Definitions of Abuse

Rape

Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without that person’s consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person who is incapable of giving valid consent, for example someone who is unconscious, incapacitated, has an intellectual disability or is below the legal age of consent. The term rape is sometimes used interchangeably with the term sexual assault.

Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse is any sort of non-consensual sexual contact. Sexual abuse can happen to men or women of any age. Examples of sexual abuse by a partner/intimate can include derogatory name calling, refusal to use contraception, deliberately causing unwanted physical pain during sex.

Sexual Exploitation

When a vulnerable person is exploited they’re given things, like gifts, drugs, money, status and affection, in exchange for involvement in sexual activities. It does not always involve physical contact, it can occur by use of technology.

Children and young people are often tricked into believing they’re in a loving and consensual relationship. They may trust their abuser and not understand that they’re being abused. Sometimes abusers use violence and intimidation to frighten or force a child or young person, making them feel as if they’ve no choice. They may lend them sums of money they know can’t be repaid or use financial abuse to control them.

Anybody can be a perpetrator of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) irrespective of age, gender or race. The relationship could be framed as friendship, someone to look up to or romantic. Children and young people who are exploited may also be used to ‘find’ or coerce others to join groups.

(Definition from NSPCC –https://www.nspcc.org.uk)

Domestic Abuse

Domestic abuse is any incident of controlling, coercive (see below) or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of their gender or sexuality.

Family members are defined as mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister and grandparents whether directly related, in-laws or step-family. However, this is not an exhaustive list and may also be extended to uncles, aunts and cousins etc.

‘Domestic abuse’ covers a range of types of abuse, including, psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional abuse. ‘Domestic abuse’ is also used to describe a range of controlling and coercive behaviours, used by one person to maintain control over another with whom they have, or have had, an intimate or family relationship.

It’s rarely a one-off incident.

Coercive Control

Acts or patterns of behaviour that make people do or behave in a way they don’t want to, for example:

• Isolating you from friends or family
• Depriving you of basic needs, e.g. food, finances, sanitation
• Monitoring your time
• Monitoring you online through communication tools or spyware
• Taking control of where you can go, who you can see, what you can wear, when you can sleep
• Depriving you access to other services
• Repeatedly putting you down
• Humiliating, degrading or dehumanising you
• Making threats or intimidating you

Exploitation (Non Sexual)

Financial exploitation is the illegal or unauthorised use of a person’s property, money, pension book or other valuables (including changing the person’s will to name the abuser as heir), often fraudulently obtaining power of attorney, followed by deprivation of money or other…

Forced Labour

Where someone is forced to work through the use of violence or intimidation or by subtle means. Forced labour includes all forms of slavery, and related practices including debt slavery, human trafficking and labour camps. It is any work or service a person is forced to do against their will. It usually includes a threat of some form of punishment.

Trafficking

Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labour or commercial sex act. Traffickers use force, fraud, or coercion to lure their victims and force them into labour or commercial sexual exploitation.

Financial Abuse

Financial abuse in intimate relationships is a way of controlling a person’s ability to acquire, use and maintain their own money and financial resources. Examples Include:

• Stealing money from a partner
• Preventing a partner from accessing their own/joint account
• Damaging possessions which then have to be replaced
• Insisting benefits are in their name
• Putting debts in a partner’s name
• Stopping a partner from going to work

This abuse can also continue post-separation.