Violence

Primary reference(s)

Krug, E.G., L.L. Dahlberg, J.A. Mercy, A.B. Zwi and R. Lozano (eds.), 2002. World Report on Violence and Health. World Health Organization.. Accessed 13 September 2020.

Rutherford, A., A.B. Zwi, N.J. Grove and A. Butchart, 2007. Violence: a glossary. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, 61:676-680.

Additional scientific description

The World Health Organization categorises violence as: self-directed, interpersonal and collective. All three categories of violence can have a societal impact whether directly or indirectly (WHO, 2002). According to Galtung (1969, 1996), violence can also be direct, structural, and cultural. There are several forms and typologies of violence. These are characterised here on the basis of the motives, target groups and tactics of violence:

Motives:

Political violence is defined as hostile, aggressive or violent acts motivated by political objectives or a desire to directly or indirectly affect political change or change in governance. As a phenomenon, political violence includes a range of political acts from mass protest, riots, coups, rebellions, uprisings and terrorism to violent acts committed by state and non-state actors, including pogroms, ethnic cleansing, and genocide (Kalyvas, 2013; Balcells, 2015).

Radicalisation, radicalism and violent extremism are generally used in the discourse of terrorism but remain poorly defined and understood. While violent extremism is generally equated with terrorism, radicalisation is often perceived as a prelude and a pre-condition to violence. While radicalisation, by definition, does not involve the use of violence, it refers to a process, often a multidimensional, complex and long-term process, by which individuals are introduced to extremist ideologies that motivate them to defy and challenge the status quo. This often leads to the eventual adoption of violence. Violent extremism refers to the “the willingness to use or support the use of violence” or terror as appropriate means to achieve ideological, social or political objectives (Elshimi, 2018; Mansour-Ille, 2019).

Religious violence refers to violent acts committed by either state or non-state actors and motivated by religious convictions, ideologies or belief systems. Religious violence is closely associated with radicalism and religious extremism and refers to acts ranging from inciting violence against particular religious groups, discrimination or segregating certain religious groups, persecution, genocide, random physical aggression, gang or mob violence and defaming or injuring verbal abuse or violence (Clarke, 2011).

Ethnic or racial violence refers to violence between different groups of people on the basis of ethnic or racial differences or differences in culture, religion or language motivated by ethnic or racial diversity. Violent acts motivated by ethnic or racial differences take many forms, ranging from segregation and institutionalised discrimination to genocide, ethnic cleansing, pogroms, civil wars and violent separatist movements (Bergmann and Crutchfield, 2009; Rutherford and Bar-Yam, 2010).

Social violence (also referred to as societal violence) refers to any type of violence employing physical or emotional acts of aggression committed by individuals or a community of individuals with the aim to have a social or societal impact or cause serious physical and emotional harm to a group of people or to society as a whole. These acts can be direct or indirect and can take various forms across countries varying from targeted social discrimination, segregation, terrorism, physical aggression to gang violence. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (1979) refers to various forms of discriminatory acts on the basis of gender, which may impair or nullify “the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women” of their basic human rights and fundamental freedoms equal to men “in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field” (Art. 1). Social violence can also be politically motivated (Kelly, 2014).

Target groups:

Gender-based violence is defined as acts or threats of acts intended to cause harm, injury, physical, sexual or psychological suffering to women on the basis of their gender or acts affecting women disproportionally (Krantz and Garcia-Moreno, 2005). It is defined by the UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (1993) as “any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life” (Art. 1). Gender-based violence is also used in the context of domestic violence or intimate partner violence and can result in various forms of abuse and exploitation, including economic exploitation. A form of gender-based violence is sexual violence and exploitation, which refers to any form of abuse or exploitation that is sexually motivated targeting vulnerable groups, particularly women and children. Convention C190 of the ILO (2019) defines gender-based violence as violence and harassment “directed at persons because of their sex or gender or affecting persons of a particular sex or gender disproportionately and includes sexual harassment” (Art. 1b).

Child abuse, violence and exploitation refer to acts of violence, cruel or harmful treatment of a minor for profit, labour, sexual gratification, vengeance or other personal or financial gains (Legal Dictionary, 2015). The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (1989) explicitly prohibits “all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child” (Art. 19.1).

Tactics:

Terrorism refers to acts – either politically or religiously motivated – that aim to instil fear and/or the intimidation of fear in society (i.e. mass terror). Terrorism includes acts of aggression or violence that causes either directly or indirectly physical or psychological harm or injury to a group of people. Terrorism can both be perpetrated by as well as against the state (Teichman, 1989). One of the most widely used definitions of terrorism is that of the US Department of State, which in 1983 defined terrorism as “premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience” (Sinai, 2008). ‘Non-combatants’ refer to both civilian and military personnel, who neither armed nor on duty. The definition, however, excludes state terrorism (Sinai, 2008).

Psychological violence refers to any intentional or unintentional conduct that aims to cause serious emotional or psychological harm to another person (European Institute for Gender Equality, 2017). The Istanbul Convention (2011) outlines examples of such acts to include verbal aggression, coercive threats and intimidation, control, harassment or stalking, insults, humiliating and defaming conducts as well as acts that render another person isolated from family, friends and any sort of support. Such acts mainly occur in interpersonal relationships, such as familial, parental or intimate partner relationships (Chapter V).

Torture is defined in the Convention against Torture (CAT) (1984) as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity” (Art. 1.1). The Convention, however, excludes pain or suffering arising from the enforcement of lawful sanctions.

The prohibition against torture and other forms of ill-treatment are embodied in several international human rights treaties and declarations, including: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (Art. 5, 1948), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) (Art. 7, 1966), and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984). Several regional human rights treaties also uphold and reaffirm the prohibition against torture and other forms of ill-treatment, including: The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) (Art. 3, 1950), the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR) (Art. 5, 1969), the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) (Art. 5, 1981), the Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture (1985), and the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1987).

Cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment refers to ill-treatment, which is premediated and applied for prolonged periods of time that amounts to be cruel, inhumane and violating human dignity aimed at causing bodily injury, harm or intense physical and mental suffering (European Court of Human Rights, 2000).

Gang-related violence refers to violence that is perpetrated by a group of people who associate themselves to what can be referred to as a ‘gang’ – a relatively well-defined, durable and predominately street-based group of young people dominating a particular territory and known to the wider community (UK Government, 2016). Organised crime, on the other hand, refers to violent crimes or criminal activities committed by a group of people in an organised manner for profit using coercion, retaliation and extortion (UK Department of Justice, 2020). Organised crimes are not confined to particular territories or borders.

Metrics and numeric limits

Not applicable.

Examples of drivers, outcomes and risk management

Globally, some 470,000 homicides occur each year and millions of people suffer violence-related injuries. Beyond death and injury, exposure to violence can increase the risk of smoking, alcohol and drug abuse; mental illness and suicidality; chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes and cancer; infectious diseases, such as HIV, and social problems, such as crime, and further violence. Yet, violence can be prevented. Interventions to address violence are delivered as part of a four-step public health approach that includes: defining the problem; identifying causes and risk factors; designing and testing interventions; and increasing the scale of effective interventions (WHO, no date).