Abstract
Violence against women is often referred to as gender-based based violence because of its association with the subordinate status of women in many societies. It includes intimate partner violence (IPV), a term often used interchangeably with spousal violence. This may comprise physical violence, the most common form of IPV, as well as sexual, emotional and financial abuse. Husbands are more often the perpetrators and women bear the heavy burden of such abuse. IPV is a serious, costly and widespread problem. It has multiple adverse physical, mental and social impacts for women, children and families, communities and societies (Campbell 2002; Coker et al. 2000, 2002; Ellsberg et al. 2008; Garcia-Moreno et al. 2006; Watts and Zimmerman 2002). The reproductive health consequences may often include unintended pregnancies and poor pregnancy outcomes, as well as more hospitalizations, greater use of outpatient care for acute problems, and less preventive care (Cronholm et al. 2011). Physical violence has also been associated with a range of common gynecological disorders such as fibroids, decreased libido, chronic pelvic pain, pain on intercourse, urinary tract, vaginal, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) (Letourneau et al. 1999).
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Notes
- 1.
In addition to physical abuse, other types of IPV are sexual violence (including sexual harassment and rape), emotional violence (including insults, shouts, intimidation, and restrictions on contacts with family and friends), and economic violence (including being forced to borrow money, to work, or to give income to someone else).
- 2.
In the MENA region, only Yemeni women are more likely to marry at a younger age and to have higher adolescent fertility. In 1997, their median age at first marriage was as low as 16.0 years and as many as 39 % of women had started childbearing by age 19 (Sunil and Pillai 2010).
- 3.
In 2005, 96 % of ever-married women age 15–49 were circumcised. Six in ten ever-married Egyptian women ages 15–49 believed that female circumcision is required by religious precepts and that the husband prefers the wife to be circumcised, and over half thought that it prevented adultery. Few women recognize potential adverse consequences; only 13 % perceived that circumcision makes childbirth more difficult (El-Zanaty and Way 2006). The 2008 EDHS indicated declines in female circumcision rates among the youngest women ages 15–19 and in support for the practice among ever-married women. Beyond Egypt, female genital cutting is common in parts of western, eastern, and north-eastern Africa; in parts of Arabian Peninsula; and among migrants from these areas.
- 4.
The 2005 EDHS also collected data about physical violence committed by a non-spouse against the woman since she was 15 years old, but did not collect data on violence committed by women against their husbands.
- 5.
In total, almost one-fifth (19 %) of all ever-married women interviewed in the survey still thought burning the food is sufficient justification for being hit or beaten by a husband, although this was about half the level of toleration for wife-beating in each of the other situations.
- 6.
The index of female participation in household decision-making is not included in the multivariate analysis due to high multicollinearity between predictor variables, especially with the ‘beating index.’
- 7.
For example, a study of Indian women who experienced such abuse found they were significantly less likely to seek ANC (Ahmed et al. 2006).
- 8.
Some women may also not report the abuse if they think that they can find a solution to the problem, that it would not happen again, that their husband would abandon them and that they may lose custody of children, or for other reasons.
- 9.
It has been suggested that many Lebanese women would likely welcome increased involvement of health care providers, such as through offering clinical screening and inquiring about IPV.
This could be a “socially accepted way to break the silence,” helping to prevent the worst abuses and possibly heralding other improvements in the situation for women (Usta et al. 2012).
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Kulczycki, A. (2014). Prevalence, Attitudes, Risk Factors, and Selected Health-Related Outcomes Associated with Spousal Physical Violence During Pregnancy in Egypt. In: Kulczycki, A. (eds) Critical Issues in Reproductive Health. The Springer Series on Demographic Methods and Population Analysis, vol 33. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6722-5_3
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