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The Relationship and Impact of Animal Cruelty in Family Violence
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The Link Between Family Violence and Cruelty to Family Pets
Judee E. Onyskiw
SUMMARY. Family violence remains a prevalent social problem crossing racial, geographic, social, and economic boundaries (World Health Organization, 2002). Different forms of family violence often exist in the same households. In the 1980s, researchers observed a connection between acts of animal cruelty and family violence. Since then other researchers have corroborated their findings. Despite these articles appearing in the scholarly literature, there has been relatively little attention given to this issue in mainstream literature on family violence and little evidence that this information has been used to inform prevention or intervention efforts. This article summarizes the empirical evidence on the link between family violence and cruelty to family pets and discusses the
implications of these connections for professionals who work with women, children, families, or animals. doi:10.1300/J135v07n03_02
[Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <[email protected]> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2007 by The Haworth Press. All rights reserved.] KEYWORDS. Family violence, woman abuse, pet abuse, links, child abuse, domestic violence, animal cruelty, connections
Despite notable efforts to eliminate violence in families, family violence remains a pressing and prevalent social problem. Violence occurs at every level of society crossing racial, geographic, social, and economic boundaries (World Health Organization, 2002). Women are injured or humiliated by violent partners, children are abused or neglected by parents or older siblings, and the elderly are maltreated or economically deprived by adult children or grandchildren. Violence pervades families in our society. Although women are violent toward their male partners, and violence occurs between partners of the same gender, in the majority of cases of partner violence, women are victimized by men (Johnson, 1996; United States Department of Justice, 2005). In population-based surveys conducted in the United States (U.S.) and in Canada, 25 to 30% of women report being physically abused by an intimate partner at some point in their lives (Johnson, 1996; Jones et al., 1999; Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000). Every year, an estimated 3 to 10 million American children and 1 to 2 million Canadian children are exposed to violence in their own homes. Children are exposed to a range of abusive behavior, from hearing insults and name-calling to acts of extreme aggression using weapons, including witnessing murder (Lewandowski, McFarlane, Campbell, Gary, & Barenski, 2004).
Children are also the direct victims of violence. In the United States, 11% of all violent crimes occurring within families are committed by parents against their children (U.S. Department of Justice, 2005). Children and youth are 10 times more likely to be victims of violence than to be arrested for violent crimes. In Canada, children account for about 25% of all victims of physical assault, and 61% of sexual assault cases (Statistics Canada, 2005). Of those assaults that are family related, 70% of the physical assaults and 40% of the sexual assaults are perpetrated by parents (Statistics Canada, 2005). Children are far more likely to be abused by family members than strangers.
Although statistics on woman abuse and child abuse are collected and presented separately, these different forms of family violence do not always exist independently of one another. Most often, one form of violence in the home is an indicator that other family members are at risk. The link between woman abuse and child abuse has long been recognized (Anaya, 2004; Appel & Holden, 1998; Edelson, 1999; Folsom, Christensen, Avery, & Moore, 2003; Lee, Kotch, & Cox, 2004; McKay, 1994; Osofsky, 2003; Ross, 1996; Tajima, 2000). In homes where women are abused, children are more likely to be abused. Following a review of studies assessing the overlap between woman abuse and child abuse, Appel and Holden (1998) found that the percentage ranged from 20% to 100% with a median rate of 40% reported in clinical samples of abused women or children. Children are at risk for all types of abuse, including physical, sexual, emotional abuse and neglect perpetrated by mothers, fathers, or both parents.
Several researchers have observed that there is also a connection between acts of animal cruelty and different forms of violence in families. Over 20 years ago, a British researcher published a scholarly paper documenting the connection between animal cruelty and the physical abuse of children (Hutton, 1983). At the same time, researchers in the United States noted that a large percentage of families referred to child protective services for child maltreatment showed a breakdown in their capacity to care for their pets. They suggested the need to systematically study the relationship between the treatment of animals and humans (DeViney, Dickert, & Lockwood, 1983). More recently, Flynn (1999) published an article eloquently documenting the reasons that family professionals needed to pay serious attention to violence toward animals while Beirne (2002) urged criminologists to include investigating the causes of animal abuse in their research agenda. Despite these articles appearing in the scholarly literature, there has been relatively little attention given to this issue in mainstream literature on family violence and little evidence that this information has been used to inform prevention or intervention efforts. The purpose of this article is to review research on the link between family violence and cruelty to family pets. The objectives of the review are to: (1) summarize empirical evidence, (2) raise awareness of the connections between family violence and cruelty to family pets, and (3) discuss the implications of these connections for professionals who work with women, children, families, and/or animals.
