Ethnic identity and intimate partner violence in a New Zealand birth cohort

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an issue of growing concern in New Zealand, with particular concerns being raised about the over-representation of Maori in surveys of IPV. The present study examined the associations between ethnic identity and IPV in a longitudinal birth cohort of individuals born in Christchurch in 1977. Those participants of Maori identity reported higher rates of both IPV victimisation and perpetration than non-Maori, as well as higher rates of injury related to IPV. Control for a range of socio-economic and family functioning factors reduced the magnitude of the associations between ethnic identity and IPV victimisation, perpetration and injury, but the associations remained substantial. It was concluded that higher rates of IPV among Maori were not explained by cultural factors, and were largely explained by ethnic differences in exposure to socio-economic factors and exposure to family problems in childhood.