An assessment of the association between asset ownership and intimate partner violence in Pakistan

- International organizations advocate the idea of asset building as a way to empower women.
- This study estimates the association between women's asset ownership and different types of intimate partner violence.
- Results indicate that women who owned assets, such as land or home, in Pakistan, were more likely to be controlled by their husbands.
- Physical or emotional violence was not significantly associated with women's asset ownership, contradicting other studies.
- Asset ownership may have differential impact in different countries.

ObjectiveThis study assessed the association between women's reports of asset ownership (home and land) and experience of three types of intimate partner violence (IPV): physical violence, emotional violence, and husbands' controlling behaviors.Study designPopulation-based secondary analysis.MethodThis cross-sectional study used data from a sub-sample of 658 women from the nationally representative Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2012-13. Logistic regression analyses were used to estimate the association between asset ownership and IPV.ResultsResults from logistic regressions indicated that when women owned assets their husbands were 2.3 times more likely to use controlling tactics (P < 0.001) which was mitigated only when women had a say in household decisions. Physical or emotional violence, however, was not significantly associated with women's asset ownership.ConclusionThe study findings highlight the importance of culture and context in policy implementation.