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COVID-19 Has Strengthened the Relationship Between Alcohol Consumption and Domestic Violence

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A large body of evidence documents a link between alcohol consumption and violence involving intimate partners and close family members. Recent scholarship suggests that since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent stay-at-home orders, there has been a marked increase in domestic violence. This research considers an important mechanism behind the increase in domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic: an increase in the riskiness of alcohol consumption. We combine 911 call data with newly available high-resolution microdata on visits to bars and liquor stores in Detroit, MI and find that the strength of the relationship between visits to alcohol outlets and domestic violence more than doubles starting in March 2020. We find more limited evidence with respect to non-domestic assaults, supporting our conclusion that it is not alcohol consumption per se but alcohol consumption at home that is a principal driver of domestic violence.

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  • Monica Deza & Aaron Chalfin & Shooshan Danagoulian, 2023. "COVID-19 Has Strengthened the Relationship Between Alcohol Consumption and Domestic Violence," Center for Policy Research Working Papers 259, Center for Policy Research, Maxwell School, Syracuse University.
    • Handle: RePEc:max:cprwps:259
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    1. Sonia Bhalotra & Emilia Brito & Damian Clarke & Pilar Larroulet & Francisco J. Pino, 2021. "Dynamic impacts of lockdown on domestic violence: Evidence from multiple policy shifts in Chile," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2021-189, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    2. Farasat A. S. Bokhari & Ratula Chakraborty & Paul W. Dobson & Marcello Morciano, 2024. "Lockdown drinking: The sobering effect of price controls in a pandemic," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 62(4), pages 1539-1557, October.
    3. Perrotta Berlin, Maria & Gerrell, Manne, 2022. "Economic Determinants of Intimate Partner Violence: The Case of Sweden during Covid-19," SITE Working Paper Series 60, Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics.
    4. Murphy, David M.A., 2023. "Sobriety, social capital, and village network structures," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    5. Ebert, Cara & Steinert, Janina Isabel, 2025. "Violence against women and the substitution of help services in times of lockdown: Triangulation of three data sources in Germany," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 232(C).
    6. Dhaval Dave & Bilge Erten & David Hummel & Pinar Keskin & Shuo Zhang, 2025. "Fighting abuse with prescription tracking: mandatory drug monitoring and intimate partner violence," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 38(3), pages 1-27, September.
    7. Shooshan Danagoulian & Thomas A. Wilk, 2022. "Locking out prevention: Dental care in the midst of a pandemic," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(9), pages 1973-1992, September.
    8. Gu, Xin & Li, Hao & Peng, Langchuan, 2022. "The anti-domestic violence law and women's welfare: Evidence from a natural experiment in China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 1-16.
    9. Wilson, Matthew S., 2023. "Social contact in a pandemic: Rationality vs. heuristics," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 159-177.
    10. Sara, Raisa, 2023. "The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on alcohol and tobacco consumption: Evidence from Peru," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 325(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • I1 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health

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