Intimate partner violence against South Asian women in greater Boston

Abstract

Objectives: to identify the prevalence of male-perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV) against South Asian women (Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Maldive Islanders) residing in Greater Boston; to identify forms of abuse, abuse-related injuries, and help-seeking behaviors of South Asian women reporting IPV; and to assess the relationship between current IPV victimization and history of nonpartner abuse, acculturation, and victim-blaming attitudes.

Methods: A community-based volunteer sample of South Asian women (n=160) in relationships with male partners participated in a cross-sectional study of women's health. Participants were recruited via community outreach (eg, fliers, snowball sampling, referrals) and were interviewed in person by trained South Asian women.

Results: Participants were 18 to 62 years old (mean age=31.6) and predominantly immigrant (87.5%); 74.4% were married, 51.6% had children, and 71.9% had family incomes of more than $2100 per month. Forty percent of the sample reported physical IPV, sexual IPV, or injury/need for medical services due to IPV from current male partners; few women (9.4%) who reported ever experiencing IPV from current male partners reported no abuse in the past year. Twice as many participants reported needing to see a doctor for abuse-related injuries, but not seeing one (6.3%), as actually seeing a doctor (3.1%). Only 11.3% of women reporting IPV reported having received any counseling related to the abuse. Other variables assessed were not related to abuse in current relationships.

Conclusion: Domestic violence is a serious and highly prevalent concern among this group of South Asian women. Their knowledge of available services is limited, and victim-blaming attitudes are not uncommon. Culturally tailored domestic violence services and IPV education are needed for this underserved population.