Dark-
The survey „Life Situation, Safety and Stress in Everyday Life (LeSuBiA)“ aims to investigate the dark field in the area of incidents of violence in Germany across all genders. The study was conducted by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and published jointly by the Federal Ministry of Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMBFSFJ), the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). The study serves as a basis for the further development of protection and support services.
Key findings in brief:
Women are more affected by sexual assault, sexual harassment, and stalking.
- The severity of violence experienced by women is (significantly) higher than that of men across all forms of violence.
- Physical and psychological violence in (ex-)partnerships occurs 20 times more frequently than is reported (reporting behavior under five percent).
- Every fifth woman who experiences violence from her partner is afraid for her life.
- Every seventh woman experiences sexualized violence.
- Women with a migration background are disproportionately affected by violence. Violence against women is predominantly perpetrated by men (98 percent in partnerships, 90 percent in cases of sexual violence, 70 percent in cases of digital violence).
- Exposure to violence is strongly related to age: younger people are (significantly) more often affected by almost all forms of violence than older people, especially by digital violence and sexual harassment.
- In the LGBTIQ* community, the prevalence of violence is higher than in the general population for almost all forms of violence.
- Experiences of violence in childhood are widespread. Every second person surveyed reported physical violence by a parent or guardian, every third person surveyed reported psychological violence. One in four respondents had witnessed violence between parents or guardians. People who have experienced violence between legal guardians are also more likely to have been victims of violence by legal guardians themselves.
Published on 02/10/2026
