Forum on Child and Family StatisticsNonfatal Violence Towards Pregnant Women
Victims of violent crime can experience physical and emotional consequences as a result of the victimization. This effect can be magnified for pregnant victims of crime, as there may be additional health risks for both the pregnant person and the unborn child.57 Experiencing domestic violence while pregnant is significantly associated with delivering an infant with low birthweight and delivering an infant preterm.58 The Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)59 is a nationally representative household survey that collects information on the pregnancy status of nonfatal violent crime victims.60 Victims of violent crime are only asked their pregnancy status if they are female and between the ages of 18 and 49. Therefore, all estimates discussed are limited to nonfatal violent victims of crime who were female and between the ages of 18 and 49 when surveyed. Analyzing NCVS data allows examination of how incident characteristics may differ between pregnant and not pregnant victims of violent crime.
Figure 32. Percentage of violent victimizations against females ages 18–49 by type of crime and pregnancy status, 2018–2022
* Difference with comparison group is significant at the 95% confidence level.
a Comparison group.
NOTE: Details may not sum to totals because of rounding. Only victims of crime who were female and between the ages of 18 and 49 at the time of the interview were asked whether they were pregnant at the time of the incident. From 2018 to 2022, the victim was pregnant in 313,730 violent victimizations, whereas there were 8.1 million violent victimizations where the victim was not pregnant. Victimization refers to the total number of times that persons were victims of crime. Therefore, if a person was a victim of both a robbery and simple assault during the time period, both incidents are included in estimates.
SOURCE: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2018–22.
- During the 5-year aggregate period of 2018–2022, the victim was pregnant in 313,730 violent victimizations, whereas there were 8.1 million violent victimizations among non-pregnant victims. Both estimates only include victims of crime who were females between the ages of 18 and 49.
- Robberies accounted for a larger share of violent victimizations among pregnant victims (23.5%) than among non-pregnant victims (9.0%).
- Simple assaults accounted for a smaller share of violent victimizations among pregnant victims (43.9%) compared to victimizations among non-pregnant victims (57.4%).
- Rape or sexual assaults (15.3%–16.4%) and aggravated assaults (17.2%–17.1%) accounted for similar shares of violent victimizations regardless of whether the victim was pregnant or not pregnant.
Figure 33. Percentage of violent victimizations against females ages 18–49 by selected incident characteristics and pregnancy status, 2018–2022
* Difference with comparison group is significant at the 95% confidence level.
a Includes the subset of violent victimizations that were committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or girlfriends.
b Includes violent victimizations for which victims received assistance from a victim service provider.
c Comparison group.
NOTE: Details may not sum to totals because of rounding and because incident characteristics are not mutually exclusive. Only victims of crime who were female and between the ages of 18 and 49 at the time of the interview were asked whether they were pregnant at the time of the incident. From 2018 to 2022, the victim was pregnant in 313,730 violent victimizations, while there were 8.1 million violent victimizations where the victim was not pregnant.
SOURCE: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2018–22.
- From 2018–2022, a higher share of violent victimizations was reported to police among pregnant victims (58%) compared to non-pregnant victims (43%).
- Similarly, the percentage of violent victimizations committed by a current or former intimate partner was higher among pregnant victims (56%) than among non-pregnant victims (27%).
- Pregnant victims received assistance from a victim service provider in about 30% of violent victimizations, which was higher than the percentage of violent victimizations among non-pregnant victims (11%).
- The percentage of violent victimizations when the victim was injured was similar among pregnant victims and non-pregnant victims.
57 McPhail W, Toiv H; GAO-02-530 VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN Data on Pregnant Victims and Effectiveness of Prevention Strategies Are Limited. 2002 May. https://popcenter.asu.edu/sites/default/files/problems/domestic_violence/PDFs/USGAO_DV_2002.pdf.
58 Shah PS, Shah J; Knowledge Synthesis Group on Determinants of Preterm/LBW Births. Maternal exposure to domestic violence and pregnancy and birth outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analyses. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2010 Nov;19(11):2017–31. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2010.2051. Epub 2010 Oct 4. PMID: 20919921.
59 Visit https://bjs.ojp.gov/programs/ncvs to learn more about the NCVS.
60 Nonfatal violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault.
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics
