Violence in the Home

Of all married couples, 30% have at least one violent episode during their marriage. Each year some 1.8 million wives are severely attacked by their husbands, and almost the same number of husbands are assaulted by their wives. In 1975 it was estimated that nearly 2 million individuals faced a mate wielding a gun or knife. Nearly 2 million children a year (almost 4% of all children between the ages of 3 and 17) are victims of parental abuse and neglect. More than 2,000 die as a result. According to national averages, every household in America is the scene of family violence at least once a year.

Murray Straus and Richard Gelles, Behind Closed Doors, Violence in the American Family, Family Violence Research Program, University of New Hampshire (1980).