258 Association of family and community connectedness with childhood violence in Uganda‘s refugee settings

Abstract OP 27: Refugees and Asylum Seekers 3, B210 (FCSH), September 4, 2025, 16:00 - 17:00 Aims To investigate the relationship between factors like broken family connections, inadequate community support, and essential socio-demographic traits, and how these relate to experiences of childhood violence in adolescents aged 13–17 residing in Uganda’s refugee settlements. Methods We analyzed cross-sectional data from the 2022 Uganda Humanitarian Violence Against Children Survey (HVACS). This nationally representative survey included 1,248 adolescents (716 females, 532 males) aged 13–17 who reported on their experiences of physical, sexual, or emotional violence. We combined these three violence outcomes into a single binary measure: ever experiencing any childhood violence vs. none. Descriptive statistics summarised socio-demographics, while bivariate chi-square tests assessed the associations between key factors and childhood violence experience, and multivariate logistic regression identified factors associated with childhood violence, adjusting for age, country of origin, education, and disability status. Results This study showed that, among females, double orphanhood (aOR=2.54, 95% CI: 1.04–6.23) significantly raised the likelihood of reporting violence, with single orphanhood showing a borderline effect (aOR=1.55, 95% CI: 0.97–2.49). Among males, moderate community connectedness scores were linked to significantly higher odds (aOR=4.17, 95% CI: 1.04-16.67) of reporting their violence experience relative to poor or no attachment. Similarly, among males, educational attainment significantly influenced violence experience reporting: those with secondary or higher education (aOR=11.68, 95% CI: 1.54–88.29) and those with primary education or below (aOR=4.16, 95% CI: 1.53–11.32) both showed higher odds compared to no formal education. Disability status (aOR=3.17, 95% CI: 1.13–8.01) and single orphanhood (aOR=1.52, 95% CI: 0.99–2.33) were also significant risk factors among males. Conclusions The findings confirm that disruptions to family support structures in refugee contexts can significantly heighten adolescents’ risk of experiencing violence. Strengthening familial ties and ensuring accessible, community-based support systems are critical steps toward mitigating these risks.