Correlates of Domestic Violence Victimization Among Immigrants During COVID-19 in the United States

ABSTRACT

Domestic violence has been a cause of concern during the pandemic. Immigrants have been more vulnerable to the impacts of COVID-19, given systemic and cultural barriers. Utilizing a bio-psycho-social framework, the goal of this exploratory cross-sectional study was to examine the correlates of DV victimization among immigrants (N = 419, 41.5% male and 56.8% female) across the United States. Gender, age and race were included as biological and demographic factors (model 1); mental health and psychological stress were included as psychological factors (model 2); and generational position, household income, and family connections were included as social factors (model 3). A hierarchical logistic regression was performed. The sample comprised male and female participants. About 31.3% of participants were White, while the remaining were from diverse racial groups and 43.5% were 1^st generation. We observed that 35.1% (60) men and 28.3% (66) women experienced at least one form of DV victimization. Women and those who were older were less likely to experience victimization. An increase in mental health distress and limited family connections were associated with a higher likelihood of DV victimization. This study examined the rates of physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, financial and immigration-related abuse experiences of immigrants in the United States. Our findings point to the need for services to be offered to all genders and the need for more social support for immigrants. The inclusion of male and female survivors of DV adds to the novelty of this study. Practitioners in particular can play an important role in providing culturally responsive support to immigrants experiencing victimization.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• domestic violence
• gender
• immigrants
• immigration stress
• male survivors
• United States

Acknowledgment

We would like to thank Andrea Jacobson, Emmalee Osborne and Yigermal Demissie Ayalew, Graduate Assistants, Loyola University Chicago, for editorial assistance.

Disclosure statement

Authors do not have any conflicts of interest to report.

Ethical standards and informed consent

All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation at Loyola University Chicago and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from all participants for being included in the study.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by funding from Loyola University Chicago, School of Social Work.