Coercive control is the ongoing and repetitive use of behaviours or strategies (including physical and non-physical
violence) to control a current or ex intimate partner (i.e. victim-survivor) and make them feel inferior to, and dependent on, the perpetrator (Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety [ANROWS], 2021).[1]

Coercive control is a relatively new area to policy, practice and research and the research evidence is still emerging.
However, AIFS’ consultations with key stakeholders in the child and family sector identifed coercive control as
a key topic of interest for policy makers and practitioners and that there is a desire for a synthesis of current
evidence. This paper synthesises the fndings of a rapid literature review to describe what we know about how
common coercive control victimisation is, as well as risk factors and impacts of coercive control victimisation.2
A victim-survivor3 is someone who has experienced coercive control victimisation (i.e. been the target of
coercive control behaviours by a current or ex intimate partner). The term victim-survivor is used to acknowledge
‘the ongoing efects and harm caused by abuse and violence as well as honouring the strength and resilience of
people with lived experience of family violence’ (Victorian Government, 2022).

The fndings of the rapid literature review are presented in 3 chapters:
How common is coercive control victimisation?;
Risk factors associated with coercive control victimisation;
Impacts associated with coercive control victimisation.

The key fndings for each of these results sections are summarised in the subsections below. Please refer to the
full chapter for more detail, including the evidence synthesis of relevant research studies and implications for practice, research and policy. (From the Executive summary). Record #8559