Knowledge and attitudes of antenatal mothers towards intimate partner violence in the Gambia: A cross-sectional study.

Abstract

Intimate partner violence is a severe public health and human rights issue that 1 in 3 women experience in their lifetime. A woman's knowledge and attitudes towards intimate partner violence might influence her experience of violence from an intimate partner. This study aimed at analysing the knowledge and attitudes of antenatal mothers towards intimate partner violence. This study employed a descriptive cross-sectional technique. Pregnant women seeking antenatal care were selected from 6 public healthcare facilities in the Gambian Upper River Region (URR). We used the single proportion formula to calculate the sample size, which was 373 women. Data were entered, cleaned and analysed using SPSS version 21.Majority of the participants had good knowledge about IPV (77%). The most common intimate partner violence known to the women was denial of money to hurt her (80.2%). Only 58% of the women knew that a male partner's insistence on knowing their whereabouts at all times and expecting them to seek permission before accessing healthcare is a form of violence. Eighty-seven per centof the participants had a negative attitude towards IPV (i.e., they were not precisely against the stated forms of violence perpetrated by their partners). When asked about what would warrant them to leave their partners, 67% claimed they would never leave their partners despite facing violence. According to 36% of the respondents, women stay in abusive marriages because of their children.Despite the relatively high knowledge of pregnant women on IPV, their attitudes tell a different story, which is: acceptance of violent behaviours from their partners. More work needs to be done to sensitise women on their rights not to be violated and engage the whole society in changing the social norms unfavourable to them.