Magnitude and correlates of intimate partner violence against women and its outcome in Southwest Ethiopia

Intimate Partner Violence, prevalence and its consequences: a community-based study in Gambella, Ethiopia

Abstract

Introduction

Intimate partner violence is defined as any behavior by a current or past male intimate partner during marriage, cohabitation, or any other formal or informal union that causes physical, sexual, or psychological harm. Men are the most common perpetrators of this against women. It affects almost one-third of all women worldwide.

Objective

This study aimed to assess the prevalence, consequences, and factors associated with intimate partner violence among partnered women in Gambella town.

Methods

A community-based, cross-sectional study design was employed. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data was collected using a pretested, structured questionnaire. The data were entered and analyzed using SPSS software version 25. The bivariate and multivariate logistic regression method was used to identify factors associated with intimate partner violence. Variables with a p-value <0.05 were considered significantly associated with intimate partner violence.

Results

The overall prevalence of intimate partner violence in the lifetime and the last 12 months was 58.8, 95% CI (54.0, 63.6), and 51.8, 95% CI (46.7, 56.8), respectively. More than half (53.3%) of the violence resulted in physical injury, while 32.9% were separated from their partners whereas, mother's history of exposure to IPV [AOR: 1.8, 95% CI (1.03-3.27), p < 0.05], respondent's age [AOR: 3.4, 95% CI (1.8, 6.5), p < 0.001], substance use [AOR:2.5, 95% CI (1.5-4.1), p < 0.001], disagreement on sexual intercourse [AOR:3.2, 95% CI (1.8-5.7), p < 0.01], monthly family income [AOR:0.32, 95% CI: (0.16-0.63), p < 0.01] and family size [AOR:2.8, 95% CI: (1.6-4.8), p < 0.01] were significantly associated with IPV.

Conclusion

The study indicated that the prevalence of intimate partner violence was very high. Age of the woman, family size, substance use, economic status, were among factors significantly associated with intimate partner violence. Therefore, responsible stakeholders should respond to the deep-rooted and highly complicated gender inequality by implementing preventive measures.

Multilevel analysis of factors for intimate partner violence during pregnancy in Gammo Goffa Zone, South Ethiopia: A community based study

Background

Intimate partner violence during pregnancy is a public health problem that can affect both maternal and fetal life. However, its prevalence and associated factors have not been well studied and understood in Ethiopia. Hence, this study was conducted to assess the individual and community-level factors associated with intimate partner violence during pregnancy in Gammo Goffa Zone, South Ethiopia.

Methods

A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,535 randomly selected pregnant women from July to October 2020. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered, standardized WHO multi-country study questionnaire and analyzed using STATA 14. A two level mixed-effects logistic regression model was used to identify factors associated with intimate partner violence during pregnancy.

Results

The prevalence of intimate partner violence during pregnancy was found to be 48% (95% CI: 45–50%). Factors affecting violence during pregnancy were identified at the community and individual levels. Access to health facilities (AOR = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.43, 0.85), women feeling isolated from the community (AOR= 1.96; 95% CI: 1.04, 3.69), and strict gender role differences (AOR= 1.45; 95% CI: 1.03, 2.04) were among higher-level factors found to be significantly associated with intimate partner violence during pregnancy. Low decision-making power was found to increase the odds of experiencing IPV during pregnancy (AOR= 2.51; 95% CI: 1.28, 4.92). Similarly, maternal education, maternal occupation, living with the partner's family, current pregnancy intended by the partner, dowry payment, and presence of marital conflict were among the individual- level factors found to increase the odds of experiencing intimate partner violence during pregnancy.

Conclusions

The prevalence of intimate partner violence during pregnancy was high in the study area. Both individual and community-level factors had significant implications on maternal health programs related to violence against women. Socio-demographic and socio-ecological characteristics were identified as associated factors. Since it is a multifaceted problem, special emphasis has to be given to multi-sectoral approaches involving all responsible bodies to mitigate the situation.

Intimate partner violence and associated factors among HIV positive women attending antiretroviral therapy clinics in Gondar city, Northwest Ethiopia

INTRODUCTION

Intimate partner violence against women is a behavior within an intimate relationship that causes sexual, physical, or psychological harm to the women. It occurs among all socioeconomic, religious, and cultural groups in all settings, and affects the health of women, families, and the community at large. Determining the magnitude and determinants of intimate partner violence against HIV positive women could help to design preventive and control strategies. However, there is a dearth of information regarding the magnitude and determinants of intimate partner violence against HIV positive women in Ethiopia. Thus, this study aimed to assess the magnitude and associated factors of intimate partner violence against HIV positive women in Gondar city, Northwest Ethiopia.

METHOD

A facility-based cross-sectional study was carried out from February to May 2021 in selected public health facilities of Gondar city among 626 HIV positive women. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select study participants. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS) version 20 software. Bivariable and Multivariable logistic regression models were done. Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to identify determinants of intimate partner violence. Statistical significance was considered at a p value < 0.05.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of intimate partner violence against HIV positive women within the last 12 months was 64.2% (95% CI 60.4, 68.2). Physical violence was the most common type (54.8%), followed by sexual (51.1%) and emotional (48.9%) violence. Intimate partner violence among HIV positive women was associated with women's age 19-24 (AOR = 0.13, 95% CI 0.02, 0.79), monthly income of 500-2500 (AOR = 6.5, 95% CI 1.72, 25.0), urban residence (AOR = 0.35, 95% CI 0.13, 0.91), partner drink alcohol (AOR = 2.14, 95% CI 1.42, 4.06), and a husband with no multiple sexual partners (AOR = 0.75, 95% CI 0.34, 0.94).

CONCLUSION

The result of this study revealed that intimate partner violence against HIV positive women was found to be high. Thus, protective measures that could increase the community's and women's awareness about the consequences of various forms of violence, and women empowerment are paramount. Priorities in programs of gender-based violence prevention should involve women from rural residences, older age, and males who consume alcohol.

Intimate partner violence and health system response in Nekemte town, Western Oromia, Ethiopia, 2019: A cross-sectional study

Objectives:

To assess intimate partner violence and health system response among married women.

Methods:

A mixed method of quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional community-based study was conducted from August to September 2019. Later than ethical clearance, the data were collected using a pretested structured questionnaire adapted from the literature. Study participants were selected using systematic random sampling. Data collected is entered into EpiData and then exported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. The odds ratio with their 95% confidence interval was calculated. Variables with p-value < 0.25 in bivariate analysis were entered into multivariate logistic regression. Statistical significance was declared if the p-value was <0.05.

Results:

From all 770 sampled participants in Nekemte town, 730 married women participated in this study, yielding a response rate of 94.8%. The prevalence of intimate partner violence was 55.9%. From this study finding, no intimate partner violence screening was done for 678 (92.9%) respondents who visited health facilities. Educational status of women, partner being illiterate, occupational status being merchant, and daily laborer were associated with intimate partner violence with (adjusted odds ratio = 1.73, 95% confidence interval = (1.05–2.83)), (adjusted odds ratio = 5.94, 95% confidence interval = (1.25–12.23)), (adjusted odds ratio = 4.41, 95% confidence interval = (1.49–13.01)), and (adjusted odds ratio = 3.74, 95% confidence interval = (1.33–10.50)), respectively, were factors found to be associated with intimate partner violence Nekemte town. One of the study participants whose age was 36 years responded that, “our culture approves men’s superiority; we accept intimate partner violence as part of our marital life.” There is an assigned focal person and training was given to them, but screening of intimate partner violence has not started yet and it was not integrated into any maternal service in our health center.

Conclusion:

This study shows that in excess of half of women experience intimate partner violence. Educational status, occupation and violence seen during childhood were the factors that contributed to intimate partner violence. Educating women and partners, integrating, and strengthening a health service are important.

