Which of the following is a category of power and control behaviors used in abusive relationships?

• A. Economic Abuse
• B. Male Privilege
• C. Isolation
• D. Coercion & Threats

Answer: (D)

Power and control in abusive relationships relies on tactics that undermine a person’s autonomy. Coercion & threats is the label that directly captures the method of using fear, pressure, and intimidation to force someone to do what the abuser wants. It includes threatening harm, withholding resources, or creating consequences to compel specific actions, keeping the other person off balance and compliant. This makes it the best descriptor for the controlling dynamic at play, because it centers on the explicit use of coercive pressure to control behavior. The other options describe separate forms of abuse—economic manipulation, cutting off social contact, or leveraging gendered power—but they don’t name the tactic of driving obedience through fear in the same precise way.