Economic Empowerment: Protection or Risk? : - A quantitative study on economic empowerment and intimate partner violence

Violence against women is an issue faced by women all over the world. Violence conducted by a partner or husband is the most common form of violence that women are targeted by. Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is internationally recognized as a human rights violation as well as a major global health issue. Economic empowerment is sometimes presented as means to reduce this violence. However, if it generates protection or increased risk is debated and contradictory findings characterize the research field. This study aims to contribute by testing the two main theories (the marital dependency theory and the relative resource theory) within a previously unstudied setting: the national level. The Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regressions find a negative relationship between female labor force participation and physical and sexual IPV prevalence among women. Support is thereby provided for the marital dependency theory. No relationship at all is found when focusing on attitudes towards physical IPVAW and the conclusion emphasis that economic empowerment is helpful but not sufficient as a national strategy to reduce intimate partner violence targeting women