The Link between Family Violence and Animal Cruelty: A Scoping Review

Camie A. Tomlinson (), Jennifer L. Murphy, Angela Matijczak, Allegra Califano, Jiaxin Santos and Shelby E. McDonald
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Camie A. Tomlinson: School of Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 Floyd Ave., Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Jennifer L. Murphy: School of Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 Floyd Ave., Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Angela Matijczak: School of Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 Floyd Ave., Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Allegra Califano: Department of Psychology, Long Island University, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA
Jiaxin Santos: New York State Psychiatric Institute, 1051 Riverside Dr., New York, NY 10032, USA
Shelby E. McDonald: Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, 806 West Franklin St., Richmond, VA 23284, USA

Social Sciences, 2022, vol. 11, issue 11, 1-54

Abstract: There is some evidence that family violence (intimate partner violence, child maltreatment, elder abuse) co-occurs with animal cruelty (i.e., threats to and/or actual harm of an animal), which is often referred to as “the link.” The aim of this scoping review was to comprehensively search the literature to determine the extent of empirical evidence that supports the co-occurrence of family violence and animal cruelty and that provides prevalence rates of the co-occurrence. We searched eight electronic databases (e.g., Academic Search Complete, PsycArticles, PubMed) for peer-reviewed articles published until September 2021. Articles were eligible for inclusion if they were written in English and included the empirical study of at least one form of family violence and animal cruelty. We identified 61 articles for inclusion. The majority of articles ( n = 48) focused on co-occurring IPV and animal cruelty, and 20 articles examined child maltreatment and animal cruelty. No articles examining elder abuse and animal cruelty were found. Prevalence rates of “the link” ranged from <1% to >80%. Findings regarding the association between family violence and animal cruelty varied. Some studies found that family violence was significantly associated with animal cruelty (or vice versa), but there was also evidence that the association was not statistically significant. Associations between family violence and animal cruelty were not significant in most studies that adjusted for sociodemographic factors. This suggests that sociodemographic factors (e.g., exposure to multiple forms of violence, and income) may explain the co-occurrence of family violence and animal cruelty. Based on the results of our scoping review, we recommend that caution should be taken regarding assertions of “the link” without further research to better understand the co-occurrence of family violence and animal cruelty and the factors and mechanisms that influence their co-occurrence.

Keywords: animal cruelty; family violence; domestic violence; intimate partner violence; child maltreatment; child abuse; elder abuse (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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