Year: 2026
Type: report
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This paper estimates the causal impact of first-time motherhood on the onset of physical or sexual intimate partner violence (IPV).We use retrospective data from Peru's Demographic and Health Surveys (2004-2019), and conduct a stacked difference-indifferences estimation comparing first-time mothers to observationally similar women who conceive three years later, matching on pre-conception characteristics.Unlike previous studies based on administrative data, we address the key empirical challenge of constructing a credible counterfactual by exploiting detailed survey data on pre-conception relationship characteristics and incorporating these characteristics into the matching procedure.We find that motherhood increases the likelihood of IPV onset by 4.3 percentage points (a 29% increase) within two years after conception.Importantly, we find that failing to account for pre-conception relationship characteristics when constructing the comparison group leads to substantial upward bias, highlighting their importance for credibly identifying the causal effect of motherhood on IPV.
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Award: G1065875316
OpenAlex ID: W7208804387