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Domestic Violence and Abortion Among Rural Women in Four Indian States
Authors: Rob Stephenson, Apoorva Jadhav, Amy Winter, Michelle Hindin
Source: Violence Against Women, 22(13):1642-1658; doi: 10.1177/1077801216630148 1077801216630148
Topic(s): Abortion
Domestic violence
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)
Country: Asia
  India
Published: NOV 2016
Abstract: The prevalence of domestic violence and abortion in India is high, yet little is known about the relationship between these experiences. Data from two linked data sets, India’s 1998-1999 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-2) and a follow-up survey in 2002-2003, were analyzed. The analysis examines how the experience of physical violence affects the subsequent uptake of abortion, and how the experience of abortion affects subsequent experience of physical, sexual, and verbal violence. Women who experienced physical violence have significantly higher odds of reporting a subsequent induced abortion, whereas women who had an induced abortion have significantly higher odds of reporting subsequent sexual and verbal violence. There was no significant relationship between domestic violence and spontaneous abortion. Keywords: domestic violence, intimate partner violence, abortion, women, rural, India