Prevalence, co-occurrence, and associated factors of intimate partner violence among Brazilian university students

Abstract

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) among youth is a public health problem worldwide because of its high prevalence and lifelong serious consequences in health and quality of life. This cross-sectional census aimed to describe the IPV victimization among all freshman students in a Brazilian university (n=1,509), which was selected from a larger population of 2,706 freshmen. We created a 10-item questionnaire inspired by established instruments to measure the prevalence of IPV. Multivariate logistic regression assessed the association between demographic, socioeconomic, and behavioral factors with various types of IPV. We visualized co-occurrence using a Venn diagram and employed multinomial logistic regression to examine the relationship between covariates and the cooccurrence of IPV types. The chance of IPV was higher in males, those who were currently in a relationship, and those with a higher risk of alcohol abuse. These same characteristics were also associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing the co-occurrence of two or more types of IPV. Prevention strategies should consider those groups and monitoring of those who abuse alcohol, which can be a predictor behavior or a mechanism to deal with the stress arising from IPV.