Intimate Partner Violence and Women’s Economic Empowerment: Evidence from Indian States
IMF Working Papers, November 22, 2024
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- Intimate Partner Violence and Women’s Economic Empowerment: Evidence from Indian States
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Bibliographic details
- Authors: Monique Newiak, Ratna Sahay, Navya Srivastava
- Published: November 22, 2024
- Series: IMF Working Papers
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400294020.001
Summary findings
- Domestic violence is a global phenomenon.
- Study uses information from up to 235 thousand female survey respondents and exploits state-level variation in institutions, law enforcement and attitudes.
- Unless in paid and formal employment, a woman’s economic activity is associated with a higher risk of IPV.
- Household and other characteristics counter the association between economic activity and IPV:
- higher agency within the household,
- higher education of the husband,
- lower social acceptance of IPV,
- normalization of reporting incidences of violence.
- At the state level, factors associated with a lower risk of IPV include:
- the presence of more female leaders,
- better reporting infrastructure for victims of IPV,
- higher charge-sheeting rates.
Determinants at the individual and household level
- Economic activity:
- Unless in paid and formal employment, a woman’s economic activity is associated with a higher risk of IPV.
- Mitigating household characteristics:
- Higher agency within the household reduces IPV risk.
- Higher education of the husband reduces IPV risk.
- Lower social acceptance of IPV reduces IPV risk.
- Normalization of reporting incidences of violence reduces IPV risk.
State-level institutional and enforcement factors
- Presence of more female leaders is associated with a lower risk of IPV.
- Better reporting infrastructure for victims of IPV is associated with a lower risk of IPV.
- Higher charge-sheeting rates are associated with a lower risk of IPV.
- The analysis exploits state-level variation in institutions, law enforcement and attitudes.
Policy implications and recommendations (as indicated by findings)
- Promote and facilitate paid and formal employment for women to potentially reduce IPV risk linked to informal or unpaid economic activity.
- Strengthen household-level empowerment measures that increase women’s agency.
- Invest in male partner education initiatives and programs to raise husband education levels.
- Reduce social acceptance of IPV through awareness campaigns and behavioral change programs.
- Normalize and encourage reporting of IPV incidents to make reporting more routine and less stigmatized.
- Increase female leadership at state and local levels.
- Improve reporting infrastructure for victims of IPV.
- Raise charge-sheeting rates and strengthen law enforcement follow-through on IPV complaints.
Source: Intimate Partner Violence and Women’s Economic Empowerment: Evidence from Indian States, IMF Working Papers (Working Paper No. 2024/239), authors Monique Newiak, Ratna Sahay, Navya Srivastava; landing page content and publication metadata as provided.
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