Gender-based violence is more than a legal term. It’s the lived reality of millions. Violence against women, fueled by deeply rooted power imbalances, upheld by patriarchy, and perpetuated through systemic inequality, cuts across all cultures and ages, leaving women and girls to suffer simply because they are female.
Notwithstanding the vast number of articles, research, and reports on this subject, public understanding appears to remain limited. Gender-based violence (GBV) is regrettably, too often spoken about in rather abstract terms, stripped of the profound human implications and cost. My objective here is to offer a little clarity, a grounded, unapologetic explanation of what gender-based violence really is, why it’s so embedded in today’s society, and what must change if we genuinely wish to protect current and future generations of women.
I have three decades examining violence against women, working alongside survivors, analyzing criminal cases, and engaging with law enforcement and support services. I say this without hesitation: awareness is simply not enough. This is a crisis demanding urgent, collective action, political courage, and a real cultural change. In some countries more than in others.
What Exactly is Gender-Based Violence?
The UNHCR defines gender-based violence as any harmful act directed at an individual based on their gender. It includes physical, sexual, and psychological harm, as well as threats, coercion, and deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.
While men can also be victims of GBV, women and girls are disproportionately targeted due to systemic gender inequality, misogynistic extremism, and harmful norms that uphold male dominance.
Article 3(a) of the Istanbul Convention defines violence against women as a violation of human rights and a form of discrimination. It further states that violence against women is both a cause and a consequence of the unequal power relations between women and men. This framing recognises that such violence is not only the result of gender inequality, but also a tool used to maintain and reinforce it.
According to the European Parliament, about 30% of women in the EU have experienced physical violence, threats, and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Around 13% report physical violence or threats without sexual violence, while 17% report sexual violence. The highest rates are in Finland (57% report gender-based violence, 37% sexual violence), Sweden (52% gender-based violence, 41% sexual violence), and Hungary (49% gender-based violence, 17% sexual violence, 31% physical violence).
What Are The Forms of Gender-Based Violence
Gender-based violence manifests in many forms, each deeply damaging:
- Intimate Partner and Domestic Violence: In many communities and societies, abuse and violence within the home is normalized, silenced, or hidden, making intervention nearly impossible and leaving victims isolated, powerless, and exposed to further risk and harm. According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, over 1 in 3 women (35.6%) in the US have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime. There are no reliable prevalence data on domestic abuse in the UK, but the Office of National Statistics (ONS) offers one of the best data available. The ONS has announced, earlier in 2025, the estimates published in the Redevelopment of domestic abuse statistics: research update December 2024 article: 30.3% of women have experienced domestic abuse since the age of 16. According to an article titled “Global, regional, and national prevalence estimates of physical or sexual, or both, intimate partner violence against women in 2018,” the country with the highest prevalence estimates of intimate partner violence was the Democratic Republic of the Congo (36%)
- Sexual Violence: Sexual harassment, abuse, assault, and rape are among the most traumatic violations of a person’s body. We are all aware of the many saddening and appalling statistics that have made the news headlines in recent years. One survey that particularly struck me was conducted by Together for Girls, revealing that 120 million girls and young women under the age of 20 have experienced sexual violence. And the saddest, most troubling part? Survivors are often disbelieved, blamed, and further traumatized by judicial systems that continues to fail in delivering justice.
- Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Over 230 million women and girls worldwide have undergone FGM, a cruel practice causing lifelong physical, emotional, and psychological harm. It persists due to unchallenged traditions and systemic control of female bodies and sexuality, even in many of the most developed regions and communities in Europe, North America, and Australasia. The European Parliament has passed laws and resolutions to help eliminate female genital mutilation (FGM) worldwide. Although FGM is illegal in the EU, and some member states prosecute even when it’s carried out abroad, an estimated 600,000 women living in Europe have already been subjected to it, with a further 180,000 girls at high risk in just 13 European countries.
- Child and Forced Marriage: According to UNICEF, each year approximately 12 million girls under the age of 18 are married globally, a practice that continues to violate their human rights and gravely harm their well-being. Early marriages too often result in adolescent pregnancies and intimate partner violence. It’s most certainly a fast track to exploitation and abuse. Countless of studies have shown that girls who marry extremely early are also significantly more likely to leave education, face economic difficulty, and remain locked in cycles of poverty and dependence.
- Femicide: According to a UN Women compiled report, as reported by The Guardian: “An estimated 140 women and girls across the world die at the hands of their partner or family member every day… in 2023, 85,000 women were intentionally killed, with 60 % (51,100) of these deaths committed by someone close to the victim.” Many of which had previously sought help or reported threats. Femicide, the intentional killing of a woman because she is a woman, is not a tragic exception. It’s the predictable outcome when institutions repeatedly fail to protect women. My recent article “Ending Femicide: Why Our Justice Systems Keep Failing Women And What Must Change,” acts as a brutal reminder of the world’s failure to protect women from this horrific crime.
