Hang up on stereotypes: Domestic violence and an anti-abuse helpline campaign

Abstract

We estimate the effectiveness of a government-led anti-domestic-abuse campaign launched in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic on the number of calls to the Italian domestic violence helpline. In the week after the start of the campaign, we document a sharp increase in the number of calls. By exploiting geographical variation in the exposure to the campaign ads aired on public TV networks, we find that greater exposure is associated with an increase in the number of calls after the launch of the campaign. However, the effectiveness of the media campaign is hindered in areas where gender stereotypes are stronger.