Intimate partner violence against women in west Ethiopia: a qualitative study on attitudes, woman’s response, and suggested measures as perceived by community members

Reproductive Health

Alemayeh Worku Yalew¹  Mesganaw Fantahun Afework²  Sileshi Garoma Abeya² 

[1] Departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics School of Public Health, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia;Departments of Reproductive Health, Population and Nutrition, School of Public Health, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 9086, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

关键词: Measures;    Coping;    Attitude;    Women violence;    Focus group discussion;   

Others  :  820832
DOI  :  10.1186/1742-4755-9-14

 received in 2012-08-14, accepted in 2012-08-14,  发布年份 2012

【 摘 要 】

Introduction

Intimate partner violence against women is more prevalent in Ethiopia and among the highest in the world. This study was aimed to explore the attitudes of the community on intimate partner violence against women, the strategies women are using after the violence act, and suggested measures to stop or reduce the act in East Wollega Zone.

Methods

A total of 12 focus group discussions involving 55 men and 60 women were conducted from December, 2011 to January, 2012. Discussants were purposefully selected from urban and rural settings of the study area. The analyses followed the procedure for qualitative thematic analysis.

Results

Three themes (attitudes, coping strategies, and suggested measures) were emerged. Most discussants perceived, intimate partner violence is accepted in the community in circumstances of practicing extra marital sex and suspected infidelity. The majority of women are keeping silent and very few defend themselves from the violent husbands/partners. The suggested measures by the community to stop or reduce women’s violence were targeting actions at the level of individual, family, community, and society.

Conclusion

In the study community, the attitude of people and traditional norms influence the acceptability for the act of intimate partner violence against women. Most victims are tolerating the incident while very few are defending themselves from the violent partners. The suggested measures for stopping or reducing women’s violence focused on provision of education for raising awareness at all levels using a variety of approaches targeting different stakeholders. It is recommended that more efforts are needed to dispel myths, misconceptions and traditional norms and beliefs of the community. There is a need for amending and enforcing the existing laws as well as formulating the new laws concerning women violence including rape. Moreover, providing professional help at all levels is essential.

【 授权许可】

   
2012 Abeya et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

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