The Power And Control Wheel

There are scores of actions that an individual can use to intentionally control or dominate his intimate partner with physical abuse only one of them.

Duluth has published The Power and Control Wheel to illustrate the different actions abusers employ to intimidate and hurt their victims.

There are eight segments to the wheel surrounded by an all- encompassing “physical and sexual violence” band, including:

Using coercion and threats

-Making and/or threats to do something to hurt her.
-Threatening to leave her, to commit suicide, to report her to welfare.
-Making her drop charges.
-Making her do illegal things.

Using intimidation

-Making her afraid by using looks, actions, gestures.
-Smashing things.
-Destroying her property.
-Abusing pets.
-Displaying weapons.

Using emotional abuse

-Putting her down
-Making her feel bad about herself.
-Calling her names
-Making her think she is crazy.
-Playing mind games.
-Humiliating her.
-Making her feel guilty.

Using isolation

-Controlling what she does, whom she see and talks to, what she reads and where she goes.
-Limiting her outside involvement.
-Using jealousy to justify actions.

Minimising, denying and blaming

-Making light of the abuse and not taking her concerns about it seriously
-Saying the abuse didn’t happen.
-Shifting responsibility for abusing behaviour.
-Saying she caused it.

Using Children

-Making her feel guilty about the children.
-Using the children to relay messages.

Using male privilege

-Treating her like a servant.
-Making all the big decisions.
-Acting like the “master of the castle”.
-Being the one to define the men’s and women’s roles.

Using economy abuse

-Prevent her from getting or keeping a job.
-Making her ask for money.
-Giving her an allowance.
-Taking her money.
-Not letting her know about or have access to family income.