Gender and health in abusive relationships

Researchers have long recognized intimate partner abuse as a social problem, but only recently has it been recognized as a public health problem. However, research to this point has failed to examine whether the health effects of intimate partner violence vary by gender. This dissertation uses data from the National Survey of Families and Households to examine the effects of intimate partner abuse on physical health, depression, fear, stress, social connectedness, and access to resources in intimate partner relationships. All models are stratified by gender in order to examine gender differences in health outcomes. Results indicate that there are gender differences, with a female disadvantage on many outcomes. Implications include inclusion of violence outcomes in future research of IPA, and recognition that "symmetry" definitions should include more than simple rates and ratios of violence reporting. Furthermore, this research indicates a need to expand the study of gender in low-level violence to assess other differences that were not addressed in this study.