When we hear of domestic violence, we assume that it involves physical abuse or threats. However, there is another form of domestic violence that is more prevalent in the U.S., and that may actually be more harmful: emotional abuse.
Under the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, domestic violence is defined as any act that results in "physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women." Specifically, domestic violence is defined as a violent act perpetrated by intimate partners through physical, sexual, economic or psychological abuse, with the latter including intimidation, threats of abandonment or abuse, isolation and confinement, verbal aggression and humiliation.
