THR-1

Threats to harm or kill the target

Definition

Explicit or implied statements that the abuser will physically harm or kill the target.

How it operates

Direct threats to kill or harm, statements that the target will "leave in a body bag," threats of serious injury, and conditional threats tied to the target's behavior.

Function

Induce fear and compel compliance by making the cost of resistance appear catastrophic.

Harm

The creation of a climate of terror that restricts the target's agency and elevates the risk of serious or lethal violence.

Why this is coercive control

Ordinary expressions of anger during an argument that lack threats of harm. The conduct here induces fear and compel compliance by making the cost of resistance appear catastrophic.

Constructed example

“If you leave, I'll make sure you don't walk away from this.”

Fictitious. Written to illustrate the behavior. Not a case.

Hovey, Rye, Chambers & Scott 2026; Stark 2007.

Also in THR

Literature this family is drawn from

Stark, E. (2007). Coercive control: How men entrap women in personal life. Oxford University Press.
Stark, E., & Hester, M. (2019). Coercive control: Update and review. Violence Against Women, 25(1), 81-104.
Pence, E., & Paymar, M. (1993). Education groups for men who batter: The Duluth model. Springer.
Dutton, M. A., & Goodman, L. A. (2005). Coercion in intimate partner violence: Toward a new conceptualization. Sex Roles, 52(11-12), 743-756.
Monckton Smith, J. (2020). Intimate partner femicide: Using Foucauldian analysis to track an eight stage progression to homicide. Violence Against Women, 26(11), 1267-1285.

Literature map

Forums that enumerate this family

A statute that names a tactic is not a finding that the tactic is present.

Identifying a behavior described here does not establish a pattern of behavior and does not establish coercive control. A tactic is not a regime. The instrument consolidates peer-reviewed literature so a reader can check when in doubt. The instrument is not a coding manual. Carlton Research does not provide the instrument as a weapon.

How to cite

Carlton, C. (2026). Is it coercive control?: THR-1. Carlton Research Instruments. /codebook/thr-1. Last reviewed August 31, 2026.