Perinatal intimate partner violence during COVID-19 and its associated factors among postpartum mothers attending newborn immunization in southern Ethiopia, 2021: A cross-sectional study

Objective:

This study aimed to assess the prevalence of perinatal intimate partner violence during COVID-19 and its associated factors among postpartum mothers attending newborn immunization in southern Ethiopia, 2021.

Method:

A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 657 postpartum mothers from 1 to 30 March 2021 in southern Ethiopia. All postpartum mothers who visited the selected hospitals or health centers for newborn immunization and met the inclusion criteria were included in this study. Data were cleaned, coded, entered into Epidata manager version 4.2 and then exported into SPSS version 26 for analysis. Binary and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used.

Results:

The prevalence of perinatal intimate partner violence was 62.4%. In this study, income loss due to COVID-19 (adjusted odds ratio: 12.00, 95% confidence interval: 5.60, 25.71, p < 0.001) was the strongest factor associated with perinatal intimate partner violence. Young age women (adjusted odds ratio: 5.82, 95% confidence interval: 2.72, 12.46, p < 0.001), partner alcohol use (adjusted odds ratio: 2.21, 95% confidence interval: 1.37, 3.56, p = 0.001), partner substance use (adjusted odds ratio: 2.07, 95% confidence interval: 1.12, 3.83, p = 0.021), and partner relationships (cohabited) (adjusted odds ratio: 1.88, 95% confidence interval: 1.06, 3.34, p = 0.032) were also strongly associated with perinatal intimate partner violence.

Conclusion:

The prevalence of perinatal intimate partner violence was relatively high. The health of the women should be maintained through empowerment of women and provision of health education in order to minimize prevalence of perinatal intimate partner violence associated with low income, young age, substance use, and cohabited marital status. Future qualitative studies are required to identify the underlying multifactorial reasons for intimate partner violence.

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Intimate Partner Violence Among Married Women During COVID-19 Pandemic Restrictions: A Community-Based Study

Ethiopia has taken unprecedented preventive measures, such as confinement to home and closure of schools and offices to halt the spread of Corona virus pandemic in the country. Unfortunately, such orders may have been associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) against women but there is no study conducted to assess the magnitude of IPV during the lock-downs in the country. Thus, this study intended to investigate the prevalence and associated factors of IPV against women during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on sample of 617 married or cohabited women. A systematic random sampling technique was employed to identify and enroll women who are married. A logistic regression analysis was used to identify the predictors of IPV among women and all statistical analyses were carried out using STATA 14.2. In this study, amongst the 589 married women who were included in the analysis, 22.4% [95% CI: 19.1%, 25.9%] were experienced at least one form of IPV. Additionally, 11.0%, 20.0%, and 13.8% of women also experienced physical, psychological, and sexual IPVs respectively. After adjusting for covariate; being illiterate [AOR=2.37: 95% CI 1.29, 4.35], having illiterate husband [AOR=2.67: 95% CI 1.36, 5.21], having substance user husband (alcohol, chat or cigarettes) [AOR=2.75: 95% CI 1.42, 5.34], and community tolerant attitude to violence [AOR=2.97: 95% CI 1.17, 7.61] were the independent predictors of IPV amongst married women. In conclusion, the prevalence of IPV among married women was comparable to the national pre-COVID figure of IPV. Therefore, national and regional governments should work toward enhancing gender equality, coupled with addressing risk factors at multiple levels, using community- and institution-based approaches to prevent IPV and to specifically achieve SDG5 of eliminating violence against women by 2030.

Cross-sectional study on knowledge, attitude and prevalence of domestic violence among women in Kaduna, north-western Nigeria

BACKGROUND

Domestic violence is a global issue of public health concern with detrimental effects on women's physical, mental and social well-being. There is a paucity of community-based studies assessing the knowledge and attitude of women towards domestic violence in Nigeria.

OBJECTIVE

To assess knowledge, attitudes, prevalence and associated factors of domestic violence among women in a community in Kaduna, Nigeria.

DESIGN

A descriptive cross-sectional study.

SETTING

A selected community in Kaduna South Local Government Area in Kaduna State.

PARTICIPANTS

In total, 170 women aged 15-49 years participated in the study.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

The outcomes were knowledge, attitude and prevalence of domestic violence.

RESULTS

The mean age of the respondents was 28.7+7.9 years. A total of 113 (66.5%) respondents had high level of knowledge about domestic violence with 114 (67.1%) having non-tolerant attitudes towards domestic violence. The lifetime prevalence and 12-month prevalence of domestic violence were 47.1% and 35.3%, respectively. The results of logistic regression identified the educational status of women as a significant predictor of knowledge of domestic violence (adjusted OR (aOR)=0.32; 95% CI 0.15 to 0.68), while marital status (aOR=0.21; 95% CI 0.05 to 0.96), occupation of women (aOR=2.49; 95% CI 1.13 to 5.49), their tolerance of wife beating (aOR=0.33; 95% CI 0.15 to 0.72) and their partners' consumption habit of alcohol/substance use (aOR=7.91; 95% CI 3.09 to 20.27) were identified as significant predictors of the women's experience of domestic violence.

CONCLUSION

Domestic violence was relatively high among women. Though a majority had high level of knowledge about domestic violence, a significant third had tolerant attitudes towards it. Appropriate health interventions need to be implemented by governmental and relevant stakeholders to target negative attitudes and address associated factors of domestic violence against women.

Intimate partner violence and COVID-19 among reproductive age women: A community-based cross-sectional survey, Ethiopia

INTRODUCTION

Intimate partner violence is one of the most common psychological, physical, and sexual assaults toward women which suit the entire life of women, and nowadays, the magnitude accelerates due to coronavirus pandemic. Hence, this study was aimed to examine the prevalence of intimate partner violence and predictors during coronavirus among childbearing-age residents in Debre Berhan.

METHODS

A community-based cross-sectional survey was employed from 1 May to 1 July 2020. Eight items of women abuse screening tool were used to estimate intimate partner violence. Trained data collectors directly interview randomly selected participants. The data were entered using Epi-info V. 7 and analyzed using SPSS V. 23. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the prevalence of intimate partner violence and the frequency distribution of other variables. During bivariate analysis, predictor variables with a p-value less than 0.25 were nominated to further analysis. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was used and a p-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULT

A total of 700 participants were included with a response rate of 95.1%. The prevalence of intimate partner violence in the past single year was 19% with 95% confidence interval = 16.1-21.9. Besides, the prevalence of emotional (19.9%, 95% confidence interval = 16.9-22.8), sexual (10.9%, 95% confidence interval = 8.6-13.2) and physical (9.4%, 95% confidence interval = 7.3-11.6) violence was reported. Women with depressive symptoms, overweight, suicidal ideation, and body image disturbance were significantly associated with intimate partner violence, but not educational status, employment, income, stressful life events, lifetime alcohol use, suicidal attempt, and abortion.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

Nearly one out of five interviewed participants had intimate partner violence. Being overweight, having poor body image, and having depression increase intimate partner violence. Special preventive measures and treatment, and other legal services should be taken to alleviate the predictor variables and intimate partner violence.

Help-seeking behaviour and associated factors among women who experienced physical and sexual violence in Ethiopia: evidence from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey

BACKGROUND

Violence against women remains devastatingly pervasive and remained unchanged over the past decade. Violence against women is preventable and help-seeking of women subjected to violence is an entry point. So, this study assessed help-seeking behaviour and associated factors among women who experienced physical and sexual violence in Ethiopia.

METHOD

Using the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Surveys (EDHS), this paper analyzes the determinants of help-seeking behavior of women subjected to violence in Ethiopia. EDHS used a two-stage stratified cluster sampling technique. From 642 communities, a total of 1540 (weighted) reproductive age women were included in the analysis. Simple descriptive, bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis were employed. Statistical significance was set at a p-value of less than 0.05.

