Influence of Individual- and National-Level Factors on Attitudes toward Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

The study evaluated if individual-and national-level factors influence intimate partner violence (IPV) attitudes. Using Demographic and Health Surveys' data, multilevel modeling was used to analyze 506,935 females nested in 41 nations. The results indicated that the respondents in nations with higher levels of gender inequality, measured by the Social Institutions and Gender Index, were more likely to agree a husband is justified to abuse his wife when she argues with him. National-level attitudes toward IPV and decision making at the individual level were significant predictors of IPV attitudes. The presence of another female while the survey was administered and differences across nations in question wording significantly affected IPV attitudes. The results confirm that both individual-and national-level factors shape individual IPV attitudes. National policies and programming should address gender inequality and patriarchal attitudes.

Public Helping Reactions to Intimate Partner Violence against Women in European Countries: The Role of Gender-Related Individual and Macrosocial Factors

“…Third, results suggested that countries with higher gender equality (i.e., equality between women and men in quality of knowledge, work, money, power, health, and time) were more likely to provide formal help, but no effects on informal and negative helping reactions to IPVAW were found. Substantial empirical data support the notion that IPVAW prevalence [ 3 , 13 , 39 ], as well as the justification of IPVAW [ 46 , 75 ], is significantly rooted in a gender inequality or larger power distance societies [ 34 ], however to our knowledge, we provide the first support linking gender-related macrosocial structural gender equality and the formal reaction to IPVAW within the European context. This result is particularly important because it reflects that living in a society that promotes and, indeed, consolidates gender equality by means of different domains (e.g., economy, political representation, and health status) models people’s helping attitudes and behaviors, specifically, those officially promoted by the government [ 76 ].…”

Attitudes towards domestic violence in 49 low- and middle-income countries: A gendered analysis of prevalence and country-level correlates

“…There is a growing body of research, including some multi-country studies, on the structure of attitudes to DV at the individual or household level in low-and middle-income countries [ 2 – 12 , 18 – 21 ]. However, there is little cross-national country-level evidence [ 22 , 23 ] on how social, economic and political empowerment strategies, accepted as indicators of gender (in)equality influence the societal acceptability of DV. At the macro-level, Heise’s social ecological framework references gender norms including the acceptance of DV, systems that privilege men’s entitlement, rigid gender roles, masculinities linked to aggression and dominance, and honour as important drivers of violence against women [ 17 , 24 , 25 ].…”

Individual and societal risk factors of attitudes justifying intimate partner violence against women: a multilevel cross-sectional study

“…Most of multicountry studies have focused on studying sociodemographic variables (eg, sex, age, marital status, residential area, education, number of children, working status, wealth status) at the individual and gender inequality at the country level. [16][17][18][19] Gender inequality, a set of structural features (eg, women and men's literacy, political power, health status, working status) which indicate gender power asymmetries in a country, have been linked to attitudes justifying IPVAW in different ways. Two studies showed that individuals in countries with higher levels of gender inequality were more likely to justify or accept IPVAW, 9 16 but others did not find such effect.…”