The effect of Hope Cards on Intimate Partner Violence

• In Event: Governing Gender-Based Violence: Legal Responses, Policy Innovations, and Unintended Consequences

Abstract

In the United States, intimate partner violence (IPV) is alarmingly common. One in four women and one in seven men will experience physical violence by an intimate partner, while an estimated one in three women and nearly one in six men will face some form of sexual violence during their lifetimes. Intimate partner violence (IPV) encompasses rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault by a current or former spouse or dating partner. IPV affects multiple societal sectors, including families, health care systems, mental health services, law enforcement, and the criminal justice system. Research shows that IPV survivors experience severe physical, societal, economic, and mental health consequences, such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social stigma, job loss, and, in extreme cases, death. Children exposed to IPV often face cognitive and behavioral issues, low self-esteem, substance use, and greater involvement with the criminal justice system and foster care systems. Petersen et al. (2018) estimated the lifetime economic cost of IPV at $103,767 per female victim and $23,414 per male victim, amounting to a societal burden of nearly $3.6 trillion. One of the most recent government responses to IPV is the Hope Card program, which enables courts to issue wallet-sized or digital cards to survivors holding valid protective orders. This initiative aims to streamline protective verification processes for law enforcement, improving survivors’ safety at no cost to them. Since its inception in Montana in 2010, eight additional states—Idaho (2012), Indiana (2012), Illinois (2022), Oregon (2022), Virginia (2022), Washington (2023), New York (2023), and Florida (2024)—have adopted the policy. This study uses Hope Card policy variation among states and controls for other IPV interventions to evaluate the effect of Hope Cards on IPV rates using National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data from 2016–2023. Specifically, we analyze outcomes for (1) all IPV cases, (2) IPV assaults, (3) IPV sexual assaults, and (4) IPV homicides. We use a standard difference-in-difference approach to test the relationship between Hope Card Programs and IPV outcomes. Policy implications are discussed.

Authors

• Adenike (Nike) Campbell, Florida State University
  Presenting Author

• Danielle Atkins, Florida State University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author