NCJ Number
228682
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 24 Issue: 8 Dated: November 2009 Pages: 569-575
Date Published
November 2009
Length
7 pages
Annotation
A total of 356 women, ages 18-49, who visited public health clinics in the governorate of Balka, Jordan, were interviewed in order to determine their attitudes toward intimate partner violence (IPV) and related factors, as well as the prevalence of various types of IPV experienced by the women.
Abstract
The study found that 87 percent of the women reported various types of IPV experienced in the last 12 months. The most common types were emotional abuse (47.5 percent), followed by wife-beating (19.6 percent). Almost one-third of the respondents believed that violence against married women by their husbands was justified. Similar to other studies, but contrary to the expectations of the current study, acceptance of wife-beating was linked with respondents' older age, younger age at marriage, and duration of the marriage. Unlike many other studies in developing countries, this study found that women's education was not a predictor of attitudes toward domestic violence. One explanation offered for this finding is that cultural factors or norms that condone women's inferior status relative to men neutralize any effect of education on women's views of IPV. These findings suggest the need for mounting efforts to change social norms and cultural beliefs that encourage IPV, which includes empowering women through improved access to employment outside the home. Systematic random selection was used to choose health centers in which the study was conducted. A structured questionnaire was designed specifically for this study. It collected data on the prevalence of IPV among the women and their attitudes toward domestic violence. The questionnaire was administered in private face-to-face interviews during August 2006. 2 tables, 1 figure, and 46 references