Associations of Marital Violence with Different Forms of Contraception: Cross-Sectional Findings from South Asia

Cross-sectional analyses were conducted using marital violence data collected during the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys from Bangladesh (n = 3665), India (n = 56 357), and Nepal (n = 3037). Data were pooled to assess associations of marital violence (physical or sexual) with modern contraception use (current spacing or sterilization).

Sexual marital violence was associated with both modern spacing contraception and sterilization. Sexual violence was reported more often by pill users (9.8% vs 5.5% for non-users) but less often by condom users (4.5% vs 5.8% for non-users).

Sexual marital violence might increase use of contraception that need not require husband involvement (pill) but decrease use of methods that require his cooperation (condom) or support for mobility, funds, or time (sterilization).

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By: Anita Raj,a,b,c,* Lotus McDougal,a,b Elizabeth Reed,a,b and Jay G. Silvermana,b

aDivision of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, San Diego, CA, USA

bCenter on Gender Equity and Health, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA

cDepartment of Medicine, Section of General Internal Medicine, Clinical Addiction Research and Education, Boston University School of Medicine/Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA