The Perspectives of Arab American Young Adults in Chicagoland Area on Intimate Partner Violence: A Qualitative Study

PurposeIntimate partner violence (IPV) rates within the Arab American community are high, and there are gaps in understanding young adults' perspectives of IPV and its prevention. Our study aimed to describe the different forms of IPV and understand factors that contribute to IPV from the perspectives of Arab American young adults in Chicagoland area.MethodGuided by the socio-ecological model of violence prevention, we followed a qualitative design with content analysis. We partnered with a community-based organization and established a community advisory board. We conducted one-on-one interviews (N = 22) with Arab American young adults (18-25 years old). We used a non-probability purposive sampling and snowballing techniques to recruit participants.ResultsTwelve participants reported experiencing some form of violence either from partners or parents, and ten reported witnessing it within their families. They identified multiple forms of violence within their communities and defined them as sexual, physical, and psychological violence, with the latter being the most commonly seen. Causes of IPV were attributed to individual (history of exposure to violence, age difference, personality traits, financial struggles, and lack of education on violence), relationship (family characteristics, power differences), community (lack of support system, a trauma-exposed community), and societal (divorce-related stigma, religious norms, toxic masculinity, xenophobia and Arab racism) levels factors.ConclusionThis research provides a nuanced understanding of IPV within the Arab American community in Chicagoland area, thereby presenting significant practice and policy implications for the development of community-informed IPV prevention programs.