A Study of Domestic Violence against Married Women in Afghanistan: Grounded Theory

Background: Domestic violence against women is currently one of the most important and characteristic forms of violence against human rights, which is associated with negative psychological and physical health consequences. The persistence of domestic violence causes marital incompatibility and has countless consequences for women. The aim of this study was to investigate domestic violence against married women in Bamyan province (Afghanistan).  Methods: This research was conducted using the qualitative method and grounded theory. The study population included all women with domestic violence in Bamyan province in 2019. Convenience and snowball sampling were used to achieve theoretical saturation. Those women who were eligible for the study were given in-depth semi-structured interviews, and finally 12 women were selected.  The data were analyzed using Strauss and Corbin method with three stages of open, axial, and selective coding. Results: In this study, 297 concepts, 31 categories, 15 sub-categories, and 5 main categories including cultural poverty, personality problems and husband’s irresponsibility, panic, women's awakening, and low self-esteem were extracted. Also, all these 5 main categories were represented as a sub-category of "home terrorism". Conclusions: Although women in Bamyan are still victims of domestic violence, increasing women's awareness and education in this field have been able to make women safe to some extent.