The association between intimate partner violence onset and gender-specific depression: A longitudinal study of a nationally representative sample

Abstract

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious social problem that is often hidden, unnoticed or ignored. However, few studies have explored the effects of partner violence onset and/or persistence on the mental health of individuals. Thus, we aimed to investigate the association between IPV onset and depressive symptoms in both married men and women.

Methods: In this study, nationally representative data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study were employed to track 1040 men and 3732 women for a period of six years (2010-2015). Depressive symptoms were scored according to the 11-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-11).

Results: Of our study population, 415 men (39.9%) and 866 women (23.2%) suffered from continuous intimate partner violence, meaning that they reported experience of IPV in both the previous and current year of investigation. Such subjects had significantly higher CES-D-11 scores (men β: 1.745, p ≤ 0001; women β: 1.970, p ≤ 0001) as did subjects whose partners turned violent from non-violent (men β: 1.623, p ≤ 0001; women β: 1.594, p ≤ 0001) than those with continuously non-violent partners (reference group). Subjects whose partners turned non-violent from violent continued to be more depressed (men β: 0.312, p ≤ 009; women β: 0.880, p ≤ 000) than those with continuously non-violent partners. Through subgroup analysis, we also found that lower SES, as a covariate relative to educational attainment, household income, and economic status, was associated with worsened depression following IPV onset. Unemployed women with consistently violent partners (β: 2.957, p ≤ .0001) and unemployed men with newly violent partners (β: 3.010, p ≤ .0001) were more depressed than the employed or self-employed.

Conclusion: Our findings reveal that continuous IPV, as well as its onset, can have serious consequences for the mental health of its victims.

Keywords: Depression; Domestic violence; Interpersonal violence; Intimate partner violence.