Intimate Partner Violence, Decision-Making Power and Female Employment in Colombia

Using data from the Colombian Demographic and Health Survey, I study the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and women's employment and the mediating role of women's decision-making power. I find a positive... [ view full abstract ]

Using data from the Colombian Demographic and Health Survey, I study the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and women's employment and the mediating role of women's decision-making power. I find a positive relationship between IPV and employment, which persists when I exploit husband's childhood experience of domestic violence as a source of plausibly exogenous variation for the incidence of IPV. To explain the results, I explore the role of women's decision-making power. Women may enter or increase their participation in the labor force to escape violent situations at home by enhancing their decision-making power. I find evidence in support of this mechanism; in particular, the effect of IPV on employment appears to be lower among abused women with higher initial bargaining power.