Exploring risk factors associated with intimate partner violence in Vietnam: results from a cross-sectional national survey.

Abstract

Empirical evidence documents that some risk factors for intimate partner violence (IPV) are similar across contexts, while others differ considerably. In Vietnam, there was a need to investigate risk factors for IPV to support evidence-based policy and programming. Using the dataset gathered in the 2010 National Study on Domestic Violence against Women, forty variables were explored in logistic regression analysis, including socio-demographic characteristics of women and their husbands, other experiences with violence, husband's behaviours, family support, and context-specific variables such as the sex of their children. Fifteen independent factors remained strongly associated with IPV. Significant risk was associated with husbands' behaviour that supports male power (extra-marital relationships; fighting with other men) and alcohol use. Violence experienced in childhood increased the likelihood of women experiencing and of men perpetrating IPV. Notable was further the association with women's higher financial contribution to the household and lack of association with not having sons. The findings support theories describing how underlying gender and power imbalance are fundamental causes of IPV and indicate the need for context-specific interventions.