Page 44 - IJPS-10-1

International Journal of
Population Studies Men’s experience of IPV during COVID-19 lockdown

3. Results control. Some male partners had to resort back to family
courts in ensuring that child arrangement orders were
Of the 19 studies reviewed, the majority of the papers upheld. Some of the studies noted that male victims of IPV
originated in developed countries. Twelve (12) were from suffered financial/economic and psychological/emotional
the United Kingdom, two were from Nigeria, and one each abuse from their female partners. Other forms of abuse
from England, Australia, Portugal, and India.
experienced by male victims include sexual and physical
3.1. Prevalence of IPV abuse, which in most cases led to severe injuries (Table 2).
A study conducted in the United Kingdom indicated 3.3. Consequences
that in every three domestic abuse cases, two victims are A paper from the United Kingdom indicated that over one-
females and one is male (Warburton & Raniolo, 2020). third of men (41%) and more than half of women (52%) were

If the severity of IPV is measured by volume, the study more likely to suffer from emotional and mental problems
found a prevalence of 28.4% in women and 13.6% in emanating from IPV during the COVID-19 lockdown
men. Almost all the 10 papers from ManKind Initiative period (Warburton & Raniolo, 2020). Similarly, 4.3% of

on media and policy briefing reported that, just like their men and 0.4% of women suffered internal injuries such
female counterparts, men were at higher risk of IPV as fractures and broken teeth. Another study in Australia
because of the confinement with their abusers caused by confirmed that there is little or no support for male victims
the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
(Gleeson, 2020). Counseling services for men are less
Notably, pleas for help from men who suffered domestic widely available because they are less likely to report their
abuse increased to 60% during the lockdown in England experience of IPV. A male victim in Australia also reported
(BBC News, 2020). As shown in the report, contact with homelessness. Some of the papers revealed that men were
male victims of IPV came through emails, and charity at higher risk of sustaining physical injuries and emotional
organizations dealing with these men saw the volume trauma caused by their female partners (Warburton &
increase of emails by 96% from 372 emails in June 2019 to 728 Raniolo, 2020; ManKind Initiative Briefing 1, March 2020;

in June 2020. In March 2020, calls to the ManKind Initiative ManKind Initiative Briefing 4, May 4 – 10, 2020).
helpline were 20% higher when compared to the level The ManKind Initiative reported at least three homicidal
during the pre-lockdown period and 35% higher between cases involving male victims of IPV in the United Kingdom
March and June 2020 than normal. The ManKind Initiative between May and June 2020. As indicated in some of the
website saw a 175% increase in visitors more compared to ManKind Initiative policy briefings, male victims of IPV
before the lockdown period. The study in India indicated suffered minimization, a topic brought up during the public
that a higher proportion of men (7.7%) reported experience hearing of the domestic bill in the United Kingdom (Table 2).
of abuse compared to women (7.3%). A Nigerian study
reported 89 cases of men abuse between early 2020 and the 4. Discussion
first quarter of 2021. Similarly, the NOI Polls revealed that
47% of Nigerians reported one form of domestic violence or Globally, the severity of men’s IPV experience during the
the other against men in their locality during the peak of the pandemic lockdown, although less frequent, is tantamount
COVID-19 pandemic. In Portugal, IPV ranged from 12.3% to spousal abuse suffered by women. In line with a previous
for men to 14.2% for women (Table 2). study by Jewkes et al. (2017), women’s IPV experiences
were not significantly different from those of men. As
3.2. Types and forms of IPV experienced by male indicated by one of the studies, if the severity of IPV is
victims measured by volume, the severity of IPV in women and
The majority of the papers from the United Kingdom men is 28.4% and 13.6%, respectively. This shows that an
reported that male victims who were trapped indoors appreciable proportion of men experienced severe abuse
suffered emotional abuse and isolation, a situation that during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
made help seeking more difficult. Male victims are subjected It is important to note that men’s experience of IPV was on
to emotional abuses, such as spending monitoring, food the rise. Findings indicate that two women and one man were
deprivation, and concealment of personal property such victims of every three domestic violence incidents reported
as a phone or computer (Brooks, 2020). Seven (7) of the during the COVID-19 lockdown period, and calls from male
ManKind Initiative briefings indicated a breach of Custody victims remained 35% higher than the number recorded
and Child Arrangement Orders by several ex-partners during the pre-lockdown period. The prevalence of male’s
(mothers). A breach of child custody agreement was experience of IPV in India was 7.7%, and in Nigeria, about
identified as a form of IPV because it is a form of behavior 89 cases of men abuse were reported between early 2020 and

Volume 10 Issue 1 (2024) 38 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.376