To further the understanding of what constitutes domestic violence, this guide attempts to define the key terms of the debate. Key Findings Court Discrepancies Efforts to compile reliable and uniform national data about domestic violence are hindered by the lack of agreement among states and legal, medical, and social service providers on the definition of domestic violence, how it is measured and reported, and who its victims are. The way these offenses are adjudicated and reported depends on the statutes of the relevant state. Some states apply family violence statutes to domestic violence offenses and include in their statistics child victims along with adults. States that have adopted domestic violence statutes, on the other hand, have separate legal definitions.
States also differ in terms of how they define a family.
These discrepancies are due to differences in state criminal codes, differing characteristics of state information systems, and the differing levels of attention given to the issue of domestic violence. There is little comparative data examining outcomes for women who use shelter services versus those who do not. Health care professionals are required under federal quality assurance laws to perform research on outcome as part of case management, a model that could be easily imported into the criminal justice and social service fields. This would be particularly relevant to domestic violence because systematically measuring outcomes would ensure that persons and institutions be held accountable for their actions and decisions. Because of a lack of information-sharing across professions, considerable effort will be required to ensure that the transition to a more effective approach takes place.