In this paper, intimate partner violence describes physical violence directed against a woman by a current or ex-husband or boyfriend. The term “intimate partner violence” often includes sexual violence and can also include psychological abuse; both these forms of abuse often, but not always, accompany physical violence. However, inconsistencies in the definitions used in research, particularly with regard to inclusion or exclusion of sexual and psychological abuse by male intimate partners, has resulted in most global quantitative studies on the causes of intimate partner violence focusing solely on physical violence.