Male social embeddedness and intimate partner violence perpetration in Tanzania: A cross-sectional study of young Tanzanian men

Objectives: Social embeddedness - or lack thereof - has been associated with a number of antisocial behaviours, including perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). The prevalence of IPV in Tanzania remains high, yet the influence of perceived social connection on IPV and coercive control perpetration in young African men has remained mostly unexplored.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 1,002 young Tanzanian men aged 18 to 24 living in Mwanza, Tanzania. We assessed the association between feelings of being socially supported and embedded - measured using the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey Instrument (MOS-SSSI) - and perpetration of physical, sexual and emotional IPV and coercive control. After conducting unadjusted logistic regressions to probe crude associations, we used a step-wise approach to build separate logistic regression models for every form of IPV perpetration accounting for individual-, interpersonal-, and community-level factors.

Results: In our sub-sample of young men who have ever been in a relationship (n = 828), 21% reported perpetrating physical IPV (n = 177), 27% sexual IPV (n = 222), 51% emotional IPV (n = 423), and 83% coercive control (n = 688). Overall scores and scores on every sub-scale of the MOS-SSSI measuring perceived support were high. In the crude analysis, only coercive control perpetration was significantly associated with social support overall (OR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.23-1.69) and in every sub-scale. These associations remained significant in adjusted models, showing that higher levels of social embeddedness are associated with significantly higher odds of reporting enacting coercive control (OR: 1.45, 95% CI: 1.24-1.69).

Conclusions: Male socialisation plays a significant role in what young men perceive as acceptable and unacceptable behaviours within their communities. Young men who spend more time with their peers might be receiving messaging that reinforces masculine norms of control over their female partners, which translate in higher reported coercive control perpetration.