‘Male Dominance and Domestic Violence in Post-Soviet Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan’

The Global Studies Seminar welcomes Zarrina Juraqulova, assistant professor of economics at Denison, presenting “Male Dominance and Domestic Violence in Post-Soviet Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.”

The consequences of violence against women are extensive and range from the direct physical and mental harm for women and their children to economic losses. In this study, Juraqulova examines domestic violence in post-soviet Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The fall of the Soviet Union and transition from a central planned to free market economy have impacted gender power and relations in countries of Central Asia. As a result, financial support to education, healthcare and childcare services have declined. Participation of women has increased in informal sectors of the labor market and the male population has migrated to Russia or other foreign countries for better job opportunities. The conservative religious attitudes to traditional gender roles become widely practiced. These processes have strengthened the patriarchal hierarchy in Central Asia which doubles male domination over women, and affects women’s positions in society. Juraqulova observes that these social and economic changes increase the rate of domestic violence against women in both Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Juraqulova uses an ecological approach to abuse and Demographic and Health Survey Datasets to understand factors explaining rates of domestic violence in these countries. Determinants of male dominance and use of alcohol are relevant to explain the likelihood of women’s exposure to domestic violence.