Sarac E, Odabas D. Gender-based economic violence and the exploitation of women: A deep dive. World J Psychiatry 2025; 15(3): 103725 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i3.103725]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Elif Sarac, PhD, Ministry of National Defense, General Directorate of Management Services, The Center of Private Care for the Elderly, Bilkent, Ankara 06000, Türkiye. sarac.elf@gmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Psychiatry
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Psychiatry. Mar 19, 2025; 15(3): 103725 Published online Mar 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i3.103725
Gender-based economic violence and the exploitation of women: A deep dive
Elif Sarac, Deniz Odabas
Elif Sarac, Ministry of National Defense, General Directorate of Management Services, The Center of Private Care for the Elderly, Ankara 06000, Türkiye
Deniz Odabas, Department of Public Health, Medical Faculty, Ankara University, Ankara 06000, Türkiye
Author contributions: Sarac E and Odabas D contributed to the conception, design of the study, data curation, funding acquisition, investigation, methodology, project administration, resources, and software; and both authors drafted the article, revised it critically, and approved the final version to be submitted.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Elif Sarac, PhD, Ministry of National Defense, General Directorate of Management Services, The Center of Private Care for the Elderly, Bilkent, Ankara 06000, Türkiye. sarac.elf@gmail.com
Received: November 28, 2024 Revised: January 10, 2025 Accepted: January 23, 2025 Published online: March 19, 2025 Processing time: 90 Days and 8.9 Hours
Abstract
Economic violence is a form of domestic violence that extends beyond physical harm, affecting victims’ economic stability and independence. This situation perpetuates gender inequality and also reinforces the cycle of gender-based violence. With definitions of economic violence broadening to encompass a range of coercive and manipulative behaviors - from financial abuse in domestic violence scenarios to the economic harassment faced by stay-at-home moms - understanding this form of exploitation is crucial for crafting effective interventions. This article aims to delve into various facets of economic violence, including its definition, prevalence, and the stark realities it creates for its victims. Following the search of international databases: Social Work Abstracts (EBSCO), Psychology Abstracts, Family and Women Studies Worldwide, Psychiatry Online, Psych INFO (including Psych ARTICLES), PubMed, Wiley, and Scopus, 60 peer-reviewed articles that met all inclusion criteria were included in the paper. Our review clarifies that looking forward, the call for a comprehensive understanding of economic violence, enhanced legal frameworks, and the strengthening of supportive networks underscore the multidisciplinary approach required to combat this issue effectively.
Core Tip: Economic violence against women is a kind of gender-based violence that is also quite common in the world. Many of the women are subjected to this violence by their intimate partners or families in their lifetime. It is important to note that discussing the implications of the evidence regarding gender-based violence, providing a comprehensive backgrounder on the question of intimate partner pressure, economic security, psychological consequences, and future recommendations for policy and practice.
