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Jahangir T, Dahn C, Devakottai R, Livingston MD, Woods-Jaeger B. "There's room to do more": a mixed-methods study of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) diversion program and intimate partner violence in Georgia. Front Public Health 2024; 12:1326467. [PMID: 38741914 PMCID: PMC11090040 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1326467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a risk factor for homicides and suicides. As poverty is both a predictor and a consequence of IPV, interventions that alleviate poverty-related stressors could mitigate IPV-related harms. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), a monthly cash assistance program, is one such potential intervention. In the state of Georgia, the TANF diversion program, which provides a non-recurrent lump-sum payment to deter individuals from monthly TANF benefits, is an understudied component of TANF that may influence the effectiveness of state TANF programs in supporting IPV survivors. Aim This study quantifies and qualifies the role of Georgia's TANF diversion program in shaping IPV-related mortality. Methods This study relies on a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. Using data from the Georgia Violent Death Reporting System (GA-VDRS), an interrupted time series analysis was conducted to estimate the effect of TANF diversion on IPV-related homicides and suicides. Semi-structured interviews were then administered with TANF policy experts and advocates, welfare caseworkers, and benefit recipients (n = 20) to contextualize the quantitative findings. Results The interrupted time series analysis revealed three fewer IPV-related deaths per month after implementing TANF diversion, compared to pre-diversion forecasts (coefficient = -3.003, 95%CI [-5.474, -0.532]). However, the qualitative interviews illustrated three themes regarding TANF diversion: (1) it is a "band-aid" solution to the access barriers associated with TANF, (2) it provides short-term relief to recipients making hard choices, and (3) its limitations reveal avenues for policy change. Discussion While diversion has the potential to reduce deaths from IPV, it may be an insufficient means of mitigating the poverty-related contributors to IPV harms. Its limitations unveil the need for improved programs to better support IPV survivors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tasfia Jahangir
- Department of Behavioral, Social and Health Education Sciences, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
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Zharima C, Singh R, Closson K, Beksinska M, Zulu B, Jesson J, Pakhomova T, Dong E, Dietrich J, Kaida A, Basham CA. Economic hardship and perpetration of intimate partner violence by young men in South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic (2021-2022): a cross-sectional study. Inj Epidemiol 2024; 11:2. [PMID: 38229136 PMCID: PMC10790426 DOI: 10.1186/s40621-024-00483-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/01/2024] [Indexed: 01/18/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Economic hardship is a potential trigger for intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration. While higher IPV rates have been reported in low-income regions, few African studies have focused on IPV being triggered by economic hardship among young men during the COVID-19 pandemic. We therefore estimated economic hardship's effect on IPV perpetration by young men in eThekwini District, South Africa, during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS A cross-sectional survey of COVID-19 pandemic experiences was conducted among youth aged 16-24 years through an anonymous self-administered questionnaire, including questions about economic hardship (increased difficulty accessing food or decreased income) and IPV perpetration. A prespecified statistical analysis plan with a directed acyclic graph of assumed exposure, outcome, and confounder relationships guided our analyses. We measured association of economic hardship and IPV perpetration through odds ratios (ORs) computed from a multivariable logistic regressions adjusted for measured confounders. Secondary outcomes of physical and sexual IPV perpetration were analyzed separately using the same specifications. Propensity score matching weights (PS-MW) were used in sensitivity analyses. Analysis code repository: https://github.com/CAndrewBasham/Economic_Hardship_IPV_perpetration/ RESULTS: Among 592 participants, 12.5% reported perpetrating IPV, 67.6% of whom reported economic hardship, compared with 45.6% of those not reporting IPV perpetration (crude OR = 2.49). Median age was 22 years (interquartile range 20-24). Most (80%) were in a relationship and living together. Three quarters identified as Black, 92.1% were heterosexual, and half had monthly household income < R1600. We estimated an effect of economic hardship on the odds of perpetrating IPV as OR = 1.83 (CI 0.98-3.47) for IPV perpetration overall, OR = 6.99 (CI 1.85-36.59) for sexual IPV perpetration, and OR = 1.34 (CI 0.69-2.63) for physical IPV perpetration. PS-MW-weighted ORs for IPV perpetration by economic hardship were 1.57 (overall), 4.45 (sexual), and 1.26 (physical). CONCLUSION We estimated 83% higher odds of self-reported IPV perpetration by self-reported economic hardship among young South African men during the COVID-19 pandemic. The odds of sexual IPV perpetration were The seven-times higher by economic hardship, although with limited precision. Among young men in South Africa, economic hardship during COVID-19 was associated with IPV perpetration by men. Our findings warrant culturally relevant and youth-oriented interventions among young men to reduce the likelihood of IPV perpetration should they experience economic hardship. Further research into possible causal mechanisms between economic hardship and IPV perpetration could inform public health measures in future pandemic emergencies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Campion Zharima
- Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Centre for Health Policy, School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Rishav Singh
- Vaccine Evaluation Centre, BC Children's Hospital and Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Kalysha Closson
- Center On Gender Equity and Health, School of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall Rm 10522, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A1S6, Canada
| | - Mags Beksinska
- MRU (MatCH Research Unit), Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Durban, South Africa
| | - Bongiwe Zulu
- MRU (MatCH Research Unit), Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Durban, South Africa
| | - Julie Jesson
- Center for Epidemiology and Research in POPulation Health (CERPOP), Inserm, Université de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Tatiana Pakhomova
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall Rm 10522, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A1S6, Canada
| | - Erica Dong
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall Rm 10522, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A1S6, Canada
| | - Janan Dietrich
- Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Bellville, South Africa
- African Social Sciences Unit of Research and Evaluation (ASSURE), A Division of the Wits Health Consortium, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Angela Kaida
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall Rm 10522, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A1S6, Canada.
- Women's Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
| | - C Andrew Basham
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall Rm 10522, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A1S6, Canada
- Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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