Parental Leave and Intimate Partner Violence

N. Daysal, Dan Anderberg, Line Andersen and Mette Ejrnæs

No 25132, RFBerlin Discussion Paper Series from ROCKWOOL Foundation Berlin (RFBerlin)

Abstract: We examine the impact of a 2002 Danish parental leave reform on intimate partner violence (IPV) using administrative data on assault-related hospital contacts. Using a regression discontinuity design, we show that extending fully paid leave increased mothers' leave-taking and substantially reduced IPV, with effects concentrated among less-educated women. The reform also lengthened birth spacing, while separations remained unchanged and earnings effects were modest. The timing and heterogeneity of impacts point to fertility adjustments-rather than exit options or financial relief-as the key mechanism. Parental leave policy thus emerges as an underexplored lever for reducing IPV.

Keywords: Intimate partner violence; parental leave (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I38 J12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-12
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