10 Professions with Highest Rate of Domestic Violence

For all of you wondering in which group evidence suggests that the rates of domestic violence are most prevalent, we have prepared a list of 10 professions with highest rate of domestic violence.

Let us first inform you we aren’t going to bore you with the typical domestic violence facts. There have been a lot of studies and research on the topic, but there is hardly any reliable research about which occupations are the riskiest when it comes to abuse within one’s home. Surely, there are plenty of articles that deal with the topic of how conditions at home affect your working performance. However, the number of those tackling the connection between domestic violence and professions is minimal. The data is usually too vague, and everybody is avoiding to publicly pinpoint what kind of jobs are victims or abusers most likely to have. Luckily for you, we have decided to deal with this extremely challenging topic.

Consequently, our list of sources is rather long, and our choices are given in random order. Firstly, our search was tough because we tried to find specific jobs, despite the fact that normally only general job descriptions are given. Hardly anyone dared to name the professions most associated with family violence unless it was the most notorious one (and you already have your guess, don’t you?). Secondly, the list is random because we decided to comprise a list of jobs belonging to abusers and victims. Admittedly, we did research on female victims only since the number of reported cases in which a man is suffering domestic violence is lower.

While doing research on female victims’ jobs, there were instances when the data would come down to eventually opposite information: women with lower income jobs are more prone to experience violence, but then again it is said even well-off women experience abuse, but are more reluctant to report it. Truth be told, it’s a vicious circle. Since our research is based on facts, and not on assumptions about whether well-off women shy away from reporting abuse, we focused on the information stating that women with low incomes and living in poor conditions make a majority when it comes to victims of domestic abuse. Hence jobs with very low salaries made our list. Interestingly enough, there is one profession that sounds like a dead-end: both abusers and their victims are employed in the same position.

Another obstacle that had to be surpassed were statistics on the exact percentage of abusers in certain professions. Our first source was research done by Workplace Violence 911 on the topic of correlation between occupation and domestic violence, whose results showed there are certain occupations which are more prone to violent outbursts. According to this report, those were men in female-dominated occupations, men in physically violent occupations and men in the so-called dangerous occupations. There were several examples given for each category (police officers, clerical workers, emergency workers, etc., but we weren’t fully satisfied. For that reason, we went into a deep search and tried to find instances, articles or research about these professions, especially about police officers committing domestic violence and athletes and violence off the field. Some of our sources were Broward Criminal Lawyer, Huffington Post, USA Today, Safe Lives, Chicago Tribune, Cit See, Good Men Project, Research Gate, etc.

If you are interested in similar topics when it comes to jobs and family life, take a look at unfortunate 11 Professions with the Highest Divorce Rates.

Finally, let’s take a look which jobs should be avoided, or as we have put it: 10 professions with highest rate of domestic violence.

10. NHL players

National Hockey League players have been accused of sexual and spousal abuse, but not necessarily charged with it. What is shocking is the fact that being under investigation affects their career in no way. It is probable that the fear of suspension could be a deciding factor. Risking going to jail is one thing, but risking your career and profits actually makes some men think before they hit.

9. NFL athletes

National Football league players rank 9th on our list of professions with highest rate of domestic violence. They occasionally make the headlines for domestic abuse. Despite the fact that generally, the percentage of abusers is lower than the average, the rate of domestic violence in NFL statistics is much higher than for similarly compensated professional athletes in other sports. Luckily, this league has a specific policy on domestic violence, which means the player will be excluded from the playing until the case is resolved. There is still room for some improvement, though.

8. MMA fighters

As you see, domestic violence in professional sports is a common theme. Truth be told, the public is hardly surprised with the news about domestic violence if the husband or boyfriend is an MMA fighter. For some unfathomable reason, Mixed Martial Arts fighters, who rank 8th on our list of professions with highest rate of domestic violence, often seem to forget their home isn’t their workplace. But we said we’re talking facts here, not random guesses. As it is stated, the rate of this violence in MMA is twice of the general population in the US. The national rate of arrests for these acts is about 360 per 100,000 men. NFL players figures are 210 arrests per 100,000. We regret to say the MMA number is the staggering 750 arrests per 100,000.

7. Customer service workers

The study shows that the rates of domestic violence among female-dominated occupations are 47% higher when compared to men in managerial positions. Somewhat surprisingly, professional athletes and men at dangerous jobs have a less percentage. When you think about it, this actually reflects reality. How many cases of a man beating his wife and children have you heard of in your surrounding? They’re not all into sports, are they?

6. Clerks

As we have mentioned, here is another female-dominated profession mentioned in our sources, which ranks 6th on our list of professions with highest rate of domestic violence. Being physically violent at home makes up for the depressing feeling because one is working with the weaker sex. A man without a well-established awareness of self-worth (and others’ worth, for that matter) is more likely to give in to the violent criminal acts. One more reason for choosing customer service workers and clerks is the fact that these two jobs are the lowest-paid (the third one is the textile worker). There is a strong bond between low income, bare survival, and inhumane acts.

5. Textile workers

This is the most specific occupation among 10 professions with highest rate of domestic violence. It is related to Southeast Europe and the crisis in ex-Yugoslavian states. The moment that women started to work as cheap labor in textile factories and their husbands turned to similar low-paid jobs (or the same one), the rate of domestic violence increased. This is actually just an example of what all the statistics are showing: when women are earning much less than men, it makes them more submissive and likely to suffer domestic violence.

4. Nurses

Domestic violence against a marital partner is the most common form, and women doing this job are affected by it in lots of ways (marital partner perpetrated controlling behavior, emotional, physical and sexual violence). The horrible facts speak for themselves.  43.3% of Indian women reported physical violence, and 30% reported sexual violence.

And now, let’s see the top three professions with highest rate of domestic violence.

3. Soldiers

In the US, combat veterans are responsible for almost 21 percent of domestic violence, which is connected to the development of post-traumatic stress disorder. Officially, levels of intimate partner violence within the post-9/11 military and veterans’ communities increased at a rapid pace. Sadly, the harsh reality could be even worse. We shall all agree that military is a specific environment, especially since if any criminal acts happen within, it first goes to the officer in charge, rather than the police. There is a number of cases which ended up being covered up, thus discouraging, even more, women from reporting violence.

2. Correctional officers

Yet another profession where the stress from work is released in the worst possible way. It is often overlooked that correctional officers have similar post-traumatic stress disorders as veteran soldiers. Working in a small, closed environment does not literally equal the war fields, and that’s the reason why their stress is often overlooked as something mundane. The numbers are alarming. In one recent study, 33.7% of officers knew at least one officer who committed an unreported act of domestic violence. We’re stressing the word “unreported” here. Also, it shouldn’t be neglected that people trained to use weapons usually know very well how to cause physical pain without leaving any visible marks on the victim’s body.

1. Police officers

Finally, here is the occupation which was the most expected to be seen among 10 professions with highest rate of domestic violence. Unfortunately, police officer domestic violence statistics show numerous instances of the officer involved domestic violence. Reasons, why someone could develop a sociopathic police personality, are various. If you have any acquaintance doing this highly responsible job, you probably have a clearer picture of the everyday stresses he is going through. Being a police officer means you are dealing with criminals on a daily basis, and witnessing all kinds of abuse. Without professional help, it is little wonder such a high percentage of them gives in to the inner struggle.