Prevalence and risk factors for intimate partner violence among married female adolescents in Busia District in Western Kenya

Abstract

For more than a decade, Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), also referred to as domestic violence or spouse abuse, has been recognized as major global public health problem, as well as serious human rights abuse. This study assessed the prevalence and risk factors for Intimate Partner Violence among Married Female Adolescents in Busia District in Western Kenya. To measure the prevalence of IPV, the study questionnaire borrowed from the Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS) (Straus, 1990; Straus, 1979), which includes questions that ask women whether their current or most recent (if divorced, separated, or widowed) husband/partner ever perpetrated any of a series of behaviorally specific acts of physical or sexual violence. Purposeful sampling was done and both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection were used. The study revealed that sexual and physical violence is wide spread among married female adolescents in Busia district. 66.5 percent of the sampled population reported having experienced physical and sexual violence or either of the two forms of violence from their spouse within the past 12 months compared to the national prevalence of 39.0 percent (KDRS, 2008) for women between 15-49yrs. A multiplicity of factors at individual, relational, community and societal levels were found to protect or put married female adolescents to a risk of partner violence.