Health consequences of intimate partner violence against married women: a population-based study in northern Iran

Abstract

The effects of different types of intimate partner violence (IPV) on mental health are understudied. The aim of this study was to analyse the association between women's mental health and physical, psychological and sexual IPV. We invited subjects of a population-based survey conducted in 2015 in Rasht, Iran, on IPV against women to complete the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28). The present research study is a secondary study based on these data and archival data from the 2015 study. For analysis, multivariate analysis of covariance was used. Additionally, predictors of IPV were evaluated using linear regression. A total of 2091 married women were surveyed. The participants were divided into abused women (n = 512, 24.5%) and non-abused women (n = 1579, 75.5%). The pattern of IPV among our patients showed more instances of psychological aggression than physical assault, sexual coercion or injury. Our results show that the non-psychotic psychiatric disorders of the victims were significantly impaired in all aspects, including somatic symptoms, anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction, and depression. Except social dysfunction, the psychological and sexual abuse were significant predictors of other aspects of mental health. Our findings suggest that risk of IPV is high in this population. They also indicate that various forms of abuse are different from each other in terms of predicting a victim's mental health. Different strategies may be required to reduce and prevent this violence. Additional research is needed to confirm and expand upon our findings.

Intimate partner violence, predictors and consequences; a gender difference study

“…We found that among forms of IPV, experiencing severe combined victimization had the strongest effect on subsequent substance use in females and harassment was not a robust predictor of males' substance use disorder. This finding supports other research's findings (e.g., 159,315,323,324,326) that different types of IPV have different consequences. However, caution must be applied when interpreting these results, as forms of abuse co-occur and it is difficult to distinguish their tangled effects (329).…”

“…while characteristics of a sample (e.g., clinical or selective versus representative samples) may affect the magnitude of association between IPV and alcohol use/abuse (131), some previous longitudinal studies have not included population-based samples.Fourth: although some studies -mostly cross-sectional-have suggested different consequences of different types and patterns of IPV(159,315,(323)(324)(325)(326), our knowledge about the differential effects of forms of IPV on victims' substance abuse is limited.…”

Domains of common mental disorders in women reporting intimate partner violence

“…Individuals with mental disorders also present the aggravation of having impaired social relationships ( 33 ) . Thus, common psychiatric disorders in victims of intimate partner violence may include somatic symptoms, anxiety, insomnia, social dysfunction and depression ( 34 ) .…”

“…Another study with 2,091 women showed that when it comes to the pattern of intimate partner violence, psychological aggression is more frequent than physical aggression, sexual coercion or injury ( 34 ) .…”

“…The domains of common mental disorders in victims of intimate partner violence were significantly affected in the following aspects: somatic symptoms anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction and depression. Psychological and sexual abuse were predictors of all these aspects of mental health, except for social dysfunction ( 34 ) .…”