Pathways From Food Insecurity to Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration Among Peri-Urban Men in South Africa.
Hatcher, Abigail M;
Stöckl, Heidi;
McBride, Ruari-Santiago;
Khumalo, Mzwakhe;
Christofides, Nicola;
(2019)
Pathways From Food Insecurity to Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration Among Peri-Urban Men in South Africa.
American journal of preventive medicine, 56 (5).
pp. 765-772.
ISSN 0749-3797
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2018.12.013
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INTRODUCTION: Although poverty is sometimes seen as a driver of intimate partner violence victimization, less is known about how it intersects with men's violence perpetration. Food insecurity is a sensitive marker of poverty that may have unique mechanisms leading to men's intimate partner violence perpetration given its association with gender roles and men "providing for the family." METHODS: Using cluster-based sampling, the team conducted an audio-assisted questionnaire in 2016 among men living in a peri-urban settlement near Johannesburg, South Africa. The aim was to examine the relationship between men's food insecurity and their use of past-year intimate partner violence, and to explore the pathways linking these two conditions. RESULTS: Among 2,006 currently partnered men, nearly half (48.4%) perpetrated intimate partner violence and more than half (61.4%) were food insecure. Food insecurity was associated with doubled odds of intimate partner violence (OR=2.15, 95% CI=1.73, 2.66). This association persisted after controlling for sociodemographics, relationship characteristics, and neighborhood clustering. In a structural equation model, food insecurity retained a direct relationship with men's violence perpetration and worked through indirect pathways of mental health and relationship quality. CONCLUSIONS: Addressing men's perpetration of intimate partner violence may require examination of broader structural challenges, such as food insecurity. Future interventions should consider livelihood strategies alongside relationship and mental health approaches.