Impact of Physical Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Victimization on Jamaican Women’s Mental Health: The Moderating Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences

Background: IPV is widely regarded as a public health concern that poses a serious threat to the human rights of women and girls globally. Data from the latest violence surveys in the Caribbean region indicate that 28% of the ever-partnered women aged 15-64 years in Jamaica had experienced either physical or sexual IPV in their lifetime, and 7% within the past 12 months (United Nations [UN] Women, 2020). IPV is linked to mental health outcomes, including depression (Avdibegović & Sinanović, 2006) and anxiety (Blasco-Ros et al., 2010; Chandra et al., 2009). A substantial body of research has also linked ACEs to increased risk of IPV victimization (e.g., Zhu et al., 2024) and poor mental health outcomes (e.g., Merskey et al., 2013). However, few studies have examined the relationship between IPV victimization and mental health outcomes and the moderating role of ACEs in this relationship among Jamaican women.

Using trauma theory to undergird this study, we examined the relationship between physical IPV victimization and depressive symptoms and anxiety while accounting for the moderating effects of ACEs on these relationships among Jamaican women.

Methods: Univariate and ordinary least squares regression (OLS) analyses were performed using data from the 2016 National Women’s Health Survey, a nationally representative sample of Jamaican women aged 15 to 64. Validated measures were used to assess IPV victimization (Straus et al., 1996), ACEs (Felitti et al., 1998), depression (Kroenke et al., 2001), and anxiety (Spitzer et al., 2006). Participants had a mean age of 38.26 years (SD=13.7), average ACE score of 0.77 (SD=0.96), 2.69 (SD=1.92) children, and mean depression and anxiety scores of 2.45 (SD=3.77) and 2.46 (SD=3.68), respectively. More than half of the sample had a high school-level education (65.58%) and were employed (56.47%). Approximately 28% of the sample reported being a victim of physical IPV.

Results: Physical IPV victimization was found to be a significant predictor of depressive symptoms (B=1.20, p=0.002) and anxiety (B=1.41, p<0.001). In the moderating effects model, ACEs significantly moderated the relationship between physical IPV victimization and depressive symptoms (B=1.29, p=0.004), such that women with higher ACE scores and who were victims of IPV had increased depressive symptoms when compared to those with lower ACE scores who were IPV victims. Similarly, ACEs moderated the IPV victimization-anxiety relationship (B=1.02, p = 0.013), whereby women with exposure to more adversities in childhood and who were victims of physical IPV had increased anxiety when compared to those who were victims of IPV but had lower exposure to adversities.

Implications: The findings highlight the need for additional research related to the impact of IPV victimization, ACEs, and subsequent mental health outcomes using more diverse samples and methodological approaches. Trauma-informed prevention and treatment modalities should be developed and implemented to address the impact of IPV victimization and negative mental and behavioral outcomes among Jamaican women. These findings underscore the importance of screening for both ACEs and IPV in mental health assessments. Interventions should be culturally responsive and address the compounded effects of early and recent trauma.