- Online Abuse: The internet has become yet another platform where women are harassed and harmed, often without consequence for perpetrators. Countless women have experienced digital violence, including revenge porn, deepfakes, non-consensual intimate images (NCII), online sexual exploitation, stalking, and rape threats. Technology companies and social media platforms must take greater responsibility for user safety and improve content moderation, swiftly remove non-consensual explicit material, and respond faster to abuse reports. Schools and community groups should also educate individuals about a more ethical use of technology, the meaning of consent, and the legal risks of sharing intimate images, helping promote a culture of respect online. Stronger laws and better law enforcement investigation are also essential, focusing on the lack of consent.
- Emotional, Psychological, and Financial Abuse: Emotional manipulation, coercive control, gaslighting, and economic abuse can be just as damaging as physical violence. These sinister forms of gender-based violence chip away at women’s independence, shatter self-worth, and remain particularly difficult to prove. Comprehensive research has shown that survivors of non-physical abuse often experience long-term mental health consequences, including anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress (PTSD), at rates very similar to or even higher than survivors of physical violence.
What Are The Root Causes? Power, Control, and Systemic Injustice
At its core, gender-based violence is about power and it thrives on individuals and in societies that tolerate inequality and reward dominance. It’s entrenched in outdated laws, unequal access to education, financial dependency, and cultural norms that diminish women’s voices. Especially in times of crisis, such as war or natural disasters, women and girls become even more vulnerable, often facing a grim choice between survival and violation, as sexual violence is weaponized and exploitation escalates.
A recent global study found that young women who depend financially on their partners or live in male-dominated households are significantly less likely to report abuse. This underscores an important and often overlooked truth: vulnerability is manufactured. There is no question about it, when women are denied independence and dignity, the risk of abuse rises significantly.
Gender-based violence continues because we allow it. Societal beliefs that belittle or excuse abuse, alongside legal systems that rarely deliver real justice, create fertile ground for repeat harm. Too often, women are expected to prevent violence, while perpetrators walk free.
What Is The The Lifelong Impact of Gender-Based Violence
The effects of gender-based violence extend far beyond the immediate harm. Survivors face PTSD, anxiety, chronic illness, memory loss, and long-term trauma. Research has even linked intimate partner violence to lasting damage in brain function and cognitive health. According to a 2025 article in The Guardian, women who are victims of domestic violence are at a higher risk of traumatic brain injury and mental health conditions for many years after the abuse has ended. Even after several years since exposure to intimate partner violence the risk of mental health disorders remained just as high (The Guardian, 2025).
The cost is all-encompassing. Gender-based violence disrupts education, work, public health, and economic stability. Survivors are constantly pushed to the margins of society, while communities bear the burden through overwhelmed healthcare and social services. When half the population lives in fear, it’s not just their loss… it’s everyone’s.
What Are Evidence-Based Action That Work
Ending gender-based violence requires more than rhetoric. It demands concrete, sustained action. The Spotlight Initiative, a joint effort by the EU and UN, offers a promising model. Their official Impact Report 2017–2023 states that more than 540 laws or policies were signed or strengthened, and the overall conviction rate for gender-based violence doubled in 13 countries. The same report notes that by 2025, the initiative is estimated to have prevented 21 million women and girls from experiencing gender-based violence. The global Spotlight Initiative overview further confirms that since its launch in partnership with the EU and UN, it has worked across 30+ countries supporting tens of millions of women and girl.
These programs work because they are multi-sectoral. They don’t just address symptoms but also highlight root causes. They include legal reform, survivor support, prevention, and community education. Importantly, they also engage men and boys in rejecting misogynistic extremism.
How Can We End Violence Against Women
Gender-based violence is not inevitable. It is taught, tolerated, and normalized, but it can also be unlearned and demolished.
We must enforce laws. We must listen to and believe survivors. We must fund frontline services and invest in education that challenges extreme gender stereotypes from childhood.
This should be everyone’s objective, from law enforcement to teachers, from healthcare professionals to social media and tech companies. As someone who has spent a great part of his professional life confronting gender-based violence and advocating for women’s personal safety, I can tell you that we can do better. In fact, we must do better.
Every act of violence against a woman is not just a personal tragedy, it’s a reflection of a society that failed her. We do owe it to every woman and girl, and to the next generation, to confront this crisis head on. That means facing uncomfortable truths, challenging harmful norms, and building a world where safety, dignity, and equality are non-negotiable.
About the Author
Now recognised as a Gender-Based Violence Expert, Robert Kaiser specialises in criminology-informed strategies to prevent violence against women, integrating insights from sociology and behavioural psychology. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Criminology, focusing on Synthesising Escalation Pattern Analysis Across the Dynamics of Intimate Partner Violence to Improve Lethality Assessments. If you would like to follow his academic journey and access his publications, please visit his ResearchGate profile.
Robert has worked closely with hundreds of female survivors of physical and sexual crimes and is the author of NEVER A VICTIM, a 530-page survivor-led, trauma-informed guide to women’s safety.