Young women's accounts of intimate partner violence during adolescence and subsequent recovery processes: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

Beyond Surviving: A Glimpse Into Jewish-Israeli Women's Recovery Trajectories After Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence

The present study identifies and articulates the recovery trajectories of 12 Jewish-Israeli women who experienced intimate partner violence. An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the Clinical Ethnographic Narrative interviews revealed three central themes. The first theme dealt with the chronology of the violence and its escalation. The second theme described the turning points that facilitated the termination of the violent relationship. The third theme reflects these women's attempts to regain control and fulfil their needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. The findings are discussed through the lens of Jewish-Israeli culture, which is child-oriented and underscores the centrality of motherhood.

Being silenced, loneliness and being heard: understanding pathways to intimate partner violence & abuse in young adults. a mixed-methods study

BACKGROUND

International research shows the significance and impact of intimate partner violence and abuse (IPVA) as a public health issue for young adults. There is a lack of qualitative research exploring pathways to IPVA.

METHODS

The current mixed-methods study used qualitative interviews and analysis of longitudinal cohort data, to explore experiences of pathways to IPVA. Semi-structured Interviews alongside Life History Calendars were undertaken to explore 17 young women's (19-25 years) experiences and perceptions of pathways to IPVA in their relationships. Thematic analysis was undertaken. Based on themes identified in the qualitative analysis, quantitative analysis was conducted in data from 2127 female and 1145 male participants of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) birth cohort study. We fitted regression models to assess the association of child maltreatment, parental domestic violence, and peer-to-peer victimisation, by age 12, with loneliness during adolescence (ages 13-14), and the association of loneliness during adolescence with IPVA (age 18-21). Mediation analysis estimated the direct effects of maltreatment on IPVA, and indirect effects through loneliness.

FINDINGS

All women interviewed experienced at least one type of maltreatment, parental domestic violence, or bullying during childhood. Nearly all experienced IPVA and most had been multi-victimised. Findings indicated a circular pathway: early trauma led to isolation and loneliness, negative labelling and being silenced through negative responses to help seeking, leading to increased experiences of loneliness and intensifying vulnerability to further violence and abuse in young adulthood. The pathway was compounded by intersectionality. Potential ways to break this cycle of loneliness included being heard and supported, especially by teachers. Quantitative analysis confirmed an association between child maltreatment and loneliness in adolescence, and an association between loneliness in adolescence and experience of IPVA in young adult relationships.

CONCLUSION

It is likely that negative labelling and loneliness mediate pathways to IPVA, especially among more disadvantaged young women. The impact of early maltreatment on young people's wellbeing and own relationships is compounded by disadvantage, disability and ethnicity. Participants' resilience was enabled by support in the community.

Invisibility Is Not Invincibility: The Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Gay, Bisexual, and Straight Men's Mental Health

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a critical public health problem. However, there is limited research conducted on and about men who are survivors. This project extends previous research by examining the post-traumatic impact of diverse forms of IPV (sexual, physical, emotional, control, and stalking) on the internalized and externalized mental health of gay, bisexual, and straight men. Using data from the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (2011; N = 18,957), we find that all men are equally likely to report emotional victimization and controlling tactics (with between 50% and 70% doing so), while bisexual men are significantly more likely to report physical and sexual violence and gay men are significantly more likely to report intimate stalking. Due to these experiences, gay men are significantly more likely to report missing school or work, but bisexual men are significantly more likely to rate their current overall mental health as poor. Around 10% of all men, regardless of sexual orientation, report post-traumatic stress disorder symptomology and 30% of all men report difficulty sleeping. This research suggests that sexual orientation is a critical area of focus in the study of violence and mental health for men and that we can no longer ignore the voices and needs of men survivors: Invisibility is not invincibility.

