Katharina Goessmann1, Hawkar Ibrahim2, Laura Bebra Saupe3, Azad Ali Ismail4, Frank Neuner5. 1. Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany. Electronic address: kgoessmann@uni-bielefeld.de. 2. Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany; Department of Clinical Psychology, Koya University, Koya, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Iraq; Vivo International, Konstanz, Germany. Electronic address: hawkar@uni-bielefeld.de. 3. Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany. Electronic address: laura.saupe@uni-bielefeld.de. 4. Department of Clinical Psychology, Koya University, Koya, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Iraq. Electronic address: azad.ali@koyauniversity.org. 5. Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany; Vivo International, Konstanz, Germany. Electronic address: frank.neuner@uni-bielefeld.de.
Abstract
RATIONALE: Intimate partner violence is a prevalent issue in refugee and internally displaced populations in post-war and migration settings including camps in the Middle East. In this context, partner violence has been associated with war-related trauma, camp factors, individual characteristics, and gender attitudes. OBJECTIVE: With a dual-informant survey among a sample of Iraqi couples residing in a camp for displaced people in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (N = 92) this study investigated the relationship between war-related psychopathology, attitudes towards women, and male-perpetrated partner violence. METHOD: Moderated regression analysis was applied using information from both partners to predict partner violence reported by wives. RESULTS: Over 58% of the women in this sample reported past-year exposure to partner violence. Further analyses revealed significant main effects of men's self-reported psychopathology (posttraumatic stress disorder and depression) and their own gender attitudes on partner violence. In a multivariate regression, moderating effects were found, as higher psychopathology levels and inequitable gender attitudes in men interacted in the prediction of male-perpetrated partner violence. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the high prevalence of partner violence among Iraqi displaced women. In addition, the results show an interplay of several violence-impelling factors in war-affected men. This emphasizes the importance of addressing both mental health issues and gender attitudes in the efforts to reduce or end violence against women in post-war settings.
RATIONALE: Intimate partner violence is a prevalent issue in refugee and internally displaced populations in post-war and migration settings including camps in the Middle East. In this context, partner violence has been associated with war-related trauma, camp factors, individual characteristics, and gender attitudes. OBJECTIVE: With a dual-informant survey among a sample of Iraqi couples residing in a camp for displaced people in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (N = 92) this study investigated the relationship between war-related psychopathology, attitudes towards women, and male-perpetrated partner violence. METHOD: Moderated regression analysis was applied using information from both partners to predict partner violence reported by wives. RESULTS: Over 58% of the women in this sample reported past-year exposure to partner violence. Further analyses revealed significant main effects of men's self-reported psychopathology (posttraumatic stress disorder and depression) and their own gender attitudes on partner violence. In a multivariate regression, moderating effects were found, as higher psychopathology levels and inequitable gender attitudes in men interacted in the prediction of male-perpetrated partner violence. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the high prevalence of partner violence among Iraqi displaced women. In addition, the results show an interplay of several violence-impelling factors in war-affected men. This emphasizes the importance of addressing both mental health issues and gender attitudes in the efforts to reduce or end violence against women in post-war settings.