Smart phone usage for women’s empowerment to respond against domestic violence in Bangladesh

Abstract

ABSTRACT The role of smart phones for women’s empowerment in the development context is increasingly being discussed in the field of Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) in recent years. Existing studies have investigated the empowering potential of smart phone access both for women's development issues and to prevent domestic violence, a persistent social problem in many developing nations. Considering the importance of smart phone access as a violence prevention tool, this qualitative study aimed to explore the potential of smart phone usage in contributing to women’s empowerment to respond against domestic violence in the context of Bangladesh. The findings revealed that access to smart phone has benefitted women both for their personal and professional developments and raising information awareness about violence prevention in the country. However, women's belief in patriarachal norms, lack of trust on help - seeking agencies and gender play a role in limiting technology integration to respond against violence.