Analysis of vicarious violence: Configuration as a criminal type

Abstract

Vicarious violence constitutes an extreme and particularly insidious form of gender-based violence, wherein the perpetrator inflicts harm upon the children or close relatives of a woman as a means of indirectly causing her emotional suffering. This scholarly article aims to analyze the phenomenon of vicarious violence and its repercussions on women and minors, with the ultimate purpose of substantiating its classification as an autonomous criminal offense within the Ecuadorian legal framework. A qualitative methodological approach was employed, underpinned by descriptive and exploratory research. The methods applied included descriptive, analytical-dogmatic, and comparative analysis. Data collection relied on documentary analysis through research fiches, academic databases, and legal repositories. The findings reveal that, in Ecuador, vicarious violence remains largely invisible within both the legal system and public policy, thereby creating a normative vacuum that leaves women, children, and adolescents insufficiently protected. Despite the existence of national legislation and international treaties aimed at preventing, sanctioning, and eradicating violence against women, the legal framework fails to explicitly recognize the specific harm inflicted through third parties. This evidences the urgent need for legislative reform to incorporate vicarious violence as a distinct and prosecutable offense.