RESULTS

Only 22.5% of the women who experienced violence sought help. Being aged 30 and above, working in sales, or an agricultural job, being in the richest wealth quintile, and experiencing severe violence were associated with increased help-seeking behaviour. Living in a rural area, having a husband who attended primary, secondary, and higher education, having a husband working in a professional job and agriculture were factors associated with lower odds of help-seeking behaviour.

CONCLUSION

In Ethiopia below one-fourth of women who were subject to violence sought help. Socio-demographic factors and severity of the violence were associated with help-seeking. Preventing child marriages and reducing poverty as well as increased employment and education for women enhance help-seeking behaviour by the women. Interventions could include creating awareness, law enforcement, and support for victims.

Spatial distribution and predictors of domestic violence against women: evidence from analysis of Ethiopian demographic health survey 2016

BACKGROUND

Violence against women particularly that is committed by an intimate partner is becoming a social and public health problem across the world. Studies show that the spatial variation in the distribution of domestic violence was commonly attributed to neighborhood-level predictors. Despite the prominent benefits of spatial techniques, research findings are limited. Therefore, the current study intends to determine the spatial distribution and predictors of domestic violence among women aged 15-49 in Ethiopia.

METHODS

Data from the Ethiopian demographic health survey 2016 were used to determine the spatial distribution of domestic violence in Ethiopia. Spatial auto-correlation statistics (both Global and Local Moran's I) were used to assess the spatial distribution of domestic violence cases in Ethiopia. Spatial locations of significant clusters were identified by using Kuldorff's Sat Scan version 9.4 software. Finally, binary logistic regression and a generalized linear mixed model were fitted to identify predictors of domestic violence.

RESULT

The study found that spatial clustering of domestic violence cases in Ethiopia with Moran's I value of 0.26, Z score of 8.26, and P value < 0.01. The Sat Scan analysis identifies the primary most likely cluster in Oromia, SNNP regions, and secondary cluster in the Amhara region. The output from regression analysis identifies low economic status, partner alcohol use, witnessing family violence, marital controlling behaviors, and community acceptance of wife-beating as significant predictors of domestic violence.

CONCLUSION

There is spatial clustering of IPV cases in Ethiopia. The output from regression analysis shows that individual, relationship, and community-level predictors were strongly associated with IPV. Based upon our findings, we give the following recommendation: The government should give prior concern for controlling factors such as high alcohol consumption, improper parenting, and community norm that encourage IPV that were responsible for IPV in the identified hot spot areas.

Prevalence and factors associated with sexual violence among women aged 15-49 years in rural Uganda: evidence from the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey 2016

OBJECTIVES

Sexual violence is a serious global health problem with short- and long-term physical, mental, and reproductive adverse effects. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with sexual violence among women of reproductive age in rural Uganda.

STUDY DESIGN

This was a cross-sectional study based on the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) 2016 data.

METHODS

UDHS 2016 data for 5259 rural women aged 15-49 years were used in this study. Multistage stratified sampling was used to select participants, and data were collected using validated questionnaires. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with sexual violence. All analyses we carried out in SPSS (version 25).

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of sexual violence among rural women was 24.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 23.4-25.7) compared with 18.4% (95% CI: 17.0-20.7) among urban women. Rural women who had received only primary education had higher odds of sexual violence compared with those who had received tertiary education (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.01, 95% CI: 1.17-7.72). Women living in the Western region were more likely to experience sexual violence than those living in the Northern region of Uganda (AOR = 2.01, 95% CI: 1.41-2.87). In addition, women in the poorest wealth quintile had higher odds of sexual violence compared with those in the richest quintile (AOR = 2.06, 95% CI: 1.02-4.17). Women justifying beating, health care decision-making, and husband's/partner's frequency of getting drunk were also significantly associated with sexual violence.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of sexual violence among rural Ugandan women was high and is associated with factors such as educational level, region, wealth index, justified beating, health care decision-making, and husband's/partner's frequency of getting drunk. Thus, there is a need to improve the livelihoods and income of rural women, including the promotion of continued education for girls, as well as to strengthen protective laws and policies to curb this public health issue.

Domestic violence in Mozambique: from policy to practice

BACKGROUND

To reduce the impact of domestic violence (DV), Mozambican governmental and non-governmental entities are making efforts to strengthen the legislative framework and to improve the accessibility of care services for survivors of violence. Despite this remarkable commitment, the translation of policies and legislation into actions remains a considerable challenge. Therefore, this paper aims to identify gaps in the implementation of existing national policies and laws for DV in the services providing care for survivors of DV.

METHODS

This qualitative study comprised of two approaches. The first consisted of content analysis of guidelines and protocols for DV care provision. The second consisted of in-depth interviews with institutional gender focal points (Professionals with experience in dealing with aspects related to DV). The analysis of the document content was based on a framework developed according to key elements recommended by international agencies (PAHO and UN) for design of DV policies and strategies. Data from the in-depth interviews, where analysed in accordance with the study objectives.

RESULTS

Eleven (11) guidelines/protocols of care provision and innumerable brochures and pamphlets were identified and analysed. There is a standardised form which contains fields for police and the health sector staff to complete, but not for Civil Society Organisations. However, there is no specific national DV database. Although the seventeen (17) focal points interviewed recognised the relevance of the reviewed documents, many identified gaps in their implementation. This was related to the weaknesses of the offender's penalisation and to the scarcity of care providers who often lack appropriate training. The focal points also recognised their performance is negatively influenced by socio-cultural factors.

CONCLUSION

Within services providing care to survivors of DV, a scarcity of guidelines and protocols exist, compromising the quality and standardisation of care. The existence of guidelines and protocols was regarded as a strength, however its implementation is still problematic. There was also recognition for the need to strengthening by governmental and non-governmental entities the defined policies and strategies for DV prevention and control into practice.

Magnitude of Gender-Based Violence and Its Associated Factors among Female Night Students in Bahir Dar City, Amhara Region, Ethiopia

Background

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a major public health issue that affects the health and well-being of millions of young people worldwide each year. Gender-based violence was prevalent throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. However, research in Africa is extremely diverse.

Objective

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent and risk factors of gender-based violence among night female students in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted among 788 elementary and high school night female students in Bahir Dar from October 15 to November 15, 2019. Data was gathered using self-administered questionnaires. A binary and multiple logistic regression model was used to identify factors associated with gender-based and sexual violence. An adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with a 95 percent confidence interval (CI) was calculated to determine the level of significance.

Results

The overall lifetime prevalence of gender-based violence (sexual, physical, and emotional violence) was 71.1% with a 95% CI of 67.8%-74.1%. The lifetime prevalence of sexual violence, physical violence, and emotional violence was 49.1%, 57.5%, and 41.6%, respectively. Rural childhood residence (AOR: 3.37, 95% CI: (2.17-5.54)), low school performance (AOR: 3.44, 95% CI: (2.13-5.56)), lack of sexual and reproductive health conversation experience (AOR: 3.68, 95% CI: (2.07-6.54)), poor family control (AOR: 5.62, 95% CI: (3.25-9.71)), and being sexually active (AOR: 3.79, 95% CI: (2.35-6.12)) increased significantly the risk of gender-based violence. The risk factors for sexual violence were young people living with both parents (AOR: 0.28, 95% CI: (0.19-0.41)), peer pressure (AOR: 5.73, 95% CI: (4.11-7.98)), and family support (AOR: 0.31, 95% CI: (0.22-0.43)).

Conclusion

In the study area, the lifetime prevalence of sexual violence, physical violence, and emotional violence was high. As a result, it is recommended that policymakers, district officials, schools, and other stakeholders pay attention to and act on gender-based values.

Intimate Partner Violence, Its Sociocultural Practice, and Its Associated Factors Among Women in Central Ethiopia

Background

Intimate partner violence is a serious and widespread problem worldwide. It is a domestic violence by a spouse or partner in an intimate relationship against the other spouse or partner. Even though Ethiopia is also one of the countries where the condition has been seriously happening, there is a dearth of information in the study area.

Objective

To assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence and its sociocultural practice, and its associated factors among married women in Oromia, Central Ethiopia.

