Determinants of Physical Violence Against Women Aged 15-49 in Zambia: Evidence from Zambia Demographic and Health Survey 2018

Background: Physical violence occurs in many forms such as when someone pushes you, shakes you, or throws something at you, slaps you, twists your arm or pulls your hair, punches you with his fist or threatens or attacks you with a knife, gun or any other weapon. The main objective of this study was to establish the determinants of physical violence against women aged 15-49 in Zambia. Method: The number of women aged 15-49 selected and interviewed for domestic violence (9,503) allowed for determination of the association between demographic and socioeconomic factors and physical violence using Pearson chi-square test, with further analysis using multiple binary logistic regression analysis to determine the likelihood of experiencing physical violence. Results: Women in the age groups 25-29 and 40-44 had increased odds of experiencing physical violence at 54 percent and 57 percent, (AOR=1.57, p-value 0.05) and (AOR=1.54, p-value 0.03) respectively, compared to those in the age group 15-19. Further, divorced/separated/widowed were 3 times more likely to experience physical violence compared to the never married (AOR=3.42, p-value<0.05). Fifty percent of women who experienced physical violence never sought help, and never told someone. Conclusion: Physical violence was more prevalent among the divorced/separated/widowed women and among women in the age groups 25-29 and 40-44 years. This indicates that more research is needed to determine the consequences of physical violence against women aged 15-49. Key words: Physical Violence, Women, Gender inequality, Determinants, Demographic and Health Survey