Adding insult to injury: Intimate partner violence among women and men reporting activity limitations

PURPOSE: Women with activity limitations (ALs) are at risk for Intimate partner violence (IPV). This study examined IPV in men versus women with ALs. METHODS: Data from the Canadian 1999 General Social Survey compared physical, sexual, emotional, and financial IPV from a current/expartner in 5 years for men and women with ALS compared with those without ALs. Logistic regression examined sex differences in IPV among those with ALs, adjusting for sociodemographic factors. RESULTS: Rates of physical (11.9% versus 7.8%; p < 0.0001), sexual (3.5% versus 1.4%; P < 0.0001), emotional (27.1% versus 17.7%; P < 0.0001), and financial (7.5% versus 3.4%; P < 0.0001) IPV were greater in women with compared with without ALs. A similar pattern was seen for men, with greater rates of physical (9.2% versus 6.6%; p = 0.006), emotional (22.6% versus 18.2%; p = 0.002), and financial (2.6% versus 1.4%; P = 0.005) IPV in men with ALs than men without ALs. Risk factors for IPV included younger age, being divorced/separated or single, and having lower income and poorer health. Women with ALs were more likely than men to experience any IPV (29.1% versus 24.9%) and more severe and more incidents of IPV. In multivariable analysis, women were no longer at greater risk for any IPV after adjusting for sociodemographic variables (odds ratio = 1.09; 95% confidence interval, 0.88-1.36). CONCLUSION: This is the first study to document IPV rates in men with ALs. Women with ALs were more likely to be divorced/separated, living in poverty, and in poorer health than men with ALs. These factors accounted for sex differences in IPV rates.