The Illinois Certified Domestic Violence Professionals, Inc. (ICDVP) was established to foster uniformity in domestic violence services throughout the State of Illinois and create a recognized profession of Certified Domestic Violence Professionals by setting standards for certifying domestic violence professionals and regulating the process of certification.

The movement to provide safety and support for domestic violence victims was generated by a vanguard of feminist activists in the early 1970s who believed that no one deserved to be abused physically or emotionally even within an intimate relationship.  Their goals were to create social change by heightening public awareness of domestic violence issues and eradicating institutional sexism, and to provide services for domestic violence victims.  Several diverse groups within the domestic violence movement came together to focus these efforts on a statewide basis to advocate for passage of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1982 making domestic violence a crime and providing relief for domestic violence victims.

The domestic violence movement has evolved in many ways, but at its core are values that endure and are expected to be held in high regard and practiced by Certified Domestic Violence Professionals (CDVP).  Those values are the following.

The provision of domestic violence services centers on the philosophy that those served should be encouraged to become safe, self-reliant and autonomous and to integrate the above values into their personal lives.