Economic abuse as a form of intimate partner violence : definition, risk factors, and mental well-being

Abstract

 Economic abuse is one of the major tactics of intimate partner violence, and it has a profound impact on the survivor’s mental health. Nonetheless, little is known about economic abuse because it may not cause obvious body scars or physical harm. Indeed, survivors of economic abuse may face detrimental effects on their economic well-being, such as poverty, material hardship, and declining self-sufficiency. With worsening economic well-being, survivors of economic abuse may become anxious and stressful about their economic future, and suffer from various mental health problems. However, there is no consensus on the definition of economic abuse. In addition, there is a lack of empirical evidence on the risk factors of economic abuse and mental well-being in Chinese population. Therefore, this thesis aims to (1) construct a definition of economic abuse; (2) validate the 12-item Scale of Economic Abuse (C-SEA-12); (3) identify the risk factors of economic abuse; and (4) examine the mental well-being of economic abuse in Chinese population. A review of the definition and measurement tool of economic abuse in the existing literature was conducted. Next, data were collected from a territory-wide household survey in Hong Kong with 504 subjects. The 12-item Scale of Economic Abuse was then validated in a Chinese population (C-SEA-12). Participants’ experience of economic abuse, anxiety, depression, psychosomatic symptoms, resilience, and demographic characteristics were also examined. Economic abuse was found to be a multi-factorial concept, which consisted of economic dominance, economic oppression, and work disruption. Economic dominance described behaviors perpetrated by abusers that determined how the resources were used and distributed. Economic oppression described the behaviors perpetrated by abusers in oppressing the partners’ resources without their knowledge or consent. Work disruption described any activities by the abusers that impeded employment, school, or training activities. In the validation study, the C-SEA-12 was found to have a second-order factor (culture) that controlled the underlying three first-order factors (economic control, economic exploitation, and employment sabotage). The C-SEA-12 was developed with good psychometric properties and high internal consistency. By logistic regression analysis, it was found that cohabiting individuals and individuals with tertiary education or above were at risk of economic abuse. By structured multiphase regression analysis, it was found that survivors of economic abuse were more likely to experience anxiety, depression, and psychosomatic symptoms. Resilience was found to be a protective factor against anxiety, depression, and psychosomatic symptoms. In conclusion, this thesis is the first study to review the definition and measurement tool of economic abuse, and validate the instrument for measuring economic abuse and investigate the mental well-being of economic abuse in a Chinese population. The definition, risk factors of economic abuse, and the associated mental well-being were discussed alongside Chinese culture; and scientific evidence was provided to understand the magnitude and complexity of this issue. Future research, practice, and policy implications were discussed, which could help to advance the field.