Understanding and Preventing Gender-based Intimate Partner Violence among West African Immigrants of Washington State, USA Community-based Participatory Research

A community health assessment conducted with the Washington West Africa Center identified ending domestic violence (DV) as a priority within the West African immigrant population in the greater Seattle area. This study seeks to understand the intersecting factors that increase the risk of DV and identify strategies to inform prevention and policy.

This cross-sectional qualitative study utilized the principles of community - based participatory research, involving in-depth interviews with 32 immigrant African women who survived DV from male intimate partners in Washington state (n=31) or acted as a key informant of DV (n=1). The interview transcripts were analyzed using descriptive thematic analytical methods.

All participants experienced their first DV episode before age 26, typically during cohabitation, pregnancy, or childrearing with partners aged 26–30 years. Duration of DV ranged from 3 to 36 months. Key facilitators for exiting DV relationships included social support (50%), safety concerns for self or children (31.6%), economic empowerment (~8%), and DV education (5.3%). Perceived love by survivors was the most common reason for remaining in abusive relationships (58%), followed by fear of law enforcement involvement (18%). Stigma and shame were major barriers to seeking help.

Study findings were similar to the regional existing literature of risk factors and common stressors that increase DV, but strategies to prevent it were distinct to this demographic.

Interventions leveraging cultural values like community networks of social support, empowerment and family values should be prioritized for effective DV prevention in close-knit African immigrant communities.