TY - JOUR
T1 - Social determinants of impaired functioning among Nepali widows
T2 - A mixed methods study
AU - Mezzanotte, Kathryne S.
AU - Bhardwaj, Anvita
AU - Kim, Yoona
AU - Rimal, Damodar
AU - Lee, Jane K.
AU - Shrestha, Abina
AU - Tol, Wietse A.
AU - Luitel, Nagendra P.
AU - Surkan, Pamela J.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was partially supported by a fellowship from the Center for Human Rights and Public Health and the Center for Global Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Funders were not involved in the design of the study, data collection, analysis and interpretation, manuscript preparation, or the decision to submit this work for publication. We would like to thank the women who participated in this study.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Despite considerable stigmatisation of widows in Nepal, little is known about factors affecting their ability to function in society. Using mixed methods, we studied psychosocial factors associated with impaired functioning among Nepali widows. For the qualitative analysis, we analysed 3 focus groups, 25 in-depth interviews, and 12 key-informant interviews. The quantitative analysis was based on data from 204 widows. Odds ratios were calculated linking psychosocial exposures to impaired functioning using adjusted logistic regression models. Low social support (aOR = 2.35, 95% CI: 1.2, 4.6, generally; aOR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.7, 6.42, specifically from family members), experiences of discrimination (aOR = 2.97, 95% CI: 1.43, 6.14), and low life control (aOR = 4.3, 95% CI: 1.86, 10.1) were risk factors for impaired functioning. Qualitative findings suggested how discrimination and lack of control contribute to impaired functioning. Support from the husband’s family appeared to be more important to a widow’s functioning, compared to from her own parents. Knowledge about risk factors for impaired functioning can help inform interventions for Nepali widows.
AB - Despite considerable stigmatisation of widows in Nepal, little is known about factors affecting their ability to function in society. Using mixed methods, we studied psychosocial factors associated with impaired functioning among Nepali widows. For the qualitative analysis, we analysed 3 focus groups, 25 in-depth interviews, and 12 key-informant interviews. The quantitative analysis was based on data from 204 widows. Odds ratios were calculated linking psychosocial exposures to impaired functioning using adjusted logistic regression models. Low social support (aOR = 2.35, 95% CI: 1.2, 4.6, generally; aOR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.7, 6.42, specifically from family members), experiences of discrimination (aOR = 2.97, 95% CI: 1.43, 6.14), and low life control (aOR = 4.3, 95% CI: 1.86, 10.1) were risk factors for impaired functioning. Qualitative findings suggested how discrimination and lack of control contribute to impaired functioning. Support from the husband’s family appeared to be more important to a widow’s functioning, compared to from her own parents. Knowledge about risk factors for impaired functioning can help inform interventions for Nepali widows.
KW - Nepal
KW - Social support
KW - discrimination
KW - social stigma
KW - widowhood
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U2 - 10.1080/17441692.2022.2118346
DO - 10.1080/17441692.2022.2118346
M3 - Article
C2 - 36065622
AN - SCOPUS:85137835652
SN - 1744-1692
VL - 17
SP - 3853
EP - 3868
JO - Global Public Health
JF - Global Public Health
IS - 12
ER -