Methods

A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 671 women of Ambo district who were in marriage from March 1 to 30, 2018. Multistage sampling method was employed to select study participants. Data were collected using interviewer-administered WHO Multi-country Study on Women’s Health and Life Experiences Questionnaire. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate logistic regression analyses were done using SPSS version 20.0.

Results

Out of 671 married women expected to participate, 657 of them participated in the study making a response rate of 98%. Overall, 77% (95% CI 73.7–80.1%), and 62.4% (95% CI, 58.6–66.1%) of the respondents reported that they have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime and in the last one year, respectively. Lack of formal education by husband (AOR 2.30, 95% CI 1.28–4.15), housewife occupation of respondents (AOR 2.04, 95% CI 1.02–4.06), number of children (AOR 4.37, 95% CI 1.40–13.66), perceived husband dominance (AOR 1.74, 95% CI 1.15–2.63), grow up in domestic violence (AOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.00–2.35) and partner’s alcohol intake (AOR 1.77, 95% CI 1.12–2.79) were independently associated with intimate partner violence.

Conclusion

Intimate partner violence against women remains an important public health problem. This needs urgent attention at all levels of societal hierarchy including policymakers, stakeholders, and professionals to alleviate the situation.

Intimate partner violence against reproductive age women during COVID-19 pandemic in northern Ethiopia 2020: a community-based cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

As the global pandemic of corona virus (COVID-19) spreads across continents and communities, people are forced to respond with strict preventive measures such as staying at home and keeping social distance. In relation with these measures, particularly with the staying at home, increasing rates of domestic violence are beginning to surface. Hence, this study was aimed at determining the prevalence of intimate partner violence against reproductive age women in northern Ethiopia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

A community-based cross-sectional study design was employed. The data were collected during the period of April to May, 2020 using interviews and a self-administered standard questionnaire. The data were entered into the Epi-data manager version 4.2 and exported to SPSS 22 for analysis. The descriptive analysis such as frequency distribution, percentage, and measures of central tendency were used. This was followed by binary and multiple logistic regression analysis to infer the association between the outcome and independent variables.

RESULTS

A total of 682 participants were included in the study. The prevalence of intimate partner violence against women was found to stood at 24.6% with psychological violence being the most prevalent (13.3%), followed by physical (8.3%) and sexual violence (5.3%). Women were more likely to suffer from violence if they were housewives (AOR, 95% CI (18.062 (10.088, 32.342))), age less than 30 (AOR, 95% CI (23.045 (5.627, 94.377))), women with arrange marriage (AOR, 95% CI (2.535 (1.572, 4.087))) and women with husband's age being "between" 31-40 (AOR, CI 95% (2.212 (1.024, 4.777))).

CONCLUSIONS

This study showed the presence of a relatively high prevalence of intimate partner violence against women. Thus, public reporting of any cases or concerns of abuse is critical and vital to mitigate the problem.

Prevalence of Violence Against Women in Ethiopia: A Meta-Analysis

Violence against women (VAW) is a major public health problem globally, particularly in developing countries including Ethiopia. Accordingly, sustainable development goal (SDG) 5 (by United Nation) prioritizes VAW and calls for the design and implementation of programs relevant to its elimination by 2030. However, little is known about the epidemiology of VAW as all estimates from few, cross-sectional studies so far are inconsistent and inconclusive. This study, therefore, was conducted to determine the pooled national prevalence of VAW in Ethiopia. Databases including PUBMED, MEDLINE, Cochrane review, CINAHL, African Journals Online, and Google Scholar were reviewed, using relevant search engines. The meta-analysis was conducted using STATA 14 software, and forest plots were used to present the pooled estimates of VAW. The Cochran Q, I² statistics, and Egger's test were used to test heterogeneity and publication bias of the included studies. A total of 36 published articles, 23,782 participants, were included in the meta-analysis. The overall pooled lifetime and the past 12 months VAW prevalence was 46.93% (95% confidence interval [CI] = [39.96, 54.00]) and 37.02% (95% CI [26.47, 47.56]), respectively. The pooled lifetime physical, sexual, and psychological violence were 38.15%, 39.33%, and 39.51%, respectively. Pooled lifetime prevalence of rape was 13.02%. Overall, nearly half of Ethiopian women experience lifetime VAW, with substantial levels of physical, sexual, or psychological violence. The country should work toward enhancing gender equality, coupled with addressing risk factors at multiple levels, using community- and institution-based approaches to prevent VAW and to specifically achieve SDG₅ of eliminating VAW by 2030.

Determinants of intimate partner violence against women in Ethiopia: A multi-level analysis

Intimate partner violence (IPV) continues to be a major public health problem globally. Although Ethiopia has a high prevalence of IPV, previous studies in this country have only investigated individual-level determinants of IPV within small geographic areas. The current study aimed to identify the individual-, relationship-, community-, and societal-level determinants of IPV directed against women in Ethiopia since women are predominantly affected. A retrospective analysis of nationally representative data from the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) was conducted. A sample of 3,897 married women of reproductive age (15-49 years) who participated in the domestic violence module of the survey were included in the analysis. Three-level mixed-effects multilevel logistic regression models were used to estimate the individual-, relationship-, community-, and societal-level determinants of IPV. Variability at the community- and societal-level were also assessed. About 1,328 (34.1%) of 3,897 participants reported experiencing IPV (a composite measure of physical, sexual and emotional abuse). In adjusted models, the odds of lifetime IPV experience were higher among women who were older, were married before the age of 18 years, witnessed inter-parental violence during their childhood, had a partner who drank alcohol, and lived in a community with high IPV accepting norms. Alternatively, the odds of IPV were lower among women who had decision-making autonomy in the household, had the same or lower educational attainment as their partner, and lived in a community with low proportions of educated women. These findings reveal that although individual-level factors were significant determinants of IPV, higher level factors, including female education and IPV acceptance in the community, were also important influences on this major public health issue in Ethiopia. These findings suggest combined interventions at different levels may reduce IPV in this country.

Intimate Partner Violence in Pregnancy: Knowledge and Experiences of Pregnant Women and Controlling Behavior of Male Partners in Sokoto, Northwest Nigeria

Background

Violence against women perpetrated by an intimate partner is an important public health issue. In recent years, attention has focused also on intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy due to its prevalence, adverse health consequences, and intervention potentials.

Aim

To determine the knowledge, experiences, and factors influencing IPV, including the controlling behaviors of male partners of pregnant women attending an antenatal clinic (ANC) of a tertiary health facility in Sokoto. Materials and method. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 260 pregnant women attending ANC in a tertiary health facility in the Sokoto metropolis. They were selected using a systematic sampling technique, and a set of pretested questionnaire items was used for data collection. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS version 20.

Results

The respondents' ages ranged from 19 to 40 years with a mean of 29.09 ± 4.99 years, and up to 83.5% of them were in a monogamous setting. Three-quarters of them were Muslims mostly from urban areas (72.1%), and 36.4% had a university or HND degree. Majority of them responded correctly to questions on IPV; overall, up to 99.2% of them had good knowledge of IPV. About 33% of the respondents have experienced IPV while pregnant and up to 61.7% of them said they did nothing because of fear. Some of the controlling behaviors of male partners included always asking for permission before seeing friends and family members and also controlling their finances. Factors associated with IPV include tribe, place of residence, and partner consuming alcohol.

Conclusion

Majority of the respondents had good knowledge of IPV with about one-third of them ever experiencing it. Respondent's partners were mostly jealous and exhibited some form of controlling behaviors. Physical violence was the most prevalent form, and most of the victims did nothing about it. Government and women's right groups should push for the implementation of tougher punitive measures against perpetrators of IPV.

Intimate partner physical violence and associated factors in reproductive age married women in Aksum Town, Tigray, Ethiopia 2018, and community based study

Objective

As reports indicated about 1 in 3 of women worldwide have experienced physical violence but there is no enough reports on the current status of the act in Aksum town so this study intended to identify the prevalence and factors associated with physical violence of reproductive age married women in Aksum town Tigray Ethiopia.

