Corporate Responses to Intimate Partner Violence

Area of Science:

• Organizational Behavior
• Sociology
• Corporate Social Responsibility

Background:

• Intimate partner violence (IPV) significantly harms health, wellbeing, and women's careers.
• Organizations are crucial in addressing IPV, yet corporate responses remain under-researched.
• IPV responsiveness is key to corporate social responsibility and gender equity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide the first large-scale empirical analysis of corporate IPV policies and practices.
• To investigate factors influencing corporate responsiveness to IPV among Australian listed corporations.
• To understand the link between IPV responsiveness, corporate social responsibility, and gender equity.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of unique data on IPV policies and practices from 191 Australian listed corporations (2016-2019).
• Examined data from approximately 1.5 million employees.
• Theorized IPV responsiveness based on institutional and stakeholder pressures.

Main Results:

• Larger corporations demonstrated greater IPV responsiveness.
• Higher proportions of women middle managers correlated with increased IPV responsiveness.
• Greater financial resources and advanced employee consultation on gender issues were associated with higher IPV responsiveness.

Conclusions:

• Corporate IPV responsiveness is influenced by size, gender diversity in management, financial capacity, and employee consultation.
• Further research is needed on corporate motivations, support processes, and employee experiences regarding IPV.
• Enhancing corporate IPV responsiveness is vital for advancing gender equity and corporate social responsibility.