Violence against women in the marriage : Cross-sectional study in the family planning clinic Monastir

Violence against women in the marriage is now recognized as a violation of human rights and as a major problem of public health. The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence, specify the typology and to determine associated factors with violence against women in the marriage. It was a cross-sectional study carried on 197 married women recruited in family planning center of Monastir, by means of a questionnaire containing some sociodemographic characteristics of the consultant and her spouse and the Woman Abuse Screening Tool to estimate the violence in the marriage Results : The lifetime prevalence of violence against women in the marriage was 56.9%. The most common form of violence was psychological (56.9%), followed by economic violence (41.1%), physical violence (32%) and sexual violence (10.6%). The combination of at least two forms of violence was reported by 84% of victims. The precarious professional status of consultant and her spouse, spouse's alcoholism, the number of children upper for three were the main factors associated with violence in marriage. These results justify the implement of screening and support programs for women victims of violence in marriage.