Result

A total of 398 women were enrolled in the study and making a response rate of 100%. 112 (28.1%) women had physical violence in their lifetime. Educational level of women (AOR = 2.2; 95% CI 1.28, 6.7), Occupation of women’s (AOR = 3.8; 95% CI 2.32, 12.8), age of husband (AOR = 5.2; 95% CI 2.3, 11.5), husbands having other wife (AOR = 7.8; 95% CI 4.2, 18.9) and husbands having alcohol habits (AOR = 3.8; 95% CI 1.74, 14.7) had significant association with physical violence.

Intimate partner violence against women living with and without HIV, and the associated factors in Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia: A comparative cross-sectional study

Objectives

This study aimed to measure the prevalence and associated factors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) among women living with and without HIV in Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia.

Methods

A comparative cross-sectional study design was used to interview the 816 women between 18–49 years of age (408 = HIV positive, 408 = HIV negative). Using a multistage sampling technique, participants were recruited from nine health facilities based on probability proportional to the number of clients. After data entry (EpiData version 4.4.2.0) the data were exported to STATA/SE 15 software. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analysis were undertaken and the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) are presented.

Results

The lifetime prevalence of IPV among all women was 59.7%, [95% CI: 56.31%-63.05%]. IPV was slightly higher among women living with HIV, 250(61.3%), than those who were HIV negative, 238(58.1%). Lifetime prevalence of emotional violence 413(50.6%), physical violence 349(42.8%), sexual violence 219(26.8%), and controlling behaviours by husbands/partners 489(59.9%) were reported. Associations were found between IPV and controlling behaviour of husband/partner [AOR = 8.13; 95% CI: 4.93–13.42],income [AOR = 3.97; 95% CI:1.81–8.72], bride price payment [AOR = 3.46; 95% CI:1.74–6.87], women’s decision to refuse sex [AOR = 2.99; 95% CI: 1.39–6.41],age group of women [AOR = 2.86; 95% CI:1.67–4.90], partner’s family choosing wife [AOR = 2.83; 95% CI:1.70–4.69], alcohol consumption by partner [AOR = 2.36;95% CI:1.36–4.10], number of sexual partners [AOR = 2.35; 95% CI:1.36–4.09], and if partner ever physically fought with another man [AOR = 1.83; 95% CI:1.05–3.19].

Conclusions

There is a high prevalence of IPV against women both living with and without HIV. Policy priorities should therefore involve males in programs of gender-based violence prevention in order to change their violent behaviour, and interventions are required to improve the economic status of women. Both sexes should be advised to have a single partner and marriage arrangements should be by mutual consent rather than being made by parents.

Intimate partner abuse among couples during pregnancy and its predictors as reported by pregnant women visiting governmental health care centres in Tabriz, Iran

Little is known about intimate partner abuse (IPA) among couples during pregnancy in Iran. This study aimed to compare the rates of IPA by pregnant women towards their husbands (perpetration), and women's experience of IPA from their husbands (victimization) and determine the predictors of the two behaviours. The cross-sectional study was conducted on 525 pregnant women at 24-30 weeks of gestation visiting governmental health care centres/posts in Tabriz, Iran, in 2014. The study sample was selected using random cluster sampling. The Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2) was used to assess IPA perpetration and victimization. The McNemar test was employed to compare the prevalences of IPA perpetration and victimization, and adjusted logistic regression was utilized to determine the socio-demographic predictors of overall IPA perpetration and victimization. The overall rates of women's reported abuse of their husbands (perpetration) and women's experience of abuse from their husbands (victimization) were 70% and 67%, respectively, but the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.086). The prevalence of psychological aggression perpetrated by women towards their husbands was significantly higher than that experienced by the women from their husbands (65% vs 58%, p<0.001). The prevalences of sexual coercion (15% vs 30%) and injury (8% vs 16%) perpetrated by women on their husbands were significantly lower those they experienced by the women from their husbands (p<0.001). There was no statistically significant difference between the prevalence of perpetration of physical violence towards husbands by women (19%) and that experienced by women from their husbands (22%) (p=0.072). Women's and husbands' satisfaction with their own occupations were predictors of both perpetration and victimization of IPA. The observed high rates of IPA perpetration by, women and victimization of, women during pregnancy, and the significantly higher rate of violence towards women compared with that perpetrated by women, especially for sexual coercion and injury, require health policymakers and care providers to make serious efforts to identify such violence, and take appropriate measures to reduce it, during pregnancy in women in Iran.

Are interventions focused on gender-norms effective in preventing domestic violence against women in low and lower-middle income countries? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

One in three women experience intimate partner violence worldwide, according to many primary studies. However, systematic review and meta-analysis of intimate partner violence is very limited. Therefore, we set to summarize the findings of existing primary studies to generate evidence for informed decisions to tackle domestic violence against women in low and lower-middle income countries.

Methods

Studies were searched from main databases (Medline via PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, PopLine and Web of Science), Google scholar and other relevant sources using electronic and manual techniques. Published and unpublished studies written in English and conducted among women aged (15–49 years) from 1994 to 2017 were eligible. Data were extracted independently by two authors, and recorded in Microsoft Excel sheet. Heterogeneity between included studies was assessed using I², and publication bias was explored using visual inspection of funnel plot. Statistical analysis was carried out to determine the pooled prevalence using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software. In addition, sub-group analysis was carried out by study-setting and types of intimate partner violence.

Results

Fifty two studies were included in the systematic review. Of these, 33 studies were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of lifetime intimate partner violence was 55% (95% CI: 52, 59%). Of these, main categories were lifetime physical violence [39% (95% CI: 33, 45%); psychological violence [45% (95% CI: 40, 52%)] and sexual violence [20% (95% CI: 17, 23%)]. Furthermore, the pooled prevalence of current intimate partner violence was 38% (95% CI: 34, 43%). Of these, physical violence [25% (95% CI: 21, 28%)]; psychological violence [30% (95% CI: 24, 36%)] and sexual violence [7.0% (95% CI: 6.6, 7.5%)] were the pooled prevalence for the major types of intimate partner violence. In addition, concurrent intimate partner violence was 13% (95% CI: 12, 15%). Individual, relationship, community and societal level factors were associated with intimate partner violence. Traditional community gender-norm transformation, stakeholders’ engagement, women’s empowerment, intervention integration and policy/legal framework were highly recommended interventions to prevent intimate partner violence.

Conclusion

Lifetime and current intimate partner violence is common and unacceptably high. Therefore, concerned bodies will need to design and implement strategies to transform traditional gender norms, engage stakeholders, empower women and integrate service to prevent violence against women.

Protocol registration

PROSPERO: 2017: CRD42017079977.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12978-019-0726-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Time for action: Intimate partner violence troubles one third of Ethiopian women

Background

Intimate partner violence is a major challenges faced by women especially in developing world. Its consequences range from personal health problems up to countrywide loss of productivity and poverty. There is limited empirical evidence documenting intimate partner violence and underlying reasons in Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the magnitude of intimate partner violence and associated factors in Ethiopia.

Methods

We analyzed the 2016 Ethiopian demographic and health survey data. About 2,750 women aged 15–49 years were included in the survey. Intimate partner violence was measured in three dimensions: physical, emotional and sexual violence. Multiple logistic regression was conducted to identify independent predictors. Variables with p-value less than 0.05 were considered as significantly associated with dimensions of violence. All analysis were adjusted for clusters and sample weights.

Results

Overall 32.5% of Ethiopian women experienced at least one type of intimate partner violence. Physical and emotional violence were each experienced by 22.5% of the women, while 9.6% of the study participants encountered sexual violence. The age difference between a woman and her intimate partner has a positive effect on emotional and sexual violence while the opposite is true for physical violence. Moreover, physical violence was significantly associated with place of residence, and husband education. Both emotional and sexual violence were predicted by wealth of the household and husband’s employment status. In addition to these, lower educational status of the partner affects emotional violence positively.

