Association between Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health Status During Pregnancy: A Survey among Pregnant Women in Calabar, Nigeria

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global threat to women’s health and may be elevated among those exposed to traumatic events in post-conflict settings, such as Liberia. The purpose of this study was to examine potential mediators between lifetime exposure to traumatic events (i.e., war-related trauma, community violence) with recent experiences of IPV among 183 young, pregnant women in Monrovia, Liberia. Hypothesized mediators included mental health (depression, posttraumatic stress symptoms), insecure attachment style (anxious and avoidant attachment), and attitudes indicative of norms of violence (attitudes justifying wife beating). We tested a parallel multiple mediation model using the PROCESS method with bias-corrected and accelerated bootstrapping to test confidence intervals (CI). Results show that 45% of the sample had experienced any physical, sexual, or emotional IPV in their lifetime, and 32% in the 2 months prior to the interview. Exposure to traumatic events was positively associated with recent IPV severity (β = .40, p < .01). Taken together, depression, anxious attachment style, and justification of wife beating significantly mediated the relationship between exposure to traumatic events and experience of IPV (β = .15, 95% CI = [0.03, 0.31]). Only anxious attachment style (β = .07, 95% CI = [0.03, 0.16]) and justification of wife beating (β = .05, 95% CI = [0.01, 0.16]) were identified as individual mediators. This study reinforces pregnancy as an important window for both violence and mental health screening and intervention for young Liberian women. Furthermore, it adds to our theoretical understanding of mechanisms in which long-term exposure to traumatic events may lead to elevated rates of IPV in Liberia, and points to the need for trauma-informed counseling and multilevel gender transformative public health approaches to address violence against women.

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The Influence of Intimate Partner Violence on Pregnancy Symptoms

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/0886260518789902 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 35 (3-4) ◽

pp. 523-541 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Özlem Can Gürkan ◽

Zübeyde Ekşi ◽

Derya Deniz ◽

Hasan Çırçır

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Sexual Abuse ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Physical Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Mental Health Symptoms ◽

Health Symptoms ◽

Economic Abuse

The current literature contains few studies conducted on the effects of intimate partner violence (IPV) on pregnancy symptoms. Does being subjected to IPV during pregnancy increase the incidence of pregnancy-related symptoms? The aim of the present study was to explore the impact of IPV on pregnancy-related symptoms. The study was conducted as comparative, descriptive, and cross-sectional research with a total of 370 participants. Data were collected using the Domestic Violence Against Women Screening Form, the Pregnancy Symptoms Inventory (PSI), and a descriptive questionnaire. The types of IPV the women in the study had experienced during pregnancy were, in order of frequency, verbal abuse (31.1 %; n = 115), economic abuse (25.9 %; n = 96), physical violence (8.4 %; n = 31), and sexual abuse (5.9%; n = 22). The PSI scores for the pregnant women subjected to physical violence related to gastrointestinal system symptoms ( p < .05), cardiovascular system symptoms ( p < .05), mental health symptoms ( p = 0), neurological system symptoms ( p < .05), urinary system symptoms ( p < .01), and tiredness or fatigue ( p = 0); their total PSI scores ( p = 0) were significantly higher statistically than those of women who did not experience physical violence during pregnancy. The scores of the pregnant women subjected to sexual abuse related to mental health symptoms ( p < .05), and their total PSI scores ( p < .05) were significantly higher than those of women who did not experience sexual abuse. The scores of the pregnant women subjected to economic abuse related to tiredness or fatigue ( p < .01) and their mental health symptom scores ( p < .05) were significantly higher than those of women who did not experience economic abuse. Our results showed that women subjected to IPV during pregnancy experienced a higher incidence of pregnancy symptoms.

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Experiences of Intimate Partner and Neighborhood Violence and Their Association With Mental Health in Pregnant Women

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/0886260515613346 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 33 (6) ◽

pp. 938-959 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Veronica Barcelona de Mendoza ◽

Emily W. Harville ◽

Jane Savage ◽

Gloria Giarratano

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Health Outcomes ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Poor Mental Health ◽

Cumulative Exposure ◽

Neighborhood Violence ◽

Probable Depression

Both intimate partner violence and neighborhood crime have been associated with worse mental health outcomes, but less is known about cumulative effects. This association was studied in a sample of pregnant women who were enrolled in a study of disaster exposure, prenatal care, and mental and physical health outcomes between 2010 and 2012. Women were interviewed about their exposure to intimate partner violence and perceptions of neighborhood safety, crime, and disorder. Main study outcomes included symptoms of poor mental health; including depression, pregnancy-specific anxiety (PA), and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Logistic regression was used to examine predictors of mental health with adjustment for confounders. Women who experienced high levels of intimate partner violence and perceived neighborhood violence had increased odds of probable depression in individual models. Weighted high cumulative (intimate partner and neighborhood) experiences of violence were also associated with increased odds of having probable depression when compared with those with low violence. Weighed high cumulative violence was also associated with increased odds of PTSD. This study provides additional evidence that cumulative exposure to violence is associated with poorer mental health in pregnant women.

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The Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on the Mental Health of Pregnant Women Residing in Slum Areas: A Cross-Sectional Study

Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1007/s10389-020-01283-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Khadije Ezzati- Rastegar ◽

Babak Moeini ◽

Forouzan Rezapur-Shahkolai ◽

Asadollah Naghdi ◽

Manoochehr Karami ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

The Impact ◽

Slum Areas

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Interracial Comparisons of Intimate Partner Violence Among Military Perpetrators

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/08862605211031251 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 088626052110312

Author(s):

Denise Espinoza ◽

Roberto Cancio

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Health Status ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Interracial Relationships ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Interracial Couples ◽

Ipv Perpetration ◽

Interracial Violence ◽

Alcohol And Other Drugs

Interracial violence is a high-profile issue in the United States; however, there is little empirical research on interracial intimate partner violence (IPV). Interracial relationships are becoming more common. However, interracial couples continue to face stressors (e.g., discrimination) that likely impact the relationship (e.g., IPV) than their monoracial counterparts. Research indicates that military populations more likely oppose interracial marriages than nonmilitary counterparts. Yet, no study to date has investigated IPV within military monoracial and interracial couples. To understand the intersecting effects of race/ethnicity among military couples, this study investigates male perpetrated IPV in interracial and monoracial relationships. Using structural equation modeling, this study sample contains information about 449 male veterans from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (1994-2008): Waves I and IV. Findings indicate that (a) White and Black veterans are more violent in monoracial relationships, meanwhile, Latino veterans have a higher IPV prevalence in interracial relationships; (b) Black and White veterans were more likely to use alcohol and other drugs (AOD) after IPV perpetration in interracial relationships, in contrast to Latino veterans’ post IPV perpetrations AOD use in monoracial relationships; (c) veteran mental health status was affected after perpetration of IPV, similar to the effects experienced after combat. In an attempt to address the lack of research on the characteristics associated with interracial violence this study addresses the following questions: (a) Are veterans in interracial families more likely to commit IPV and use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) than in monoracial families? (b) Among the military samples, is AOD a facilitator for IPV? (c) How does mental health status affect IPV perpetration?

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