Abstract
BackgroundStudies from many contexts indicate that proximity to conflict is associated with increased likelihood of intimate partner violence (IPV), and girl child marriage is associated with both proximity to conflict and increased IPV. In this study, we consider whether girl child marriage acts as a mediator of the association between proximity to conflict and IPV in the context of Sri Lanka, which sustained long-term conflict until 2009.MethodsWe analyzed responses of currently partnered women between ages 18 and 49 in the 2016 Sri Lankan Demographic and Health Survey (N = 13,691). Using logistic regression analyses, we measured associations between proximity to conflict (residence in districts which were central, proximal, or distal to the regions where the war occurred) and the outcomes of IPV and girl child marriage, and secondarily assessed girl child marriage as a possible mediator of the association between proximity to conflict and past year IPV.ResultsWomen residing in districts central to conflict, as compared to districts distal to conflict, had increased odds of past year sexual, physical, and emotional IPV, with the odds of sexual IPV increasing the most (adjusted odds ratio/aOR 4.19, 95% confidence interval/CI 2.08–8.41). Residing in districts proximal to conflict compared to those distal to conflict was associated with lower odds of past year physical and emotional IPV, with the greatest decrease in emotional IPV (aOR 0.31, CI 0.18–0.54). Girl child marriage was more likely in districts central to conflict as opposed to those distal to conflict (aOR 1.89, CI 1.22–2.93), and partially mediated the relationship between centrality to conflict and IPV.ConclusionsOur findings demonstrate that residing in districts central to conflict compared to those distal to conflict is associated with greater odds of IPV and girl child marriage in post-conflict Sri Lanka, with girl child marriage partially mediating the association between centrality to conflict and IPV. Residence in districts proximal to conflict appears protective against IPV. Future research should investigate what factors are responsible for decreased IPV in districts proximal to violence, and whether these factors can be reproduced to mitigate the increased prevalence of IPV in districts central to conflict.
Highlights
Studies from many contexts indicate that proximity to conflict is associated with increased likelihood of intimate partner violence (IPV), and girl child marriage is associated with both proximity to conflict and increased IPV
Analyzing the 2016 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data from Sri Lanka, we tested four hypotheses: (1) women in districts central to conflict will have increased odds of past year sexual, physical, and emotional IPV compared to women in districts distal to conflict; (2) women in districts central to conflict will have increased odds of having married as a child compared to women in districts distal to conflict; (3) women who married as children will have increased odds of past year sexual, physical, and emotional IPV compared to women married as adults; and (4) having married as a child will mediate the associations between proximity to conflict and past year IPV experience
Women who married as children had increased odds of past year sexual, physical, and emotional IPV compared to women who married as adults, and girl child marriage partially mediated the associations between proximity to conflict and past year IPV experience
Summary
Studies from many contexts indicate that proximity to conflict is associated with increased likelihood of intimate partner violence (IPV), and girl child marriage is associated with both proximity to conflict and increased IPV. The 2016 Sri Lankan Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), administered seven years after the end of the war, highlighted past year IPV prevalence rates of over 50% in multiple districts central to the conflict areas, providing evidence of a possible association between conflict exposure and IPV [16]. This possible association has been further supported by unpublished analyses of DHS data which considered conflict exposure as a binary variable. This possible association has been further supported by unpublished analyses of DHS data which considered conflict exposure as a binary variable. [17]
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