Intimate Partner Violence in Pakistan: A Systematic Review

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major social and public health problem affecting people in various cultures and societies. Though the issue of IPV in Pakistan has been researched since the 1990s, no attempt has been made systematically to review the available evidence on IPV in Pakistan. This article presents findings of a systematic review of available empirical literature related to IPV in Pakistan. Using various key words, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PsycINFO were searched to identify relevant studies. This resulted in the identification of 55 potential studies for inclusion. After application of exclusion criteria 23 studies were identified, 20 of which used quantitative research designs, two used qualitative designs and one adopted a mixed method case study approach. All studies reported men as the perpetrators of IPV and women as its victims. Findings are presented and discussed for IPV for its forms, predictors, effects and victims’ responses. Pakistani peoples’ perceived reasons for and their attitudes towards IPV are also presented and discussed.