Understanding the epidemiology and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on domestic violence and child abuse in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this paper is to highlight the impact of a pandemic on the lives of vulnerable members of the community who have experienced or are 'at risk' of experiencing intimate family violence and child abuse in Saudi Arabia. By reviewing the experience in Saudi Arabia in the context of the international literature, the study explores similarities and differences in the impact of the pandemic on family violence. Methods: The study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on family violence and child abuse in Saudi Arabia by conducting a comparative analysis of the prevalence of cases, types of abuse, and geographical location of those experiencing violence between the years 2019 and 2020. Data were obtained from the Family Violence Reporting Center 1919 in Saudi Arabia. Results: The study found that the risk of family violence and child abuse increased during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, similar to findings in other countries. Conversely, there was a decrease in the number of reports due to factors associated with COVID-19. Conclusions: The study highlighted the importance of ensuring that existing policies and services are sufficient to ensure the risks arising from the impact of COVID-19 responses and minimize the negative consequences.

Abusive behaviors: long-term forced quarantine and intimate partner violence during Covid-19 outbreak

“…It can be identified easily from the cases that, in most situations, IPV occurred due to the grief of forced quarantine-based economic insecurity and fear of job loss that was mostly responsible for the reduction in sources of income. We can observe that the findings are more or less consistent with the earlier findings reported by numerous authors such as Alkhattabi et al, 2023;Tripathi et al, 2022;Morgan and Boxall, 2022;Moyer et al, 2022;Miller et al, 2021;Fraser, 2020;Rajah and Osborn, 2020;and Zou, 2020. However, the specific causes and consequences were different in all those cases.…”

“…For example, a recent study conducted in Saudi Arabia identified that the risk of family violence and child abuse increased during Covid-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, similar to findings in other countries. In contrast, they reported decreased reports/complaints due to factors associated with Covid-19 outbreak (Alkhattabi et al , 2023).…”

“…The outbreak was branded as a “Pandemic”, indicating the highest form of any disease spread. Such a unique scenario also forced many families to stay together longer (Alkhattabi et al , 2023). A critical time of unrest was associated with amplified interpersonal violence, and most notably, intimate partner violence (IPV), including the incidences of violence against women (Moyer et al , 2022; Fraser, 2020; Palermo and Peterman, 2011), and according to some studies, against men as well (Walsh et al , 2022).…”

“…A critical time of unrest was associated with amplified interpersonal violence, and most notably, intimate partner violence (IPV), including the incidences of violence against women (Moyer et al , 2022; Fraser, 2020; Palermo and Peterman, 2011), and according to some studies, against men as well (Walsh et al , 2022). However, such IPV are most evidently reported against women by their male counterparts (Alkhattabi et al , 2023; Alvarez-Hernandez et al , 2022; Moyer et al , 2022; Miller et al , 2021). As an example, during the time of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, an “epidemic” of “rape, sexual assault and violence against women and girls” was reported to have been fundamentally ignored as collateral damages (Yasmin, 2016).…”

“…Several efforts are to incorporate gender violence and risk analyses into the “One Health” approach. However, the absence of global coordination and implementation has resulted in an irregular uptake for such efforts (Alkhattabi et al , 2023; Tripathi et al , 2022; Miller et al , 2021).…”