Pandemic Pressures: Social Isolation, Financial Hardship, and Negative Emotional Affect as Risk Factors for Physical...

Area of Science:

• Criminology
• Sociology
• Psychology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic introduced significant social and economic stressors.
• These stressors may have contributed to increased intimate partner violence (IPV).

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between social isolation, financial hardship, and physical IPV perpetration during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• To investigate the mediating role of negative emotional affect in these associations using General Strain Theory.

Main Methods:

• Utilized survey data from 1,195 US adults, with 54 reporting physical IPV perpetration.
• Employed multivariable logistic regression to assess risk factors and the Karlson, Holm, Breen method for mediation analysis.

Main Results:

• Both social isolation and financial hardship were significantly associated with increased odds of physical IPV perpetration.
• A unit increase in social isolation raised IPV odds by 118% (OR=2.18), while financial hardship raised odds by 167% (OR=2.67).
• Negative emotional affect, particularly anger, substantially mediated these associations.

Conclusions:

• General Strain Theory effectively explains how pandemic-related social and economic factors influenced IPV.
• Mitigating IPV during societal crises requires addressing social, economic, and mental health needs of vulnerable populations.