“#Domestic Violence Isn’t Stopping for Coronavirus …….”: Intimate Partner Violence Conversations on Twitter during the Early Days of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

ABSTRACT Purpose Intimate partner violence (IPV) became a cause of growing concern due to the shelter-in-place orders during COVID-19. Social media has been utilized to share information and communicate during national emergencies and disasters. Our goal was to analyze data from Twitter to examine the types of IPV conversations during the early days of the pandemic. Method Of the tweets we collected between March 19 and April 19, 2020, a 10% sample was chosen (n = 3,506). We utilized content analysis to identify our themes and categories. Results Five themes were identified: (a) increase in IPV during the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact, (b) resources to help victims and abusers of IPV during COVID-19, (c) general discussion about IPV, (d) experience of IPV, (e) Others. Conclusion We discuss implications for social work professionals and how social media can be utilized for prevention efforts. Directions for future research and innovation are highlighted.