{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,27]],"date-time":"2026-09-27T11:23:31Z","timestamp":1790508211320,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":26,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,8]],"date-time":"2024-03-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1709856000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n<jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major public health concern that mostly impacts women\u2019s health and social well-being. This study explored how the various types of IPV (physical, sexual, and emotional) including women\u2019s experience of childhood violence influence their help-seeking behavior in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n<jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>We analyzed data from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), carried out between 2018 and 2021. The outcome variable was help-seeking behavior. Descriptive and inferential analyses were carried out. The descriptive analysis looked at the bivariate analysis between the country and outcome variables. Using a binary logistic regression model, a multivariate analysis was utilized to determine the association between the outcome variable and the explanatory variables. Binary logistic regression modelling was used based on the dichotomous nature of the outcome variable. The results were sample-weighted to account for any under- or over-sampling in the sample.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n<jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The proportion of women who sought help for intimate partner violence was 36.1 percent. This ranged from 19.2 percent in Mali to 49.6 percent in Rwanda. Women who experienced violence in childhood (OR = 0.75, CI = 0.69, 0.82) have a lower likelihood of seeking help compared to those who did not experience violence in their childhood. Women who had experienced emotional violence (OR = 1.94, CI = 1.80, 2.08), and physical violence (OR = 1.37, CI = 1.26, 1.48) have a higher likelihood of seeking help compared to those who have not. Women with secondary educational levels (aOR = 1.13, CI = = 1.02, 1.24) have a higher likelihood of seeking help compared to those with no education. Cohabiting women have a higher likelihood (aOR = 1.22, CI = 1.10, 1.35) of seeking help compared to married women.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n<jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The study highlights the importance of early identification of IPV and fit-for-purpose interventions to demystify IPV normalization to enhance women\u2019s willingness to seek help. The study\u2019s findings suggest that education is crucial for increasing women\u2019s awareness of the legalities surrounding IPV and available structures and institutions for seeking help.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0297308","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,8]],"date-time":"2024-03-08T18:28:19Z","timestamp":1709922499000},"page":"e0297308","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Influence of type of violence on women\u2019s help-seeking behaviour: Evidence from 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"19","author":[{"given":"Castro","family":"Ayebeng","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kwamena Sekyi","family":"Dickson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6617-237X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Edward Kwabena","family":"Ameyaw","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kenneth Setorwu","family":"Adde","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jones Arkoh","family":"Paintsil","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6003-139X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Sanni","family":"Yaya","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0297308.ref001","author":"WHO","year":"2021","journal-title":"Violence against women"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref002","volume-title":"Understanding and addressing violence against women: Intimate partner violence","author":"World Health Organization","year":"2012"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref003","article-title":"Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW).","author":"UN Women","year":"1979","journal-title":"UN Women."},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref004","author":"UN Women","year":"1995","journal-title":"Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action-Beijing+ 5 Political Declaration and Outcome"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref005","first-page":"6","article-title":"Sustainable development goals","volume":"2030","author":"United Nations","year":"2015","journal-title":"SDGs Transform Our World"},{"issue":"10327","key":"pone.0297308.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"803","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(21)02664-7","article-title":"Global, regional, and national prevalence estimates of physical or sexual, or both, intimate partner violence against women in 2018.","volume":"399","author":"L Sardinha","year":"2022","journal-title":"The Lancet"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e019995","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjopen-2017-019995","article-title":"Recent intimate partner violence against women and health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies","volume":"8","author":"LJ Bacchus","year":"2018","journal-title":"BMJ Open"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"743","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(15)60692-4","article-title":"Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 301 acute and chronic diseases and injuries in 188 countries, 1990\u20132013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013","volume":"386","author":"T Vos","year":"2015","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref009","volume-title":"National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey: 2015 data brief\u2014updated release [Internet].","author":"SG Smith","year":"2018"},{"issue":"10","key":"pone.0297308.ref010","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1622","DOI":"10.1377\/hlthaff.2019.00480","article-title":"The effects of violence on health.","volume":"38","author":"F Rivara","year":"2019","journal-title":"Health Affairs.Oct 1"},{"key":"pone.0297308.ref011","author":"S. 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