Measuring Domestic Violence. Individual Attitudes and Time Use Within the Household

TL;DR

This paper develops a new empirical method to measure cultural tolerance of domestic violence within households using survey and time-use data, revealing how norms influence household dynamics and gender inequality.

Contribution

It introduces a composite index combining attitudes and household practices, validated through structural equation modeling, to better understand domestic violence tolerance.

Findings

Gender and education significantly influence tolerance levels.

Higher male education correlates with lower tolerance.

Tolerance is linked to household time use patterns.

Abstract

This paper proposes a novel empirical strategy to measure cultural justifications of domestic violence within households, with direct implications for demographic behavior and gender inequality. Leveraging survey data on individual attitudes and high-frequency time-use diaries from Italian couples with children, I construct a composite index that integrates stated beliefs with observed household practices. Using structural equation modeling, I disentangle latent tolerance of domestic violence from reported attitudes and validate the index against both individual and partner characteristics, as well as time allocation patterns. Results reveal systematic heterogeneity by gender, education, and normative environments. Conservative gender and parenthood norms are strong predictors of tolerance, while higher male education reduces it. Tolerance of violence is also positively associated with reported leisure time with partners and children, suggesting that co-presence does not necessarily reflect egalitarian interaction but may coexist with unequal bargaining structures. Beyond advancing measurement, the findings highlight how cultural tolerance of domestic violence is embedded in household arrangements that influence fertility, labor supply, and the intergenerational transmission of norms. The proposed framework offers a scalable tool for economists and policymakers to monitor hidden inequalities and design interventions targeting family stability, gender equity, and child well-being.