A bibliometric study on gender violence

Gender violence, though global, is socially invisible, making it urgent for scientific production to stay ahead of this theme. A bibliometric study increases the demand for debates, by demonstrating that research is restricted to a few countries, ignoring the consequences of the damage and, despite expansion, still incipient. This article has the objective to describe the panorama of the scientific literature on gender violence, seeking to make a critical analysis on the magnitude of the demand. We sought articles in English, using the descriptors gender and violence, in the Web of Science database, from 1982-2012, excluding texts from specific areas, dealing with general violence or adopting "gender" instead of sex, resulting in 450 remaining articles. Bibliometry confirmed that women were more frequently in situations of violence, despite pointing to references of children and adolescents, as well as homosexuals and men. Research productivity in various areas of knowledge is growing, revealing its multidisciplinary nature. Only 26 countries hosted studies, a reduced number considering the scale of the problem. Most studies failed to address the consequences of gender violence, highlighting an important gap in scientific production. This research showed some points little explored by scientific production, and could serve as guidance for future studies.