‘Honour’-based abuse: A descriptive study of survivor, perpetrator, and abuse characteristics

Abstract

Current literature on ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) has largely focussed on exploring the lived experience of individuals, with limited analysis of the prevalence and associations of abuse characteristics. The aim of this study was to identify base rates of survivor, perpetrator and abuse characteristics. To identify these characteristics and their prevalence, 160 cases from Savera UK, a charity specialising in HBA and harmful practices, were coded for 66 variables and descriptive statistics produced. Fifteen of the coded abuse characteristics were present in more than 50% of cases, with ‘Emotional/psychological abuse and coercive control’, ‘Specific family cultural traditions’, ‘Gender-based socialisation’ and ‘Physical violence’ being the only characteristics seen in more than 75% of cases. These represent the core characteristics of HBA but there are indications of qualitative and quantitate differences in this sample. Understanding the prevalence of characteristics is key to effectively identifying abuse, supporting survivors and improving effective prevention strategies.