not differ significantly from non-Indigenous people.

Among Indigenous victims of spousal violence, 20%E said the violence they experienced was reported to police, similar to non-Indigenous people (19%).Note  Spousal violence among Indigenous people in the provinces did not change significantly between 2009 and 2019 (Table 12). More specifically, however, spousal violence declined for Indigenous women (15%E in 2009 versus 7.5%E in 2019).Note 

A higher prevalence of spousal violence among the Indigenous population is consistent with other research, as Indigenous peoples have higher rates of violent victimization in general (Boyce 2016; Cotter 2021a; Heidinger 2021; Perreault 2015). The present day conditions of Indigenous peoples are greatly impacted by Canada’s colonial history. Structural policies and practices, like the residential school system and the Sixties Scoop, have led to longstanding and intergenerational trauma among the Indigenous population. Compounding issues—such as increased poverty, overcrowded housing and addiction issues—have resulted from these structural policies and practices, leading to the conditions for interpersonal violence (Hoffart and Jones 2018; National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls 2019; O’Neill et al. 2018).

Spousal violence more common for those with a disability, less common for visible minorities and immigrants

In 2019, spousal violence was more common for those with a disability (Table 11).Note  Among this population, 5.1% of people reported they had experienced spousal violence in the past five years. Meanwhile, 2.7% of those without a disability said the same. Between 2014 and 2019 in the provinces, spousal violence among those with a disability did not change significantly (Table 12).Note 

A smaller proportion of individuals belonging to a group designated as visible minority reported being victims of spousal violence in the five years preceding 2019 (2.3% compared with 3.9% of non-visible minorities) (Table 11).Note  The same pattern emerged for immigrants as a smaller proportion of immigrants were victims of spousal violence than non-immigrants in the same period (1.6% versus 4.2%).Note  Spousal violence among visible minorities in the provinces declined between 1999 and 2019 (5.5% versus 2.3%) (Table 12). More recently, between 2009 and 2019, spousal violence among the immigrant population decreased (4.4% versus 1.6%).Note 

These three findings are consistent with research on the topic of intimate partner and spousal violence, in addition to violent victimization more broadly (Cotter 2021a; Cotter 2021b; Cotter and Savage 2019; Savage 2021a).

No notable difference in spousal violence across income and education groups, and for those living in and outside of census metropolitan areas

Results from the 2019 GSS on Victimization show that there were no significant differences in the proportions of people who experienced spousal violence according to income and highest level of education (Table 11).

Similarly, spousal violence did not differ among those who live in census metropolitan areas (CMAs)Note  and those in non-CMAs. Between 1999 and 2019 in the provinces, spousal violence decreased significantly for those living in CMAs (7.8% versus 3.5%) and those living in non-CMAs (6.9% versus 3.4%) (Table 12).

Summary

According to the 2019 General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization), 3.5% of Canadians with a current or former spouse or common-law partner experienced self-reported spousal violence in the five years preceding the survey. Spousal violence was significantly more common among women than men, with 432,000 women and 279,000 men experiencing this type of violence. In the provinces, spousal violence was significantly lower in 2019 than 20 years prior, and a larger decrease was noted among men than women.

Among victims of spousal violence in 2019, it was more common for women to be sexually assaulted, choked, and pushed, grabbed or shoved by their spouse. Inversely, it was more common for men to experience their spouse throwing something that could hurt them, slapping them, and kicking, biting or hitting them. Overall, more than one in four victims of spousal violence experienced the most severe type of violence included in the GSS on Victimization: beating, choking, threatening to use or using a gun or knife, or sexual assault.

Of those who experienced spousal violence, women had greater impacts. One-third of spousal violence victims were physically injured, and this was significantly more common among women than men. In addition, women were more likely than men to report feeling each of the negative emotional impacts measured by the survey, and men were more likely than women to say they felt no emotional impact.

According to the 2019 GSS on Victimization, the large majority of spousal violence victims said the police were never alerted to the violence they experienced. Among spousal violence victims in the provinces, reporting to police in 2019 was lower than in 1999.

While downward trends for violence are promising at first glance, many Canadians are still victims of spousal violence and cope with the resulting impacts. It should be reiterated that the nature of this type of crime—where the victim is more likely to live with or be dependent on the perpetrator, particularly if children are involved—makes it susceptible to underreporting to police. An important area for future research will be spousal violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. With many individuals staying at home and isolating from others—and the compounding health, financial and education stressors—it will be important to measure any changes in spousal violence in order to provide appropriate support for victims and their families.

