Assessment of spousal violence and use of modern contraceptives among couples in Bangladesh

Objectives: This study examines the relationship between husband's report of ever using physical violence against his wife and couple's use of modern contraceptives reported by wife, as well as their determinants among Bangladeshi couples. Methods: Data come from the Bangladeshi Demographic and Health Survey 2007, which includes a Domestic Violence module. The study is limited to 3,333 couples, in which husband's were interviewed with the Domestic Violence module. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the associations between domestic violence and current use of modern contraceptives, controlling for couple and individual characteristics. Results: Couples' education, visits by family planning workers, women's household decision-making power, and wives talking with their husbands about family planning were positively associated with increased use of modern contraceptives, as was men's disagreement with the idea that women who use contraception may become promiscuous and desire for more children. Factors related to reduced use of physical violence against wives included: disagreement with belief that women who used contraception might become promiscuous, desire for more children, parental expression of violence, and positive attitudes towards domestic violence. Conclusions: The study has important program implications. It underlines the need for the integration of family planning and domestic-violence related services. The findings also emphasize the needed participation of men in family planning programs as well as in future research on contraceptive use within marital relationships.