Economic and Patrimonial Violence

Control of Resources and the Phenomenon of the "Golden Cage".

Economic violence is one of the most effective and formidable tools of control used by batterers to perpetuate dependency and create insurmountable exit barriers.

It is based on deprivation of resources, strict control of finances and sabotage of autonomy.

Contrary to the stereotype that associates violence only with precariousness, there is a specific manifestation in middle and high socioeconomic strata known as the "Golden Cage".

In this scenario, the victim lives surrounded by material comforts and apparent luxury, but lacks total financial freedom.

The aggressor provides everything necessary for the household and social image, but strictly prohibits the partner from working or handling money of her own, or gives her an insufficient "allowance" controlled to the penny.

The person is "caged" by comfort, subjected to a humiliating control where he or she must ask permission and be accountable for every expenditure.

This economic isolation is often disguised as "protection" or "care" ("you don't need to work, I give you everything"), but in reality it is a domination strategy to annul the victim's decision-making capacity and leave her without the liquid resources necessary to flee, rent another home or hire a lawyer if she so desires.

Labor Sabotage, Zealotyping and Coercive Debt

Beyond control of existing money, perpetrators use active sabotage to undermine the victim's ability to generate future wealth and career development.

This often arises when traditional power dynamics are threatened by the woman's success, triggering professional jealousy or "work jealousy."

The aggressor may generate conflicts just before important meetings, hide car keys, prevent the victim from attending work or school, or provoke scenes at her workplace to cause her dismissal.

The objective is to re-establish the hierarchy where he is the sole provider and ensure dependency.

A growing and dangerous modality is "coerced debt", where the offender takes out loans, credit cards or services in the victim's name without her consent or under duress.

This not only ruins the victim's credit history, but legally binds her to the abuser through fraudulent financial obligations that persist even after separation, greatly hindering her economic recovery and her ability to rebuild her life independently.

Summary

This control tool seeks to create absolute dependency and insurmountable exit barriers. In the upper strata, it manifests itself as the "Golden Cage": the victim lives surrounded by luxuries but lacks the financial freedom to make decisions.

The aggressors practice active labor sabotage to undermine future autonomy. They provoke conflicts before meetings or prevent attendance at work, triggering professional jealousy ("labor jealousy") to ensure that they are the sole providers.

A dangerous modality is "coercive debt". The abuser incurs financial obligations in the victim's name without her consent, ruining her credit history and legally tying her to him even after physical separation.