Domestic violence, decision-making power, and female employment in Colombia

Johanna Fajardo-Gonzalez

Review of Economics of the Household, 2021, vol. 19, issue 1, No 12, 233-254

Abstract: Abstract Using data from the Colombian Demographic and Health Survey, I document a positive association between intimate partner violence against women and the likelihood of women’s employment. This finding persists when I exploit the husband’s own childhood experience of abuse as a source of plausibly exogenous variation for the incidence of domestic violence. To explore potential mechanisms underlying this association, I use a mediation analysis in the presence of intermediate confounders. I find suggestive evidence that a woman’s decision-making power—measured by active input in household and healthcare decisions—as well as a measure for willingness to divorce are likely mediators. I argue that abused women may hold jobs to increase their economic independence and potentially exit abusive relationships.

Keywords: Domestic violence; Employment; Women’s decision-making power; Colombia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I10 J16 J22 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11150-020-09491-1

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