Intimate partner violence trajectories over a 1-year period in a population-based cohort of women in Kenya: associations with individual and community normative factors.
Outcomes: Gender‑Based Violence
View SourceKey Social Norms Take-aways Social norms that justify intimate partner violence (IPV) play a critical and “activating” role in shaping IPV risk. In contexts where IPV justification is more normative, individual and household risk factors become less predictive, suggesting that normative environments strongly condition behavior. Women’s own endorsement of IPV justification at the community level is associated with higher IPV risk, highlighting how internalized norms and social acceptance sustain violence and limit change.
Objectives To examine (1) the prevalence and trajectories of IPV over a 1-year period among women in Kenya and (2) the individual, relational, and community-level normative factors associated with IPV occurrence and changes over time.
Methods The study uses longitudinal data from a population-based cohort of married or cohabiting women aged 15–49 in Kenya (n=2499), surveyed in 2020 and 2021. IPV was measured using behaviorally specific questions on emotional, physical, and sexual violence. IPV trajectories (sustained safety, new IPV, cessation, sustained IPV) were constructed across time points. Community-level social norms were operationalized using county-level IPV justification measures derived from the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. Multivariable logistic regression models assessed associations between IPV outcomes and individual, dyadic, and normative factors, including stratification by normative context.
Results IPV prevalence remained relatively stable (11.4% in 2020 vs 12.5% in 2021), with dynamic movement across trajectories: 8% experienced new IPV, 7% experienced cessation, 4% sustained IPV, and 81% remained IPV-free. Individual risk factors (e.g., lower education, lower wealth, polygynous unions, limited decision-making power) were associated with IPV, but these associations weakened in settings with stronger IPV-justifying norms. County-level norms endorsing IPV justification among women significantly increased IPV risk. Help-seeking was low (around 40%) and not associated with IPV cessation.
Conclusions IPV is persistent yet dynamic, with women moving in and out of violence over short periods. Individual-level interventions alone are insufficient; instead, community-level social norms that legitimize IPV must be addressed. Normative environments shape both the prevalence of violence and the effectiveness of individual protective factors, underscoring the importance of social norms change as a central strategy for IPV prevention and response.
Norms Addressed
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