Factors associated with non-lethal violent victimization in Sweden in 2004-2007

Abstract

Aims: To examine which factors were associated with non-lethal violent victimization in Sweden in the period 2004 to 2007.

Methods: Data come from the Swedish National Public Health Surveys, undertaken annually between 2004 and 2007. A total of 29,923 randomly selected respondents aged 16 to 84 from across Sweden responded to a mailed questionnaire. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine which independent variables were associated with having experienced violence in the previous 12 months.

Results: Male and female respondents who were younger, single, lacking in social capital and who engaged in harmful alcohol consumption were significantly more likely to have been subject to violence. Furthermore, men who were in the lower income groups or who were Nordic, and women who were of a non-European origin, were also significantly more likely to have been victimized.

Conclusions: The risk of non-lethal violent victimization is not spread equally throughout Swedish society. Specifically, those who are socially and/or economically disadvantaged are much more likely to experience violence. This highlights the importance of working to reverse the growing inequality that has occurred in Sweden in recent years that continues to be linked to the risk of being a victim of non-lethal violence.