SEARCHCROSS-SECTIONALpublic health, epidemiology

cross-sectional·public health, epidemiology, nutrition, obstetrics and gynecology, family medicine·PMC10631639

Intimate partner violence and malnutrition among women of reproductive age in Western Africa: A geostatistical analysis

PLOS Global Public Health · 8 authors, 5 centres

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TL;DR

This cross-sectional study used a geostatistical model to analyze data from ten West African countries and found a spatial clustering and an association between women's experiences of intimate partner violence and being underweight.

Full summary

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This study analyzed data from the latest Demographic and Health Surveys in ten West African countries using a bivariate probit geostatistical model with Bayesian inference. The central finding is a positive association between women's lifetime experiences of physical, sexual, or emotional intimate partner violence (IPV) and undernutrition (underweight or thinness), with spatial clustering of this co-occurrence identified in regions of Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and neighboring countries. The analysis also identified several protective factors, including higher education, greater household wealth, employment, urban residence, and exposure to mass media. The implications are that interventions to address IPV and malnutrition should be geographically targeted and focus on holistic women's empowerment in educational, economic, and socio-cultural domains.

STUDY TYPE

cross-sectional

SPECIALTY

public health

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ORIGINAL PAPER

PMC10631639

Intimate partner violence and malnutrition among women of reproductive age in Western Africa: A geostatistical analysis

PLOS Global Public Health

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ABSTRACT

Abstract Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health issue, and the experience varies among population sub-groups in Africa. In the West African sub-region, IPV perpetrated against women remains high and is exacerbated by the pertaining cultural milieu. It affects women’s health, wellbeing, and nutritional status. We examined the association between women’s lifetime experiences of physical, sexual, and emotional IPV and undernutrition by quantifying the association at smaller geographical settings in West African countries. We used a bivariate probit geostatistical technique to explore the association between IPV and undernutrition, combining data from the latest Demographic and Health Survey conducted in ten Western African countries. Bayesian inference relies on Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation. The findings demonstrate spatial clustering in the likelihood of experiencing IPV and being underweight in the regions of Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia and neighboring Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cameroon, and Nigeria. The pattern of clustering was somewhat similar when physical violence was combined with underweight and emotional violence combined with underweight. The findings also indicate protective effects of education, wealth status, employment status, urban residence, and exposure to mass media. Further, the likelihood of experiencing IPV and the likelihood of being underweight or thin declined with age and age-gap between the woman and her partner. The findings provide insight into the location-specific variations that can aid targeted interventions, and underscore the importance of empowering women holistically, in the domains of education, socio-economic and socio-cultural empowerment, in addressing women’s vulnerability to IPV and malnutrition (underweight and thinness). Furthermore, IPV prevention programmes will need to address gender inequality and cultural factors such as male dominance that may heighten women’s risk of experiencing IPV.

CITATION EXPORT

Ezra Gayawan, Endurance Uzobo, Dorothy N Ononokpono et al.. Intimate partner violence and malnutrition among women of reproductive age in Western Africa: A geostatistical analysis. PLOS Global Public Health. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0002354

AUTHORS

8 · 5 CENTRES

Ezra Gayawan, Endurance Uzobo, Dorothy N Ononokpono, Olabimpe B Aladeniyi, Fidelia A A Dake, Jayanta Kumar Bora, Jayanta Kumar Bora, Jayanta Kumar Bora

1Department of Statistics, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
2Department of Sociology, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Amassoma, Nigeria
3Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria
4Regional Institute for Population Studies, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana
5VART Consulting PVT LTD, INDIA