“Coercive control is a term developed by Evan Stark to help us understand domestic abuse as more than a ‘fight’. It is a pattern of behaviour which seeks to take away the victim’s liberty or freedom, to strip away their sense of self. It is not just women’s bodily integrity which is violated but also their human rights.”
Excerpted from http://www.cedarnetwork.org.uk
Read the book: Evan Stark, Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life (2002)