Level of Knowledge and the Phenomenon of Domestic Violence in the East Coast of Malaysia

Abstract

Domestic violence is a serious social problem and can affect the health and well-being of a person. The statistics from the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) showed that there was an increasing number of domestic violence cases from the year 2014 to 2019. A study on domestic violence was carried out to look at four common forms of violence in society; namely economic, emotional, sexual and physical violence using quantitative design through survey methods to obtain data. This study focused on the East Coast of Malaysia; in the States of Terengganu, Kelantan and Pahang through multistage sampling techniques by distributing a total of 390 questionnaires. The results were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) version 22 using descriptive and inferential analysis (ANOVA). The findings showed that the respondents in Malaysia have a high level of knowledge on the issue of domestic violence. The results also show that the level of education has a relationship with the forms of violence that exist whether sexual, emotional and physical violence. It is recommended that the government speed up the implementation of the Social Work’s Bill profession and intensity increase the various programs and activities involving married couples in Malaysia so that cases of domestic violence are reduced.