Divergent Effects of Conflict Exposure on Gendered Attitudes Toward Intimate Partner Violence in Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines how exposure to conflict events relates to attitudes toward intimate partner violence (IPV) in Nigeria. Using the geo-referenced Armed Conflict Location and Event Data combined with nationally representative Demographic and Health Surveys, we find that women exposed to regional conflict are 0.556 to 0.689 times less likely to justify IPV across different dimensions (OR = 0.556, 95% CI [0.452, 0.684] to OR = 0.689, [0.554, 0.857]), conditional on a set of individual- and household-level characteristics. However, we observe the opposite result for men, showing that men exposed to conflict are 1.30 to 1.76 times more likely to justify IPV (OR = 1.300, [1.097, 1.540] to OR = 1.760, [1.464, 2.116]). The gender gap is statistically significant. We further show that conflict exposure correlates with enhanced household decision-making power for women despite reduced economic compensation, while men face increased employment without corresponding income gains, which may link to different changes in attitudes toward IPV for women and men. This study highlights the need for gender-specific interventions that consider the divergent ways conflict exposure affects women’s and men’s attitudes toward IPV in conflict-affected regions.

Keywords

conflict intimate partner violence domestic violence gender attitude

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