Women’s perceptions of domestic, intimate partner violence and the government’s interventions in Nigeria: A qualitative study

Abstract

Domestic violence, including intimate partner violence, increased exponentially following the Covid-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, there appears to be a paucity of research that draws on a social constructionist theoretical lens to explore women’s perspectives of the Nigerian government’s interventions addressing such violence. The study recruited 24 purposively selected female participants from Delta state, Nigeria. Informed by a social constructionist thematic analysis, findings revealed that they were a perceived sense that law enforcement agencies’ gender-biased response to domestic violence complaints and lack of awareness of legal solutions fuel domestic violence. The study recommends a randomised control trial to test the efficacy of legal education interventions in improving domestic violence awareness in Nigeria.