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Cited by 85Intimate Partner and Family ViolenceSubstance Abuse Treatment and OutcomesSexual Assault and Victimization Studies

Alcohol use and intimate partner violence among women and their partners in sub-Saharan Africa

Open access
Greene, M. C., Kane, J. C., Tol, W. A.·2017·Global Mental Health
DOI 10.1017/gmh.2017.9PMC PMC5719482
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Alcohol use is a well-documented risk factor for intimate partner violence (IPV); however, the majority of research comes from high-income countries. METHODS: Using nationally representative data from 86 024 women that participated in the Demographic and Health Surveys, we evaluated the relationship between male partner alcohol use and experiencing IPV in 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Using multilevel mixed-effects models, we calculated the within-country, between-country, and contextual effects of alcohol use on IPV. RESULTS: Prevalence of partner alcohol use and IPV ranged substantially across countries (3-62 and 11-60%, respectively). Partner alcohol use was associated with a significant increase in the odds of reporting IPV for all 14 countries included in this analysis. Furthermore, the relationship between alcohol use and IPV, although largely explained by partner alcohol use, was also attributable to overall prevalence of alcohol use in a given country. The partner alcohol use-IPV relationship was moderated by socioeconomic status (SES): among women with a partner who used alcohol those with lower SES had higher odds of experiencing IPV than women with higher SES. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study suggest that partner alcohol use is a robust correlate of IPV in SSA; however, drinking norms may independently relate to IPV and confound the relationship between partner alcohol use and IPV. These findings motivate future research employing experimental and longitudinal designs to examine alcohol use as a modifiable risk factor of IPV and as a novel target for treatment and prevention research to reduce IPV in SSA.

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  • Many studies fail to include men in trials, despite evidence that psychological distress in men is associated with an increased likelihood of living in poverty, abusing alcohol, and perpetrating partner violence.

    “There is a notable gap in that many of these studies fail to include men in trials, despite evidence that psychological distress in men is associated with an increased likelihood of living in poverty, abusing alcohol, and perpetrating partner violence [83,84].”

    From Psychological Interventions for Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence in Humanitarian Settings: An Overview of the Evidence and Implementation Considerations (2022) · cites this paper as [84]

    The Introduction discusses intimate partner violence as a risk factor for mental disorders among women, while the section on alcohol use and socioeconomic status links male partners’ drinking with violence against women. Neither passage addresses whether psychological distress in men predicts poverty, alcohol abuse, or perpetration of partner violence. A search for men’s psychological distress and their inclusion in trials found no supporting passage. (LLM, conf=0.74)

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  • In LMICs, psychological distress among men has been associated with an increased likelihood of living in poverty, abusing alcohol, and perpetrating gender-based violence.

    “In these settings, psychological distress among men has been associated with an increased likelihood of living in poverty, abusing alcohol, and perpetrating gender-based violence [14, 15].”

    From Masculinity and mental health treatment initiation for former political prisoners in Yangon, Myanmar – a qualitative investigation (2021) · cites this paper as [15]

    The Introduction and Results discuss male partner alcohol use and intimate partner violence, while the socioeconomic-status discussion addresses how SES modifies that association. None of these passages links psychological distress among men to poverty, alcohol abuse, or violence; searches for men's psychological distress and mental health found no such finding in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.74)

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Blum RH, Blum EM (1969). A cultural case study In Drugs I: Society and Drugs (ed. R. H. Blum), pp. 226– 227. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco.

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Authors
Greene, M. C., Kane, J. C., & Tol, W. A.
Affiliations
Johns Hopkins University (US)
Corresponding author
Greene, M. C.
ORCID
Venue
Global Mental Health
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Published
2017
Volume
4
Pages
e13-e13
ISSN
2054-4251 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1017/gmh.2017.9
PMC
PMC5719482
OpenAlex
W2736974617
Cited by
85
References
46
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 5
FWCI
6.69
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Cambridge Prisms Global Mental Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Drug Abuse (T32DA007292)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Health › Intimate Partner and Family Violence
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies
Keywords
alcohol consumption, intimate partner violence, women's health, socioeconomic status, drinking norms, sub-Saharan Africa, contextual effects, IPV prevention

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