Women's socioeconomic status and attitudes toward intimate partner violence in Eswatini: A multilevel analysis

Unspoken Pain: Exploring Spousal Violence and Its Associated Risk Factors Among Married Women of Reproductive Age in Rural Chengalpattu District

Background Spousal violence is a critical public health issue in India, with profound physical, psychological, and sexual consequences, particularly among married women of reproductive age in rural areas, where the risk is alarmingly high. The aim of the study is to assess various forms of spousal violence, its associated factors, and the pathways leading to different forms of abuse among women of reproductive age residing in the selected rural area of Chengalpattu District, Tamil Nadu. Methodology A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 250 married women of reproductive age. The participants were selected using systematic random sampling from a prepared line list. Data were collected from a sample of 250 women through face-to-face interviews using the Indian Family Violence and Control Scale (IFVCS), and multivariate logistic regression analysis and path analysis were performed using SPSS v25 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, US). Results Multivariate analysis identified regular alcohol consumption of husbands and spousal violence had the highest odds for all three forms of spousal violence: psychological violence (odds ratio (OR) = 5.15, 95% CI: 2.62-10.11), physical violence (OR = 6.6, 95% CI: 3.29-13.23), and sexual violence (OR = 2.89, 95% CI: 1.09-7.69). Other factors, such as nuclear families and lower socioeconomic status, were found to be significantly more vulnerable. Path analysis indicated that psychological violence often precedes physical and sexual violence, with alcohol consumption acting as a key trigger. Conclusion Women often face multiple interrelated forms of violence, with significant determinants including husbands' alcohol use, nuclear families, and lower socioeconomic status. Therefore, a multifaceted strategy is needed to prevent this threat.

Socio-economic determinants of intimate-partner physical violence among women in South Africa

Introduction

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is a worldwide public health and human rights problem that occurs in various forms which includes physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. It is commonly perpetrated by the male intimate partner. This phenomenon cuts across the global South regions, including South Africa. In South Africa, women bear the brunt of intimate-partner physical violence, there is a need to reduce femicide and highlight the preponderance of intimate-partner physical violence in South Africa.

Methods

The main objective is to explore the socio-economic determinants of IPV among women in South Africa. Data are drawn from the 2016 South Africa Demographic and Health Survey 2016. The total sample (8,514) of women aged 15-49 years was selected and interviewed for domestic violence. The sampling method used for the survey conducted was a stratified sample selected in two stages, with enumeration areas (EA) as the sampling units for the first stage. Univariate analysis was performed to show the distribution of the variables in the study followed by bivariate analysis (Pearson's chi-square statistics) showing the relationship between individual variables and the dependent variable.

Results

Using multivariate analysis (Binary regression model) to determine the socio-economic variables revealed the significance of p < 0.01-p < 0.04, p < 0.005-p < 0.009 and p < 0.005, associated with the dependent variable while controlling for the effects of other variables. The results revealed significant Odds Ratios (ORs) that highest educational attainment, ORs (1.565), wealth index, ORs (poorer = 0.883, middle = 0.924), employment status ORs (1.073), current marital status, ORs (married = 0.425, living together = 0.479, divorced/separated = 0.422), and justifying wife-beating ORs (yes = 3.030).

Conclusion

This shows the need for policymakers to address physical violence by placing an emphasis on formulation of programmes and policies that empower women through education, employment, and political participation.

The wording matters: Gender equality laws and women's attitudes towards domestic violence in Africa

In this paper, we documented the association between specific wordings regarding domestic violence within gender equality laws and women's attitudes towards domestic violence in African countries. To do so, we used data on the longitudinal Demographic and Health Survey conducted between 2003 and 2018, and we empirically conducted a difference-in-differences analysis that captures variations in the country and timing of the inclusion of specific wordings addressing domestic violence in the legislative framework that encompasses the general principle of gender equality. The empirical analysis showed that the inclusion of a specific article criminalizing domestic violence within a country's general gender equality law contributed to a statistically significant and substantial decrease in the likelihood of women deeming wife-beating behaviors justifiable. We further conducted an analysis of heterogeneity by socioeconomic status, as defined by urban status, wealth, literacy, and access to information; we found that the association between laws' wordings and attitudes towards domestic violence appeared statistically significant and sizeable in all socioeconomic groups.