Book Chapter
IPV-related information seeking in Italy: lessons from online surveys
In: Seemungal, F. V. (Ed.): Domestic violence and abuse as a shadow pandemic: an international and interdisciplinary view, 107–122
Routledge studies in criminal behaviour -
London, Routledge (2026)
Abstract
Following lockdown measures imposed by governments to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of IPV has increased drastically, as people – mostly women – were confined in their homes with their abusers around the clock. Despite this surge, IPV is a sensitive research topic that may lead victims to refrain from disclosing information and/or participating in research efforts, including sample surveys. In this context, digital data may offer a useful tool to broaden research on IPV. This chapter presents results from an online survey conducted in early 2021 with the aim of shedding light on the information-seeking behaviour of online users on IPV-related matters. We focus on Italy, where the lockdown measures were among the strictest in Europe and IPV prevalence increased substantially. Through a descriptive analysis of the online survey results, we demonstrate how the incidence of IPV and IPV-related help-seeking strategies differ by socioeconomic and sociodemographic characteristics of respondents.
Keywords: Italy, surveys, violence