Sociodemographic determinants of child mortality based on mothers' attitudes toward partner violence: Evidence from Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh, a lower-middle-income country in South Asia, has achieved a significant reduction in child mortality over the last three decades from 151 to 40 per 1000 live births. However, child mortality is still considered high, which may be attributed to a lack of awareness among mothers regarding the risk factors, particularly their perceptions of intimate partner violence (IPV). To investigate the effect of demographic and socioeconomic factors of women on child mortality, this study extracted data from the cross-sectional survey of Bangladesh Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2019. The data were analyzed using a Poisson regression model to assess women's perceptions and exposure to physical violence in the last three years preceding the survey and their impact on the risk of child mortality. The results indicated that approximately 26% of the participants justified domestic violence under certain circumstances. Moreover, the prevalence of child mortality was higher among those who thought that IPV is acceptable than among those who considered such violence to be unjustified. Among women who are strongly averse to partner violence, the risk of child mortality was significantly lower in those who had higher levels of education, higher household income, internet usage experience, first child at 20 years or later, frequent access to mass media, and one or two children ever born. Moreover, child mortality rates also varied across geographical areas, with children from Sylhet and Mymenshing being the most vulnerable. The data indicates women's intolerable attitudes toward partner violence not only improve their status but also increase the survival chances of their young children.

Keywords: Bangladesh; Child mortality; Demographic and socioeconomic factors; Partner violence.

Fig. 1

Flow chart for the selection of the study participants, MICS-2019.