Detailed data tables

Table 1 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by status of spousal relationship, gender and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Table 2 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, province and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Table 3 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, territory and year, territories, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Table 4 Victims of spousal violence in the past year and past five years, by gender, status of spousal relationship and time frame, Canada, 2019

Table 5 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim and province or territory, 2019

Table 6 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim and incident characteristic, Canada, 2019

Table 7 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, most severe type of violence and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Table 8 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, physical injury and emotional impact, Canada, 2019

Table 9 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim and actions taken, Canada, 2019

Table 10 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, actions taken and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Table 11 Victims of spousal violence in the past year and the past five years, by victim characteristic and time frame, Canada, 2019

Table 12 Victims of spousal violence in the past five years, by gender of victim, victim characteristic and year, provinces, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019

Survey description

This article uses data from the General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization). In 2019, Statistics Canada conducted the GSS on Victimization for the seventh time. Previous cycles were conducted in 1988, 1993, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014, with questions about spousal violence introduced in 1999. The main objective of the GSS on Victimization is to better understand issues related to the safety and security of Canadians, including perceptions of crime and the justice system, experiences of intimate partner violence, and how safe people feel in their communities.

The target population was persons aged 15 and older living in the provinces and territories, except for those living full-time in institutions.

Data collection took place between April 2019 and March 2020. Responses were obtained by computer-assisted telephone interviews, in-person interviews (in the territories only) and, for the first time, the GSS on Victimization offered a self-administered internet collection option to survey respondents in the provinces and in the territorial capitals. Respondents were able to respond in the official language of their choice.

An individual aged 15 or older was selected within each sampled household to respond to the survey. An oversample of Indigenous people was added to the 2019 GSS on Victimization to allow for a more detailed analysis of individuals belonging to this population group. In 2019, the final sample size was 22,412 respondents.

In 2019, the overall response rate was 37.6%. Non-respondents included people who refused to participate, could not be reached, or could not speak English or French. Respondents in the sample were weighted so that their responses represent the non-institutionalized Canadian population aged 15 and older.

For the quality of estimates, the lower and upper bounds of the confidence intervals are presented in charts and tables. Confidence intervals should be interpreted as follows: if the survey were repeated many times, then 95% of the time (or 19 times out of 20), the confidence interval would cover the true population value.

Comparability with previous cycles

As Statistics Canada continues to modernize, the 2019 GSS on Victimization allowed respondents to complete their questionnaires online, in addition to traditional collection by telephone. This change in data collection for the 2019 GSS on Victimization was done to address several challenges, namely to reduce respondent burden and to respond to increasing collection costs. Many respondents welcomed this new method of collection and chose to answer the survey online.

During data certification, an analysis of responses between the two collection modes (telephone and online) showed a “mode effect”―that is, there were differences in how Canadians answered certain survey questions based on the method that they used to provide their responses. These differences impact the comparability of data from the 2019 GSS on Victimization to previous victimization survey cycles. As a result, trend analysis of non-spousal violent and household victimization indicators is not possible (for more information, see Cotter 2021a). No such mode effect, however, was identified for the spousal violence variables.

While comparisons of overall changes in criminal victimization over time are not recommended, Statistics Canada deems the data from the 2019 GSS on Victimization to be of good quality, robust and relevant to inform public policy on criminal victimization in Canada. For the first time, data from the provinces and territories were released together in a timely manner, giving data users an earlier start on their investigations of Canada-wide issues. It should be noted, however, that trend analysis in this article is limited to either the provinces or the territories. In addition, as information about gender was collected as of 2019, data from earlier cycles are based on sex instead of gender. Sex refers to sex at birth while gender refers to the gender that a person internally feels (gender identity along the gender spectrum) or publicly expresses (gender expression) in their daily life, including at work, while shopping or accessing other services, in their housing environment or in the broader community. In all, 0.3% of respondents identified as gender diverse (i.e., not exclusively female or male) in 2019.

Changes to 2019 GSS on Victimization represent Statistics Canada’s ongoing modernization efforts, undertaken with the goal of maintaining high quality and relevant data that provide important insights. As the GSS program continues to modernize, Statistics Canada will continue to consult stakeholders and partners to address their information needs.

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