Belihu Wudinesh Belete, Herder Tobias, Amogne Minilik Demissie, Sundewall Jesper, Palmieri Jack, Agardh Anette
Social Medicine and Global Health, Malmö, Sweden.
Infectious Disease Research Directorate, Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
PLoS One. 2025 Mar 18;20(3):e0319792. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0319792. eCollection 2025.
Violence is a major public health concern with a significant impact on the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities. Living in a new environment without parental control and experimenting with new lifestyles may increase the risk of violence among university students. Therefore, this study aimed to assess exposure to violence and its associated factors among university students in Ethiopia.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 2988 university students from six randomly selected universities in Ethiopia. A two-stage stratified sampling method was used to recruit the study participants. A self-administered questionnaire was utilized to collect information regarding exposure to emotional, physical, and sexual violence. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with violence exposure in the last 12 months.
The prevalence of exposure to any type of violence in the last 12 months was 17.6% (n = 525) (17.9% among males, 16.5% among females). The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of violence was 2.9 times higher (95% CI 1.6-5.0) among students older than 25 years than those aged 18-20 years. Those students who were in a relationship had 1.4 times higher odds of violence (95% CI 1.0-2.0) than those who were not in a relationship. In addition, those students who were from rural residences before coming to the university had 1.4 times higher odds of violence (95% CI 1.1-1.8) than those from urban residences. The odds of violence among those who consumed alcohol once a week or more in the past month were 2.2 times higher (95% CI 1.3-3.6) than those who did not consume alcohol. Furthermore, the likelihood of violence was 1.6 times higher (95% CI 1.0-2.4) among those who chewed khat and 2 times higher (95% CI 1.3-3.1) among those who used other drugs in the last 12 months.
Exposure to violence is a challenge for both male and female university students in Ethiopia. Several socio-demographic and behavioral factors were significantly associated with exposure to violence. Therefore, it is crucial for universities and stakeholders to raise awareness about contributing factors to minimize violence, regardless of gender.
暴力是一个重大的公共卫生问题，对个人、家庭和社区的健康与福祉有着重大影响。生活在没有父母管束的新环境中并尝试新的生活方式可能会增加大学生遭受暴力的风险。因此，本研究旨在评估埃塞俄比亚大学生遭受暴力的情况及其相关因素。
对来自埃塞俄比亚六所随机选取大学的2988名大学生进行了一项横断面研究。采用两阶段分层抽样方法招募研究参与者。使用自填式问卷收集有关遭受情感、身体和性暴力的信息。采用双变量和多变量逻辑回归分析来确定过去12个月内与遭受暴力相关的因素。
过去12个月内遭受任何类型暴力的患病率为17.6%（n = 525）（男性为17.9%，女性为16.5%）。25岁以上的学生遭受暴力的调整优势比（AOR）比18至20岁的学生高2.9倍（95%可信区间1.6 - 5.0）。处于恋爱关系中的学生遭受暴力的几率比未恋爱的学生高1.4倍（95%可信区间1.0 - 2.0）。此外，上大学前来自农村的学生遭受暴力的几率比来自城市的学生高1.4倍（95%可信区间1.1 - 1.8）。过去一个月每周饮酒一次或更多次的学生遭受暴力的几率比不饮酒的学生高2.2倍（95%可信区间1.3 - 3.6）。此外，在过去12个月内咀嚼恰特草的学生遭受暴力的可能性高1.6倍（95%可信区间1.0 - 2.4），使用其他毒品的学生遭受暴力的可能性高2倍（95%可信区间1.3 - 3.1）。
遭受暴力对埃塞俄比亚的男女大学生来说都是一个挑战。一些社会人口学和行为因素与遭受暴力显著相关。因此，对大学和利益相关者来说，提高对促成因素的认识以尽量减少暴力至关重要，无论性别如何。
