Economic violence as a latent form of domestic violence: theoretical and legal aspect

Abstract

The article reviews the peculiarities of economic violence as a form of domestic violence and identifies its main theoretical and legal characteristics.
 Two characteristics of economic domestic violence are singled out: a significant level of latency compared to other forms of violence and a clear dependence between economic violence and the gender aspect, since it is women who more often, due to the birth and feeding of children, receive a limited opportunity for full labor and educational self-realization.
 It is motivated that economic violence affects women from all socio-economic groups and host countries, but there is no doubt that a special form of vulnerability is manifested for persons with disabilities, the elderly, for persons with a lower level of education and professional experience.
 The latency of the economic form of domestic violence indicates that this type of violence can manifest itself in flaws that often go unnoticed beyond the obvious signs of physical and verbal violence. Stealth arises from the fact that these influences are less overt and difficult to detect from the outside, but they can significantly affect the well-being and emotional state of the victim. It is pointed out that only relatively recently has economic violence been conceptualized as separate from emotional and psychological violence. Manifestations of domestic economic violence are grouped: control over financial decisions (the abuser makes all financial decisions without taking into account the thoughts and needs of the victim, including what to spend money, how and where to invest, and other financial aspects, not allowing the victims to participate in this process); setting limits and cost accounting; manipulation of financial goals (deliberately directing financial resources in directions that are beneficial to the offender, or using them to achieve one’s own goals, without taking into account the needs and wishes of the victim); financial threats to force the victim to remain in the relationship.
 In general, the legal aspect of the economic household is a complex and multifaceted task that requires a systematic approach and cooperation of various subjects. In practice, this means a combination of legal regulation, public awareness and victim support to effectively counter economic domestic violence.