FINAL - IPV

Question 1

What is IPV? Define the 4 different forms of IPV

Answer 1

IPV refers to abuse or aggression occurring in a romantic relationship > includes current or former partners > can happen to anyone regardless of age, gender, sexuality, etc.

1. Physical Abuse: physical force causing injury, harm, disability, or death
2. Sexual violence: non-consensual sexual acts or attempts to obtain a sexual act through physical force
3. Emotional violence: includes verbal or non-verbal acts that harm their sense of self-worth or emotional well-being (insults, gaslighting, isolation, etc.)
4. Economic abuse: controlling their access to financial resources, limiting their independence

Question 2

What are some facts about IPV (about how many women have experienced IPV in percentage)

Answer 2

• IPV is the most prevalent form of violence against women globally
• about 27% of women have experienced IPV

Question 3

Explain the 2 opposing ways that women’s access to economic resources can impact risk of IPV

Answer 3

1. Reduce their vulnerability to IPV
   - increases bargaining power and power to leave abusive relationships
   - improved self-esteem and autonomy
   - access to supports through work or community participation
2. Increase risk of IPV
   - especially in patriarchal societies
   - men may feel their role as household head is threatened and use violence to reassert control
   - man may feel insecure about a women’s economic success
   - in some cultures, female autonomy is stigmatized

Question 4

Explain the 4 theories that explain the effect of women’s employment on IPV

Answer 4

1. Household Bargaining Model:
   - woman employed > economically independent > better fall-back position > increased bargaining pwr = less tolerant of abuse and decline in IPV
2. Exposure Reduction Theory:
   - employed women spend less time with partners = decline in IPV
3. Male Backlash Model:
   - employed women = threat to gender norms and male supremacy and female dependency in the household > can provoke men to coercively control their partners = increase in IPV
4. Female Guilt Theory:
   - employed women feel guilty for not giving as much of their time to domestic duties > can make them more tolerant of IPV = increase in IPV

Question 5

Explain the factors of women’s employment that can determine its relationship to IPV

Answer 5

1. Quality and nature of the women’s employment:
   - formal employment (contracts, wages, legal right) offers more protection than informal, low-paid, or exploitative work
   - women are only empowered if they have control over their income?
   - working conditions > unsafe, stigmatized, or time-intensive jobs can increase women’s vulnerability
2. Husband’s employment status:
   - if the man lacks stable employment, their masculinity/identity and traditional gender roles may feel threatened, leading to retaliatory violence
3. Household gender norms and decision making power:
   - if the man doesn’t support the women’s work it can lead to conflict

Question 6

Explain how Household Bargaining and Male backlash theory conflict when looking at employment and asset ownership in reducing IPV

Answer 6

Bargaining: when women gain economic resources (employment, assets), their fallback position improves > increases bargaining pwr > easier to exit or negotiate abusive relationships

Male backlash theory: women’s empowerment through economic resources can disrupt traditional pwr hierarchies, leading to increased IPV as men use violence to reassert control

Question 7

Would ownership of house or land (assets) offer more or less security than employment?

Answer 7

More > asset ownership doesn’t vary with the uncertainties of the labour market, also a house can give a woman an immediate escape option

Question 8

List the factors that determine whether empowerment in economic resources reduces or exacerbates IPV

Answer 8

• nature of the resource (income vs. asset)
• control over the resource
• gender norms
• household power dynamics
• how common it is for women to own assets > does it challenge gender norms in that society

Question 9

What is a Dowry? (marriage transfer)

Answer 9

• it is a transfer of wealth (cash, goods, property, etc.) from the bride’s family to the groom’s family at the time of marriage
• not reciprocal > unlike bride price, dowry is usually one-way
• practiced mainly in South Asia: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and parts of Sri Lanka
• it is seen as a means to provide financial security to the bride

Question 10

Explain the relationship between dowry’s and IPV (when does it increase and decrease IPV)?

Answer 10

Decreases IPV if:
- the woman enjoys control of the wealth
- it enhances the social status of the groom and his family

Increases IPV if:
- the woman has no control over it
- it signals a chance that more dowry can be extorted by inflicting violence

Question 11

Explain the 2 different categories of coping strategies in response to intimate partner violence

Answer 11

1. Passive / Emotion-Focused:
   - managing emotional distress rather than confronting or changing the abuse directly
   - settling limits with the abuser (boundaries, avoid topic, reduce interaction)
   - increase engagement with religious activities
   - refocus one’s role within and outside the family (caregiving or community involvement)
   *may reduce psychological harm but don’t stop the violence
2. Active / Problem-Focused:
   - used to change or escape the abusive environment, often requiring external support
   - garnering support from social networks for protection and assistance
   - seeking help from formal institutions > report abuse or seek social services from health workers, police, legal aid, or NGOs
   - separation from the husband > leave the relationships temporarily or permanently