The Effect of Tidal Model-Based Psychiatric Nursing Approach on the Resilience of Women Survivors of Violence

This study examined the effect of a psychiatric nursing approach based on the Tidal Model. The outcome variable was resilience in women survivors of violence. The experimental and descriptive study was conducted with a control group and a pretest post-test procedure. The research was carried out with 13 women in the intervention and 14 women in the control group. Resilience Scale for Adults Turkish Version (RSA) was used. Seven one to one sessions were performed with the intervention group. Inter-group comparison of pre- and post-test variation showed significant variations in favor of the intervention group in perception of the future and RSA scale total scores. Consequently the resilience of the intervention group increased, and they had a more positive, target-focused view of the future.

"When You Thought That There Is No One and Nothing": The Value of Psychodrama in Working With Abused Women

This paper discusses how psychodrama methods and techniques can empower abused women and stimulate changes in their victim role. Through an in-depth exploration, we sought to gain an insider's perspective of the experiences of change and perceived outcomes for abused women, which could contribute to optimizing gender violence intervention. Theoretically, the study is grounded in the female co-responsibility and trans-generational transmission of women's victim role from mother to daughter. A mixed methods experimental design employing an explanatory sequential approach to data collection was implemented. A total sample of 33 abused women (15 in the experimental group, and 18 in the control group) was involved in studying the impact of a psychodrama intervention combined with an ecological intervention. Spontaneity and wellbeing, considered in this study as dimensions of empowerment, were measured. Phenomenological interviews were conducted with 7 women 3 months after the psychodrama intervention ended, and with 6 women 5 years later. Data was analyzed using the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis method. The matrix of themes that emerged reflects four overarching themes: the victim, the group experience, the process of change, and the corollary of change. Benefits perceived by the women include trust, hope, increased self-esteem, empowering, and courage to make decisions and changes. Findings describe three paths of change for women who participated in an empowering-oriented psychodrama intervention program: the Proactive - Resilient type, the Active - Resistant type, and the Repetitive - Non-Resilient type. Role-reconstruction and the interruption of trans-generational victim pattern were clear for the proactive type and possible for the active type, while the repetitive type showed minor changes but remained stuck in the victim pattern. As no claims to generalizability can be made, further research is needed to verify the proposed typology on larger samples. Psychodrama, as an action method, can empower abused women and has the potential to stimulate action in women's lives and initiate adaptive coping strategies leading to resilience. The study ends with several suggestions for assisted resilience specialists.

Support for At-Risk Girls: A School-Based Mental Health Nursing Initiative

Mental health problems often go undiagnosed or unaddressed until a crisis or extreme event brings the problem to the forefront. Youth are particularly at risk for lack of identification and treatment in regard to mental health issues. This article describes an advanced nursing practice mental health initiative for at-risk teenage girls based on Hildegard Peplau's nursing theory, group process, and healing through holistic health approaches. A support group, RICHES, was developed with focus on core components of relationships, identity, communication, health, esteem, and support. The acronym RICHES was chosen as the name of the support group. Selected themes and issues addressed in this school-based support group are illustrated in case vignettes. Through a collaborative approach with the community and school, this practice initiative presents a unique healing process that extends knowledge in the realm of intervention with at-risk teenage girls. Further research is needed on the efficacy of support groups to modify risk factors and to address goals for primary prevention in at-risk teenage girls.

Assessment and psychotherapy with women experiencing intimate partner violence: integrating research and practice

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious, pervasive problem; however, professional literature focused on psychotherapy for women experiencing IPV is limited. This article delineates reasons why there is a dearth of literature on this topic. It then provides guidelines for assessment and practice, focusing on issues and approaches unique to women experiencing IPV. For assessment, the therapist should gather information on the type of IPV the client experiences, the relationship dynamics involved, and the availability of the client's social support network. Discussion of the client's developmental history, including any history of child maltreatment and violence in early dating relationships is also relevant. Assessment of the client's current mental health functioning is essential and will include a consideration of common psychological sequelae that can result from IPV. Treatment should include safety planning as well as reducing minimization of the abuse. In addition, treatment should address potential IPV-related emotion dysregulation and splitting.