Do determinants of domestic violence differ across regions? Evidence from Asia and Africa

Despite increase in women status, domestic violence against women still remains an emerging problem across nations. In countries across Asia and Africa around 70% - 50% of women respectively are subjected to domestic violence in one form or the other. Domestic violence not only affects the physical well-bring of women but it also has adverse effect on reproductive health outcomes. Most studies have identified individual-level and household-level factors associated with domestic violence. However, predictors of domestic violence transcend these levels into the context into which women act their everyday life. Limited studies have tried to explore determinants of domestic violence across regions or countries. An understanding of factors that shape the behavior between partners is necessary for the development of comprehensive multilevel behavioral and integrated strategies that target both women and men, and attempt to modify social norms to support uptake of behavior change. Using the latest Demographic and Health Survey data from India, Bangladesh, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, this study examines both individual –and community level variables associated with domestic violence.

Community-level variables related to acceptance of violence, age, and educational differences between partners, were calculated. All women from the communities contributed to the community-level variables, whether or not they are in the analysis samples. The multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed using Huber-White standard errors in Stata. This modeling approach corrects the estimated standard errors to allow for clustering of individuals within the communities and to permit an unbiased assessment of the impact of the community-level variables, controlling for individual-level factors. Preliminary results show that age, education, and exposure to some form of violence at some stage in life are common determinants of domestic violence across regions. Policy changes at international, national and regional level needs to be implemented to end domestic violence and improve status of women.