Conclusion

Substantial proportion of women in Ethiopia continue to suffer from intimate partner violence. Physical and emotional violence were much more common than sexual violence. In the light of determinants, we have reported in here, we recommend empowering women in all realm of life by improving their socio-economic status with focus to their educational and economic status.

Intimate partner violence and associated factors among pregnant women in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) during pregnancy is a serious public health concern globally. Within Sub-Saharan Africa nearly 40% of women reported abuse by their intimate partners. In Ethiopia, study findings regarding prevalence and associated factors of IPV among pregnant women have been inconsistently reported and highly variable. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis estimates the pooled prevalence of IPV and associated factors among pregnant women in Ethiopia.

Methods

International databases (i.e., PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and the Cochrane Library) were systematically searched during the period of January 1 to February 13, 2018. All identified observational studies reporting the prevalence of IPV and associated factors among pregnant women in Ethiopia were considered. Two authors (AA and CT) independently extracted all necessary data using a standardized data extraction format. Extracted quantitative data were analyzed using STATA Version 13. Heterogeneity among the included studies was assessed through the Cochrane Q test statistics and I² test. Finally, a random effects meta-analysis model was computed to estimate the pooled prevalence of IPV. Associations between factors and IPV were also examined using a random effects model.

Results

After reviewing 605 studies, eight studies involving 2691 pregnant women fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were included in this meta-analysis. The findings of these eight studies revealed that a 26.1% (95% CI: 20, 32.3) overall prevalence of IPV among pregnant women in Ethiopia. The subgroup analysis of this study further revealed the highest observed prevalence was in Oromia region (35%), followed by Amhara region (29%). Mothers‘educational status (OR: 2.1, 95% CI: 1.1, 3.7), intimate partners’ educational status (OR: 3.5, 95%CI: 1.4, 8.5), and intimate partners’ alcohol use (OR: 11.4, 95%CI: 2.3, 56.6) were significantly associated with IPV among pregnant women.

Conclusion

This study found that the prevalence of IPV among pregnant women in Ethiopia was quite common; with slightly more than 1 in 4, pregnant women experienced IPV during pregnancy. Mothers’ educational status, intimate partners’ educational status, and intimate partners’ alcohol use were factors significantly associated with IPV among pregnant women.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12978-018-0637-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Disparities in Intimate Partner Violence among Currently Married Women from Food Secure and Insecure Urban Households in South Ethiopia: A Community Based Comparative Cross-Sectional Study

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women and food insecurity are an ever growing public health concerns in Ethiopia. However, the connection between the two is not yet well investigated. Therefore, this study compares IPV by household food security status and examines the association between IPV and food insecurity and among currently married women in childbearing age in Arba Minch town, South Ethiopia. A community based comparative cross-sectional study was conducted among 696 currently married women (15-49). A quantitative data was collected using a pretested and structured questionnaire on randomly selected women. Logistic regression was done using IBM SPSS version 20. Statistical significance was declared at p-value of less than 0.05 and odds ratio with its 95% confidence interval was used to show the degree of association. Lifetime and current IPV were 62.4% and 50%, respectively. Sixty-three (23.6%) and 285 (66.4%) women who experienced current IPV were from food secured and insecure households, respectively (P-value<0.001). The odds of experiencing current IPV were higher among women from food insecure households (AOR=6.59,95% CI(4.54,9.57)) and who were in the age range of 30-39 (AOR=2.16, 95% CI(1.34,3.56)) and it was lower among women with 10 and more years age difference with their husband (AOR=0.52, 95% CI (0.31,0.88)) and with high decision-making power (AOR=0.61, 95% CI (0.38.0.96)) than their reference groups. The prevalence of current IPV was significantly higher among women from food insecure households as compared to their counterparts. The odds of experiencing current IPV were higher among women from food insecure households. Policy makers and programme planners should consider improving urban women's household food security status in order to improve gender inequality and empower women. Multisectorial effort is needed to improve women education and other behavioral factors.

Intimate partner violence victimization increases the risk of under-five morbidity: A stratified multilevel analysis of pooled Tanzania Demographic Health Surveys, 2010-2016

INTRODUCTION

A hidden determinant such as intimate partner violence victimization has been associated with under-five morbidity and mortality. However, there is lack of information regarding which exactly age group of under-five is more vulnerable to morbidity when their mothers exposed to intimate partner violence victimization. This study aimed to determine the effect of mothers' exposure to intimate partner violence victimization on age groups specific under-five morbidity that could lead to mortality.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The current study pooled and analyzed data from 2010 and 2016 Tanzania Demographic Health Survey datasets. We used a stratified multilevel modeling to assess the association between under-five morbidity and intimate partner violence victimization according to age groups. The Statistical approach using Stata 14 was used to adjust for clustering effect and weighted the estimates to correct for non-responses and disproportionate sampling employed during designing of the surveys.

RESULTS

A total of 13,639 singleton live-births babies within three years prior to interview dates from the ever-married women were included in the analysis. We found a significant reduction of the three main symptoms of under-five morbidity namely; a cough with difficult or fast breathing from 21.7 to 15.7%, fever from 22.5 to 18.3%, and diarrhoea from 15.5 to 12.7% for the survey years from 2010 to 2016 respectively (P<0.05). Overall, about 40% of mothers reported experiencing any forms of intimate partner violence victimization. After adjusting for individual and cluster variables, we found that under-five in post-neonatal period (Adjusted odds ratios = 1.50; 95%CI, 1.21-1.86) and childhood period (Adjusted odds ratios = 1.40; 95%CI, 1.24-1.57) were significantly affected with morbidity when their mothers' exposed to any form of intimate partner violence victimization.

CONCLUSION

This analysis revealed that intimate partner violence victimization is still a major and public health problem in Tanzania that threatens child health during the period of post-neonatal and childhood. There is a need to introduce screening for intimate partner violence victimization in maternal and child care for effective monitoring and prevention of the problem.

Social ecological factors and intimate partner violence in pregnancy

Background

Intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy increases adverse pregnancy outcomes. Knowledge of societal, community, family and individual related factors associated with IPV in pregnancy is limited in Ethiopia. Our study examined these factors in an Ethiopian context.

Materials and methods

A cross sectional study was conducted among pregnant women attending antenatal care at governmental health institutions, using a consecutive probability sampling strategy. A total of 720 pregnant women were interviewed by five trained nurses or midwives, using a standardized and /pretested survey questionnaire. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were applied to assess factors contributing to IPV. We used Akaike’s information criteria, to identify the model that best describes the factors influencing IPV in pregnancy.

Results

Among the women interviewed, physical IPV was reported by 35.6%, and lifetime emotional or physical abuse by 81.0%. Perceiving violence as a means to settle interpersonal conflicts, presence of supportive attitudes of wife beating in the society, regarding violence as an expression of masculinity, and presence of strict gender role differences in the society, were all positively associated to IPV in pregnancy. The presence of groups legitimizing men’s violence in the community, feeling isolated, having no social support for victims, and presence of high unemployment, were the perceived community related factors positively associated with IPV in pregnancy.

Conclusion

IPV in pregnancy is very prevalent in Ethiopia and is associated with multiple social ecologic factors. Reduction of IPV in pregnancy calls for cross sectorial efforts from stakeholders at different levels.

