Women's and Men's Relative Status and Intimate Partner Violence in India

Abstract

In recent years, gender‐based violence in South Asia has been of great concern to scholars and policymakers alike. This study explores the effects of women's relative resources on several dimensions of intimate partner violence in India, and tests whether economic resources allow women to “bargain” for less violence, or exacerbate the violence they face. To explore both possibilities, I use data from the 2005–06 Indian National Family Health Survey. The findings indicate that women with relatively higher education, employment, or earnings status than their spouse face more frequent and severe violence than women with lower status. Together, these findings suggest that women's superior material power bases threaten patriarchal norms and are responded to with the use of violence.

Age at Marriage and Women's Labour Market Outcomes in India

“…In India, in particular, the prevalence of male backlash effect has been documented in some sociological studies. Weitzman (), for example, using data from the National Family Health Survey 2005–2006, finds that education makes married India women more vulnerable to male backlash. Also, in a recent report by the philanthropic organization Dasra (), similar findings have been noted.…”

Cooperative Decision‐Making and Intimate Partner Violence in Peru

“…Women's education and paid labor are often theorized to reduce the risk of intimate partner violence by enhancing women's decision‐making power within and outside of a relationship (Kabeer ). Increases in women's financial and social resources can reduce economic dependence on a male partner, enabling them to use credible threats to leave a violent relationship or withhold resources (McElroy and Horney , as cited by Weitzman ). Bargaining theory is at heart economic, and sees power in intimate relationships as reflected by resource allocation on the micro level.…”

“…Chambers () and Mitchell () suggest that labor force participation, education, income, and asset ownership have gender‐coded meanings that manifest relationally. Gender deviance neutralization posits that when partners deviate from traditional gender roles (e.g., male breadwinner/female caretaker), men and women tend to compensate by intensifying traditionally gendered behaviors (Weitzman ). Rather than seeing gendered relationships and IPV as a simple reflection of material resource allocation within a household, gender deviance neutralization sees IPV emerging from norm transgression and norm reification.…”

“…For example, bargaining frameworks assume that women's improved economic or social standing in the household leads to greater power in the relationship, greater ability to influence household decisions and resource distribution (Hoddinott and Haddad ; Doss ), higher self‐esteem, and the ability to leave or threaten to leave relationships that become violent (Friedemann‐Sánchez ). Yet, recent research (Weitzman ) has shown that factors assumed to empower women (e.g., higher education and earnings) are also linked with a higher prevalence of partner abuse when such attainments exceed those of a male partner. While increased bargaining power may reduce women's risk of partner abuse, such increases in women's status may also be interpreted as a threat to norms surrounding male‐dominated households to which men respond violently.…”

Prevalence and predictors of help-seeking for women exposed to spousal violence in India – a cross-sectional study

“…Many studies of IPV in India have assessed the prevalence and risk factors for IPV [19, 36–40] but there have been few studies addressing the predictors of help-seeking for IPV in Indian women. Knowledge of the factors which are associated with seeking help for IPV in India is necessary to address the problem and plan interventions.…”