Brazil study finds 54% of women experienced partner violence
A joint survey by the Instituto Patrícia Galvão and Instituto Locomotiva, supported by Uber, interviewed 1,500 Brazilian adults aged 16 or older across all regions in April 2026. The study, titled “20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha: perception of Brazilian society,” found that 54 % of women—about 47.7 million—reported experiencing some form of violence by a current or former partner, while only 11 % of men admitted committing such aggression.
Psychological abuse was the most common type (42 % of women), followed by physical violence (25 %), moral violence (19 %), sexual violence (10 %) and patrimonial violence (9 %). The main barriers to reporting were a sense of impunity (56 % of respondents) and slow judicial processes (39 %). Additionally, 77 % said men often do not recognise certain behaviours as violent, and 82 % said men tend to stay silent.
Data from 2025 show that the national women’s helpline (Ligue 180) recorded over one million contacts—a 45 % rise from the previous year—and 155 000 formal complaints, averaging 425 cases per day. Vera Vieira, director of the Patrícia Galvão Institute, highlighted the persistence of gender‑based violence despite two decades of the Lei Maria da Penha.
Entities: Brazil · Instituto Locomotiva · Instituto Patrícia Galvão · Law Maria da Penha · Lei Maria da Penha · Vera Vieira
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 15 SOURCES] 56% of women cited impunity and 39% cited slow justice as main obstacles to reporting violence. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] Psychological violence was the most common type, reported by 42% of women. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] Physical violence was reported by 25% of women. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] 54% of Brazilian women reported experiencing violence from a partner or ex‑partner. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] In 2025 the women’s helpline (Ligue 180) recorded over 1 million contacts, a 45 % increase, and 155 000 reports (425 cases per day). (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] The survey interviewed 1,500 Brazilian adults (16 +) across all regions in April 2026. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] 77% of women said men often do not recognize certain behaviours as violence, and 82% said men tend to stay silent. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)
- [● 15 SOURCES] 11% of Brazilian men admitted committing violence against partners or ex‑partners. (research 20 years of the Lei Maria da Penha)