Definitions of Abuse
Abuse in humans has been difficult to define despite decades of scholarly discussion and debate (Dobash & Dobash, 1992; DeKeseredy, 2000; Gelles, 2000a; Onyskiw, 2005; Saltzmann, Fanslow, McMahon, & Shelley, 1999). For the purposes of this article, abuse refers to physical, sexual, psychological or emotional mistreatment, and other controlling tactics such as economic or spiritual deprivation against an intimate partner (including married, cohabiting, or dating, current or estranged intimate partner) by the other partner. Abuse begins in subtle forms that are often difficult to detect. There is usually an insidious pattern of abuse already occurring when violence happens (Campbell, 2000). Abuse is best conceptualized as a pattern of behavior and experiences used to achieve domination and control in the relationship (Campbell, 2000; Dobash & Dobash, 1979, 1992; Gordon, 2000; Yllo, 1993).
Abuse and neglect in relation to children also has been difficult to define. Federal legislation, specifically the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974, and its amendments, defines child abuse and neglect broadly as any recent act or failure to act resulting in imminent risk of serious harm, death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation of a child (a person under the age of 18) by a parent or caretaker who is responsible for the child’s welfare. Child abuse is frequently divided into four categories (i.e., physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect). For some time, children’s exposure to domestic violence has been recognized as harmful to children and a form of emotional abuse. In the United States, several states (i.e., Alaska, Georgia, Minnesota, and Utah) include witnessing domestic violence in child abuse legislation (Kantor & Little, 2003; Zink Kamine, Sill, Field, & Putman, 2004). The state of Utah has legislation that makes the commission of a domestic assault in the presence of a child at least two or more times chargeable as a misdemeanor (Zink et al., 2004). In Canada, witnessing domestic violence is included in legislation for child abuse in 6 of the 10 provinces (i.e., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland; Echlin & Marshall, 1995). Nevertheless, the issue of including exposure to domestic violence in child abuse legislation remains contentious. There has been inconsistent use of these alternatives and skepticism about whether they are always in the best interests of the child or the mother (see Echlin & Marshall, 1995; Kantor & Little, 2003 for a discussion).
Similar to abuse in humans, animal abuse also has been difficult to define (Agnew, 1998). Drawing on Ascione (1993), a researcher whose program of research has focused on the link between human and animal abuse, abuse is broadly defined as socially unacceptable behavior that intentionally causes unnecessary pain, suffering, or distress to and/or death of an animal (p. 228). This definition includes physical abuse and neglect, including acts of commission and omission, and sexual abuse involving bestiality. While physical harm is the easiest form of abuse to recognize, neglect is the most prevalent, occurring in almost 90% of all cases of animal abuse (Solot, 1997). The terms animal abuse and cruelty to animals are used interchangeably.
A Summary of Empirical Evidence
In the 1980s, in work that was pioneering at the time, researchers in Britain noted the link between child abuse and cruelty to animals. Hutton (1983) examined the files of 23 families in a British community brought to the attention of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). He found that 82% of the families were known to local social service agencies as having children at risk for signs of neglect and physical abuse, while 61% of the families were known to probation services.
At the same time, DeViney and her colleagues (1983) investigated the treatment of animals in 53 families meeting state criteria in New Jersey for substantiated child abuse and neglect. Using home observations, 60% of the families were identified as having met at least one of the criteria for pet abuse according to those established by Leavitt (1978 cited in DeViney et al., 1983). A wide range of abuse was reported from causing pain and suffering to the death of the animal. The most common pattern of abuse occurred when an abusive parent or stepparent targeted one or more children, as well as a pet, and used violence against the pet to intimidate or control the child. Animal abuse was significantly higher (88%) in families where children had been physically abused than in families that emotionally or sexually abused or neglected their children (34%; DeViney et al., 1983). In the majority of abusive incidents, the parents were responsible; however, children were reported to hit, kick, pester or annoy pets in 26% of the families. DeViney and her colleagues (1983) concluded that there were parallels between the treatment of children and the treatment of pets in child abusing families, and that the capacity to care for a pet may signal other forms of abuse and neglect in the family. While these studies involved small numbers and lacked control groups, they did suggest a connection between child abuse and animal abuse in families.
Ascione, Weber, and Wood (1997a) conducted one of the first studies to examine pet abuse in the lives of abused women. They surveyed 101 women in shelters for abused women in Utah and compared their responses to a community sample of 60 women who were not abused. All women owned pets. Compared to women in the community group, the shelter women were three times more likely to report that their partners had threatened to harm their pets (52% versus 16.7%), and 15 times more likely to report that their partners had actually harmed or killed their pets (54% versus 3.5%). In the majority of cases, the shelter women reported that there had been multiple incidents of abusing pets. Ascione, Weber, and Wood (1997b) also conducted a national survey of shelters in the United States. They surveyed the largest shelter in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Shelters were selected if they provided overnight facilities and programs or services for children. Ninety-six percent of the shelters responded. Of these shelters, 85.4% reported that women using their services spoke about incidents of abuse of their family pets. In another study, 38 women seeking shelter at a safe house voluntarily completed surveys about pet ownership (Ascione, 1998). Of these women, 71% reported that their partners had threatened or actually harmed or killed one or more of their pets.
Other researchers reported high rates of pet abuse in samples of women seeking refuge from abuse. In a survey of over 100 battered women in shelters, Flynn (2000a) found that almost half of the w...
