Prevalence and risk factors of violence against women and children during COVID-19, Germany

To assess the prevalence and exacerbating factors of violence against women and children in Germany during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. We conducted a representative online survey with partnered women (18-65 years) between 22 April and 8 May 2020, when participants had been under lockdown for a month. We determined the prevalence of several forms of violence within the previous month using both direct elicitation and a list experiment. We conducted a multivariable logistic regression to assess the impact of pandemic-associated risk factors. Of our 3818 survey respondents, 118 (3.09%; 95% confidence interval, CI: 2.54 to 3.64) reported incidents of physical conflict, 293 (7.67%; 95% CI: 6.83 to 8.52) reported emotional abuse, and 97 (6.58%; 95% CI: 5.31 to 7.85) of 1474 respondents with children reported child corporal punishment. We estimated that 3.57% (95% CI: -0.33 to 7.46) had non-consensual intercourse with their partner. Our regression analysis revealed an increased risk of physical conflict with home quarantine (odds ratio, OR: 2.38; 95% CI: 1.56 to 3.61), financial worries (OR: 1.60; 95% CI: 0.98 to 2.61), poor mental health (OR: 3.41; 95% CI: 2.12 to 5.50) and young (