Factors associated with intimate partner physical violence among women attending antenatal care in Shire Endaselassie town, Tigray, northern Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study, July 2015

Background

Intimate partner physical violence is a common global phenomenon. About 30.00% and 38.83% of women in the world and in sub-Saharan Africa experienced physical violence by their partner respectively in 2013. Though intimate partner violence has serious adverse health consequences, there is limited information about partner violence during pregnancy in Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the prevalnce of physical intimate partner violence during pregnancy and associated factors among women attending antenatal care in Shire Endaselassie town, Tigray, northen Ethiopia

Methods

A facility based cross-sectional study was conducted from May 3 to July 6, 2015. Four hundred and twenty-two pregnant women attending three public health facilities were included using systematic sampling technique. In addition, twenty-two purposely selected key informants were interviewed. The data collectors and supervisors were trained on all data collection processes. Data were entered to Epi-Info version 7.1.2.00 and exported to SPSS version 20.00. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with intimate partner physical violence. Statistical significance was declared at p < 0.05. Qualitative data were categorized into themes and triangulated with the quantitative results.

Results

The prevalence of intimate partner physical violence in pregnancy was 20.6% (CI = 16.70, 24.90). Age at first marriage greater than or equal to 17 years (AOR = 4.42, CI = 2.07, 9.42), women with no formal education (AOR = 2.78 CI = 1.10, 7.08), rural dwellers (AOR = 2.63 CI = 1.24, 5.58), intimate partners with no formal education (AOR = 2.78 CI = 1.10, 7.08) and intimate partner alcohol consumption (AOR = 3.8 CI = 1.85, 7.82) were factors associated with intimate partner physical violence towards pregnant women.

Conclusion

Nearly one fifth of women surveyed experienced intimate partner physical violence during pregnancy. Early marriage, rural dwelling, intimate partner alcohol consumption, and educational status were associated with intimate partner physical violence during pregnancy. Urgent attention to women’s rights and health is essential at all levels to alleviate the problem and its risk factors in Tigray regional state of Ethiopia.

Magnitude and factors associated with intimate partner violence in mainland Tanzania

BACKGROUND

In Tanzania like in many sub-Saharan countries the data about Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) are scarce and diverse. This study aims to determine the magnitude of IPV and associated factors among ever partnered women in urban mainland Tanzania.

METHODS

Data for this report were extracted from a big quasi-experimental survey that was used to evaluate MAP (MAP - Men as Partners) project. Data were collected using standard questions as those in big surveys like Demographic and Health Surveys. Data analyses involved descriptive statistics to characterize IPV. Associations between IPV and selected variables were based on Chi-square test and we used binary logistic regression to assess factors associated with women's perpetration to physical IPV and Odds Ratio (OR) as outcome measures with their 95 % confidence intervals (CI).

RESULTS

The lifetime exposure to IPV was 65 % among ever-married or ever-partnered women with 34, 18 and 21 % reporting current emotional, physical and sexual violence respectively. Seven percent of women reported having ever physically abused partners. The prevalence of women perpetration to physical IPV was above 10 % regardless to their exposure to emotional, physical or sexual IPV.

CONCLUSIONS

IPV towards women in this study was high. Although rates are low, there is some evidence to suggest that women may also perpetrate IPV against their partners. Based on hypothesis of IPV and HIV co-existence, there should be strategies to address the problem of IPV especially among women.

Domestic violence and its associated factors among married women of a village development committee of rural Nepal

Background

Violence against women is a global public health problem occurring in multitude of contexts and domestic violence is considered to be the most pervasive one. Poor enforcement of policies, limitation of researches and expertise in this field largely accounts for persistence of this problem and nature of domestic violence and its associated factors are poorly understood.

Objectives

This research aimed to estimate the magnitude of different forms of domestic violence and identify its associated factors.

Methods

Community based cross sectional study was conducted among 355 married women of reproductive age group of Kusheshwor, Sindhuli, Nepal. The questionnaire adapted from the World Health Organization Multi-Country Study was used for the face to face interviews. Occurrence of current domestic violence was used as outcome variable in logistic regression. Descriptive and multivariate analysis were performed in order to assess the magnitude of domestic violence and to identify its associated factors respectively.

Results

Self-reported lifetime prevalence of physical violence was 29.6 % and past year prevalence was 15.2 %, while corresponding figures for sexual violence were 6.8 and 2.3 %, and for psychological violence were 31.0 and 18.3 %. Lifetime domestic violence was 38.6 % while in past 12 months, prevalence was 23.1 %. Furthermore, 12.4 % of women were experiencing all forms of violence concurrently. Women with controlling husband and having poor mental health were found to be at higher risk of domestic violence.

Conclusions

Domestic violence is still rampant in our society with several forms of violence occurring together. In a country like Nepal, differentials power in relationship and poor mental health was found to be positively associated with violent episodes. This study highlights the infringement of women rights which can be the cause for serious public health consequences.

Prevalence and correlates of intimate partner violence among family planning clients in Conakry, Guinea

BACKGROUND

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global public health problem that affects women's physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health. Very little data on IPV experience and FP use is available in resource-poor settings, such as in West Africa. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence, patterns and correlates of IPV among clients of an adult Family Planning clinic in Conakry, Guinea.

METHODS

The study data was collected for four months (March to June 2014) from women's family planning charts and from an IPV screening form at the Adult Family Planning and Reproductive Health Clinic of "Association Guinéenne pour le Bien-Etre Familial", a non-profit organization in Conakry, Guinea. 232 women out of 245 women who attended the clinic for services during the study period were screened for IPV and were included in this study.

RESULTS

Of the 232 women screened, 213 (92%) experienced IPV in one form or another at some point in their lifetime. 169 women reported psychological violence (79.3%), 145 reported sexual violence (68.1%) and 103 reported physical violence (48.4%). Nearly a quarter of women reported joint occurrence of the three forms of violence(24%).Half of the IPV positive women were current users of family planning (51.2%) and of these, 77.9% preferred injectable contraceptives. The odds of experiencing IPV was higher in women with secondary or vocational level of education than those with higher level of education (AOR: 8.4; 95% CI 1.2-58.5). Women residing in other communes of Conakry (AOR: 5.6; 95% CI 1.4-22.9) and those preferring injectable FP methods (AOR: 4.5; 95% CI 1.2-16.8) were more likely to experience lifetime IPV.

CONCLUSIONS

IPV is prevalent among family planning clients in Conakry, Guinea where nine out of ten women screened in the AGBEF adult clinic reported having experienced one or another type of IPV. A holistic approach that includes promotion of women's rights and gender equality, existence of laws and policies is needed to prevent and respond to IPV, effective implementation of policies and laws, and access to quality IPV services in Guinea and countries with higher rates of IPV.

Family and community driven response to intimate partner violence in post-conflict settings

This study explores risk factors, individual and family consequences and community-driven responses to intimate partner violence (IPV) in post-conflict eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This qualitative study was conducted in 3 rural villages in South Kivu Province of DRC, an area that has experienced prolonged conflict. Participants included 13 female survivors and 5 male perpetrators of IPV as reported during baseline data collection for the parent study, an impact evaluation of the Congolese-led livestock microfinance program, Pigs for Peace. Participants described social and behavioral circumstances that increase risk for IPV; social, health and economic consequences on women and their families; and resources to protect women and their families. Social and behavioral factors reported by survivors and perpetrators indicate that IPV was linked to husband's alcohol consumption, household economic instability, male desire to maintain his position as head of family and perceived disrespect of husband by wife. In addition to well-known health consequences of IPV, women reported negative social consequences, such as stigma, resulting in barriers for the well-being of the family. Survivors and perpetrators described the impact of IPV on their children, specifically the lack of proper parental guidance and lack of safety and stability that could result in the child(ren) misbehaving and using violence in their relationships resulting in further stigma towards the child and family. Strategies employed by survivors to protect themselves and family, include placating male behaviors (e.g., not responding to insults, trying to meet household demands). Perpetrators that tried to reduce the impact of IPV reported a preference for social and financial control of their partner rather than physical violence, believing this to be less severe. Participants described community and family based social support systems including couple's mediation, responsible partner and fatherhood programs and economic activities that can influence behavior, maintain confidentiality, address social stigma and other multi-level outcomes.

