Factors associated with the occurrence of intimate partner violence among women in Central Uganda

Abstract

Background: There have been studies on intimate partner violence (IPV) against married women in Uganda, as there are in many other sub-Saharan nations. The purpose of this study was to identify the correlates of any kind of IPV, including emotional, sexual, and physical IPV, among married women in Uganda. Methodology: The 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) data was used. A weighted sample of 1928 women aged 15-49 years in Central Uganda were selected from the Domestic violence module.Frequency distributions were used to describe the characteristics of respondents.Chi-square tests were used to establish the association between IPV and the explanatory variables. Logistic regression was used to determine the net effect of each explanatory variable on the dependent variables. Results: The study revealed that only 13% of the women had ever experienced intimate partner violence in central Uganda. Bivariate analysis revealed that there was a significant relationship with variables such as age, wealth status, alcoholconsumption and education level. The multivariate revealed that a woman with education is less likely to experience IPV and that a woman with a partner who drinks is about 1.3 times more likely to experience IPV. Conclusion: IPV is all too common among women in Uganda. This necessitates group initiatives to address excessive alcohol use, controlling behaviors and lack awareness on IPV in Uganda. The promotion of interventions aimed at preventing the use of violence and tolerating it in domestic situations is necessary.