Jhumka Gupta ^1*, Dolores Acevedo-Garcia ², David Hemenway ², Michele R. Decker ², Anita Raj ³, Jay G. Silverman ⁴

¹ Yale Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS and Harvard School of Public Health
² Harvard School of Public Health
³ Boston University School of Public Health
⁴ harvard school of public health

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: jgupta{at}hsph.harvard.edu.

	Abstract

Objectives. We examined associations between premigration political violence exposure and past-year intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration among immigrant men attending community health centers in Boston.

Methods. A convenience sample of immigrant men (N=379; aged 18–35 years), largely from the Caribbean and Cape Verde, who attend community health centers, completed an anonymous, cross-sectional survey on risk and protective factors for male-perpetrated IPV and respondents’ exposure to political violence.

Results. One in 5 (20.1%) immigrant men reported that they were exposed to political violence before arrival in the United States. Men reporting political violence exposure were significantly more likely to report IPV perpetration than were men not reporting such exposure (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.84; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.41, 5.74). Significant associations with political violence exposure were observed for both physical (AOR=2.69; 95% CI=1.11, 6.54) and sexual (AOR=2.37; 95% CI=1.04, 5.44) IPV perpetration.

Conclusions. To our knowledge, our findings document for the first time the significant association between premigration political violence exposure and recent IPV perpetration among immigrant men. Additional work is needed to examine underlying mechanisms to inform culturally appropriate programs.

Key Words: Human Rights, Immigration, Injury/Emergency Care/Violence, Urban Health