Parental Characteristics and Experience of Intimate Partner Violence Among Young Women in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Background : Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a global public health problem. This study examined the in fl uence of parental background on the experience of IPV by young women in Ibadan, Nigeria. Method : A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the fi ve Local Government Areas of Ibadan metropolis. One thousand and fi fty young women aged between 18 and 24 years were selected using a multistage sampling method to participate in the study. Data was collected using a 28-item semi-structured questionnaire. The independent variables were the parents ' education, marital status, occupation, and mother ' s experience of victimization. The dependent variable was previous experience of physical, sexual, and psychological IPV. A Chi-square test and binary logistic regression were used to test for association. The level of signi fi cance was set at 5%. Results : The majority of young women had experienced psychological IPV (55.0%). Two-thirds of fathers (61.4%) and mothers (62.5%) had completed at least secondary education. More than half (59.4%) of the parents were married. Par-ents ' marital status was signi fi cantly associated with experience of sexual and psychological IPV. While the father ' s employment signi fi cantly increased experience of sexual IPV, the mother ' s employment reduced experience of sexual IPV. Abuse of respondent ' s mothers increased experience of psychological IPV. Conclusion : This study has provided information that parental characteristics such as father ' s employment and mother ' s experience of abuse have a signi fi cant in fl uence on a young woman ' s experience of IPV. Thus, intervention programs among young women should include parents.