Intergenerational cycles of violence: the effects of war on intimate partner violence

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is positively associated with provoking acts of aggression. Therefore, there is a known link between violence on the battlefield and violence in the home. The war in Ukraine has made understanding this issue increasingly important if we are to avoid conflicts leaving a legacy of violence across generations in the future.

This project seeks to plug the gap in knowledge of the extent to which traumatic events can spark domestic abuse and lead to cycles of violence across generations. Ria Ivandic’s empirical research will look back on the most recent largest European conflicts – the Croatian War of Independence and Bosnian War in the 90s – to shed light on how, decades later, this led to patterns of intimate partner violence.

Ria’s research will also aim to improve on the existing methodologies to causally estimate the effects of conflict on intimate partner violence. A criticism of existing literature on the subject has been the lack of valid comparisons when estimating the effects on countries exposed to conflict. To overcome this issue, this research will exploit precise local geographical areas within the nation-states aiming to estimate causal processes at the local level.