Exposure to Parental Violence and Self-Reported Sexual Violence among Unpartnered Adolescent Girls in Nigeria: Evidence from a National Survey

David Aduragbemi Okunlola; Oluwatobi A Alawode; Olabisi T Jegede; Khadijat Adeleye

doi:10.1080/19317611.2023.2277442

Exposure to Parental Violence and Self-Reported Sexual Violence among Unpartnered Adolescent Girls in Nigeria: Evidence from a National Survey

Int J Sex Health. 2023 Nov 29;35(4):625-636. doi: 10.1080/19317611.2023.2277442. eCollection 2023.

Authors

David Aduragbemi Okunlola^{1

2}, Oluwatobi A Alawode³, Olabisi T Jegede⁴, Khadijat Adeleye⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Sociology, College of Social Sciences and Public Policy, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA.
² Viable Knowledge Masters, Abuja, Nigeria.
³ Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
⁴ Department of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria.
⁵ Elaine Marieb College of Nursing, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA.

PMID: 38601810
PMCID: PMC10903639 (available on 2024-11-29)
DOI: 10.1080/19317611.2023.2277442

Abstract

Objectives: Despite the high prevalence of sexual violence among young and adolescent women in Nigeria, there is a paucity of studies on the extent of sexual violence among adolescent girls, especially unpartnered girls, and the role of parental violence. This study assesses the prevalence of self-reported sexual violence and the influence of exposure to parental violence among unpartnered adolescent girls (aged 15-19) in Nigeria.

Methods: The women's data (n = 5,145) from the 2013 and 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys were pooled and analyzed with descriptive analysis and multinomial logistic regressions.

Results: Of all adolescent girls, 5.65% had ever experienced sexual violence, 94.09% said they never did, and 0.26% did not respond. Adolescent Girls exposed to parental violence were more likely to have ever experienced sexual violence than the unexposed girls (aRRR= 1.90; 95% CI: 1.29-2.79).

Conclusion: Interventions to prevent sexual violence among adolescent girls should sensitize parents on the potential negative implications of parental violence for their daughters' wellbeing.

Keywords: Nigeria; Parental violence; adolescent girls; sexual violence.

Grants and funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.