258448 Massachusetts Muslim women and intimate partner violence: A needs assessment

Monday, October 29, 2012

Rehab Alabduljabbar, BDS, DScD , Pediatric Dentistry, NOVA Southeastern University, Collage of Dental Medicine, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Emily Rothman, ScD , Youth Alcohol Prevention Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
Thayer Scott, MPH , Department of Health Policy and Health Services Research, Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA
Intimate partner violence (IPV) in immigrant communities is influenced by stereotypes, cultural stigmas, lack of knowledge and trust in available services. Prevalence reports of IPV in Muslim populations in the US are scarce. This study investigates Muslim women's knowledge about IPV and need for services in MA. This exploratory mixed-methods study assessed the need for Muslim-specific IPV services in Massachusetts. Muslim women, who were in an intimate relationship, aged 18 and 64 years, English or Arabic speakers, resided in the United States for at least six months, and were MA residents were eligible. Convenience and snowball sampling techniques were used, and paper-based and web-based surveys administered. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were performed. Logistic regression models were used to predict categorical outcomes, and negative binomial regressions were used where appropriate. Abuse prevalence was 44.3% for any abuse, and 26.1% for severe abuse. Religiously observant women had 20% greater agreement with seeking outside help as the last option compared to less observant women (OR=1.2, p-value=0.02). Arabs were 22 times more likely to agree with this statement compared to non-Arabs (OR=21.9, p-value=0.002). For every unit increase in religious observance score, abuse score increased by 20%. Muslim-specific barriers to seeking outside help included: the shelter misunderstanding their culture/religious background, and the complexity of the Muslim situation. The abuse prevalence of the MA Muslim women population is lower than in other studies, but is still high. Religious observance was a significant but not a strong predictor of preferences of services used, and abuse score.

Learning Areas:
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education

Learning Objectives:
1. Assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence in Muslim women living in Massachusetts. 2. Assess Muslim women’s knowledge of intimate partner violence. 3. Assess the relationship between religious observance and intimate partner violence experience. 4. Explore Muslim specific barriers to seeking help from US services.

Keywords: Access and Services, Battered Women

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have defended and have written this project as a part of my DScD degree in Dental Public Health, Boston University. I have received many courses in the school of public health such as advanced epidemiology, survey methods, biostatistics that prepared me for this project. My primary adviser was Dr. Emily F. Rothman a well known researcher in the field of violence against woman and dating violence. She supervised and approved this research project.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.