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From the battlefield to the bedroom: a multilevel analysis of the links between political conflict and intimate partner violence in Liberia
Authors: Kelly JTD, Colantuoni E, Robinson C, and Decker MR
Source: BMJ Global Health, 3(2):e000668; DOI: 10.1136/bmjgh-2017-000668
Topic(s): Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)
Country: Africa
  Liberia
Published: APR 2018
Abstract: Objectives: Assess the link between levels of armed conflict and postconflict intimate partner violence (IPV) experienced by women in Liberia. Methods: Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project data were used to measure conflict-related fatalities in districts in Liberia during the country's civil war from 1999 to 2003. These data were linked to individual-level data from the 2007 Demographic and Health Survey, including past-year IPV. Multilevel logistic models accounting for the clustering of women within districts evaluated the relationship of conflict fatalities with postconflict past-year IPV. Additional conflict measures, including conflict events and cumulative years of conflict, were assessed. Results: After adjusting for individual-level characteristics correlated with IPV, residence in a conflict fatality-affected district was associated with a 50% increase in risk of IPV (adjusted OR (aOR): 1.55, 95% CI 1.26 to 1.92). Women living in a district that experienced 4-5 cumulative years of conflict were also more likely to experience IPV (aOR 1.88, 95% CI 1.29 to 2.75). Conclusion: Residing in a conflict-affected district even 5 years after conflict was associated with postconflict IPV. Policy implications: Recognising and preventing postconflict IPV violence is important to support long-term recovery in postconflict settings. KEYWORDS: cross-sectional survey; public health
Web: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5898300/