A latent class analysis of attitudes concerning the acceptability of intimate partner violence in rural Senegal

International audienceBackground: Research concerning the causes and consequences of intimate partner violence (IPV), particularly in less developed areas of the world, has become prominent in the last two decades. Although a number of potential causal factors have been investigated the current consensus is that attitudes toward IPV on the individual level, likely representing perceptions of normative behavior, and the normative acceptability of IPV on the aggregate level likely play key roles. Measurement of both is generally approached through either binary indicators of acceptability of any type of IPV or additive composite indexes of multiple indicators. Both strategies imply untested assumptions which potentially have important implications for both research into the causes and consequences of IPV as well as interventions aimed to reduce its prevalence. Methods: Using survey data from rural Senegal collected in 2014, this analysis estimates latent class measurement models of attitudes concerning the acceptability of IPV. We investigate the dimensional structure of IPV ideation and test the parallel indicator assumption implicit in common measurement strategies, as well as structural and measurement invariance between men and women