Prevalence and Risk Factors of Intimate Partner Violence among Indian Women: A Secondary Data Analysis of NFHS-4

Abstract

Background: During the last few decades, violence towards women in general, and intimate partner violence (IPV) in particular, is increasingly being acknowledged as a violation of basic human rights and it is recognized as the consequential barricade of the empowerment of women. Objectives: To determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with IPV. Methodology: This study used a nationally representative data collected through NFHS-4 (2015-2016). In total 66013 ever married women aged 15-49 were analysed. Multiple logistic regression model was used to quantify the factors associated with IPV. Result: The prevalence of women ever confronting IPV in India was 29.5 per cent. It was also found that less severe violence was most prevalent accounting for 27.5% whereas severe violence was 8.2 percent. Prevalence of IPV was higher among women who were uneducated, in the middle age group, who had older partners, from rural background; those with uneducated partners, who themselves and their partners drink alcohol, who are unemployed themselves and have unemployed partners, poorest compared to richest, who justify wife beating compared to who do not, who had witnessed their father beating their mother compared to who did not and all these factors were found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: Prevalence of IPV in India is considerably lower compared to other developing countries. Factors like alcohol consumption of partner, education level of respondents as well as partners, past exposure to violence, justified wife beating and wealth index which are linked to IPV which need to be tackled to bring down the prevalence of IPV.