COVID-19 and Domestic Violence: Economics or Isolation?

Recent studies estimate that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly increases reports of domestic violence in several countries. Using mobile device tracking data, city-level unemployment data, and new data on labor market conditions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, we isolate the effects of unemployment and staying at home on incidents of domestic violence. We find that unemployment decreases domestic violence after controlling for the degree to which people stay at home. We also provide evidence that staying at home increases domestic violence. However, we find that the effects of unemployment and staying at home are concentrated right after an initial shock from mid-March to mid-June 2020. Finally, we find that some labor market conditions linked to COVID-19, such as being prevented from looking for work due to the pandemic, decrease domestic violence, and these labor market effects are often gendered.