Status inconsistencies and power in intimate relations: Domestic exploitation and violence against women in homogenous and mixed couples formed by native and migrant partners

Abstract

We test two theories explaining domestic exploitation and violent abuse against women in couples. Exchange theory predicts both to increase when men outpower women; status inconsistency, when women do. As violence and exploitation can affect a couple’s resources, making the model recursive, we focus on native status. Using data from a women’s victimization survey (N = 8,000), we apply biprobit models to compare violent abuse and domestic exploitation in homogeneous and mixed couples in which one is a migrant. The results validate status inconsistency theory: native women with male migrant partners are less exploited but have the highest risks of being abused.