Domestic violence against women and associated factors in Ethiopia; systematic review

Background

Violence against women is now widely recognized as a serious human right abuse, and an important public health problem with substantial consequences physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health. Data on systematic review of domestic violence are needed to support policy and program recommendations. Therefore, the overall purpose of this systematic review was to assess magnitude of domestic violence against women and associated factors in Ethiopia.

Methods

Studies systematically reviewed in Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia from 2000 to 2014. Systematic review was employed on published research works from databases such as Pubmed, popline, Hinari, and Google using key words. We also consulted public health experts. Community based studies with a study population (15–49 years) were included for review. Thirteen peer reviewed papers and two consecutive Ethiopian demographic and health surveys (2005 and 2011) were included to the systematic review. Twenty seven available in open access journals were retrieved and assessed based on the criteria’s such as community based study, cross sectional study design, clearly report prevalence and associated factors were included in the systematic review work. Finally, 15 papers were included in this review.

Results

Lifetime prevalence of domestic violence against women by husband or intimate partner among 10 studies ranged from 20 to 78 %. The lifetime domestic physical violence by husband or intimate partner against women ranged from 31 to 76.5 %. The life time domestic sexual violence against women by husband or intimate partner ranged from 19.2 to 59 %. The mean life time prevalence of domestic emotional violence was 51.7 %. Significant number of women experienced violence during their pregnancy period. Domestic violence against women significantly associated with alcohol consumption, chat chewing, family history of violence, occupation, religion, educational status, residence and decision making power.

Conclusion

Domestic violence against women was relatively high in different parts of Ethiopia. Domestic violence has direct relationship with sociodemographic characteristics of the victim as well as perpetrator. Therefore, appropriate health promotion information activities needed to tackle associated factors of domestic violence against women or to prevent and control the problem to save women from being victim.

Women are considerably more exposed to intimate partner violence than men in Rwanda: results from a population-based, cross-sectional study

Background

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is an important, yet often neglected public health issue. The existence of gender norms imbalance expressed by men’s and women’s attitudes in relation to power and decision-making in intimate relationships may influence the magnitude of IPV. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and potential risk factors of physical, sexual and psychological IPV in young men and women in Rwanda.

Methods

This population-based, cross-sectional study included a representative sample of men and women from the Southern Province of Rwanda. Face-to-face interviews were performed using the World Health Organization (WHO) questionnaire for violence exposure to estimate past year and earlier in life IPV occurrence. Risk factor patterns were analyzed by use of bi- and multivariate logistic regression.

Results

Women were, to a considerably higher extent, exposed to physical, sexual and psychological IPV than men. Of the women, 18.8% (n = 78) reported physical abuse in the past year, compared to 4.3% (n = 18) of men. The corresponding figures for women and men for sexual abuse were 17.4% (n = 71) and 1.5% (n = 6), respectively, and for psychological abuse, the corresponding figures were 21.4% (n = 92) and 7.3% (n = 32). Findings illustrate that violence against women was recurrent, as the highest frequency (>3 times) dominated in women for the various acts of all forms of violence. Identified risk factors for women’s exposure to physical violence were being low educated, having poor social support, being poor and having many children. For men exposed to physical violence, no statistically significant risk factor was identified.

Conclusions

In this setting, IPV exposure was more common in women than men in the Southern Province of Rwanda. Promotion of gender equality at the individual level is needed to make a positive difference in a relatively short term perspective. Men’s lower reporting of IPV confirms women’s subordinate position, but men’s denial of incidents could also explain the gender role pattern.

High prevalence and partner correlates of physical and sexual violence by intimate partners among street and off-street sex workers

Objectives

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is associated with increased risk of HIV among women globally. There is limited evidence and understanding about IPV and potential HIV risk pathways among sex workers (SWs). This study aims to longitudinally evaluate prevalence and correlates of IPV among street and off-street SWs over two-years follow-up.

Methods

Longitudinal data were drawn from an open prospective cohort, AESHA (An Evaluation of Sex Workers Health Access) in Metro Vancouver, Canada (2010–2012). Prevalence of physical and sexual IPV was measured using the WHO standardized IPV scale (version 9.9). Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression using Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) were used to examine interpersonal and structural correlates of IPV over two years.

Results

At baseline, 387 SWs had a male, intimate sexual partner and were eligible for this analysis. One-fifth (n = 83, 21.5%) experienced recent physical/sexual IPV at baseline and 26.2% over two-years follow-up. In multivariable GEE analysis, factors independently correlated with physical/sexual IPV in the last six months include: childhood (<18 years) sexual/physical abuse (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.05, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.14–3.69), inconsistent condom use for vaginal and/or anal sex with intimate partner (AOR = 1.84, 95% CI: 1.07–3.16), <daily prescription opioid use (AOR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.02–2.89), providing financial support to intimate partner (AOR = 1.65, 95% CI: 1.05–2.59), and sourcing drugs from intimate partner (AOR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.02–2.26).

Discussion

Our results demonstrate that over one-fifth of SWs in Vancouver report physical/sexual IPV in the last six months. The socio-structural correlates of IPV uncovered here highlight potential HIV risk pathways through SWs’ intimate, non-commercial partner relationships. The high prevalence of IPV among SWs is a critical public health concern and underscores the need for integrated violence and HIV prevention and intervention strategies tailored to this key population.

Experiences and acceptance of intimate partner violence: associations with sexually transmitted infection symptoms and ability to negotiate sexual safety among young Liberian women

Women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) may be at elevated risk for poor sexual health outcomes, including sexually transmitted infections (STIs). This association, however, has not been consistently demonstrated in low-income or post-conflict countries. Furthermore, the role that attitudes towards IPV play in sexual-health outcomes and behaviour has rarely been examined. We examined associations between IPV experiences, accepting attitudes towards physical IPV, and sexual-health and behavioural outcomes among 592 young women in post-conflict Liberia. Participants' experiences with either moderate or severe physical violence or sexual violence were common. Additionally, accepting attitudes towards physical IPV were positively associated with reporting STI symptoms, IPV experiences and the ability to negotiate safe sex. Findings suggest that for sexual-health-promotion and risk-reduction-intervention efforts to achieve full impact, interventions must address the contextual influence of violence, including individual attitudes toward IPV.

Sexual violence against women: the scope of the problem

Rape and sexual violence occur in all societies, and cut across all social classes. Prevalence estimates of rape victimisation range between 6 and 59% of women having experienced sexual abuse from their husbands or boyfriends in their lifetime. Two population-based studies from South Africa have found that 28% and 37% of men, respectively, have perpetrated rape. Estimates of rape perpetration from high-income countries seem to be lower than those from low- and middle-income countries; however, current data make it impossible to confirm this. Women and girls are much more likely to be the victims and men the perpetrators and, in most instances, the perpetrator is known to the victim. Children are particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse, with girls being at greater risk, especially while at school and at home. High rates of child sexual abuse are emerging from the research, with an increasing understanding of the effect of child sexual abuse on later perpetration and victimisation, highlighting the importance of primary prevention for sexual violence to address childhood exposures to violence. Much of our knowledge about sexual violence has historically been based on research undertaken in high-income countries. This, however, is changing with the emergence of good-quality studies from other settings, particularly in Africa, alongside an increasing number of multi-country studies looking at interpersonal and sexual violence. Most countries lack population data on perpetration of sexual violence, across all categories, including children, and a major gap exists in research on sexual violence among sub-groups and populations. Much of the existing research has limitations that affect cross-study comparability, owing to differences in definitions, research tools, methods and sampling used. Improved research is essential. Research priorities for understanding the magnitude of sexual violence prevalence include assessment of the prevalence and patterns of sexual violence victimisation and perpetration in a range of settings, across a range of acts of sexual violence, in men and women, in adults and children, using methodologies based on best practice in gender-based violence research and standard measures of different forms of sexual violence; research on the social context of sexual violence perpetration and victimisation by both men and women; and methodological research to measure sexual violence for particular population sub-groups or violence types, such as child perpetrators or young child victims, or sexual harassment at work and school.