This mixed-methods study explored the recovery process and outcomes for 37 women formerly in an abusive intimate partner relationship. Standardized measures of current psychosocial functioning indicated participants were largely asymptomatic for posttraumatic stress disorder and had relatively strong resilience. Qualitative analysis revealed how social and spiritual support was instrumental to participants' recovery, growth, and resilience. Implications for helping professionals include gaining a more comprehensive understanding of recovery from domestic violence. This type of knowledge may contribute to interventions that build on women's strengths and resourcefulness.
Sexual assault is a significant problem on college campuses, with growing public attention. The psychosocial ramifications of sexual assault for college survivors are significant and affect each person differently. Effective interventions that incorporate narrative techniques are instrumental for sexual assault recovery. Photovoice is a narrative method that encourages participants to make meaning of their experiences while integrating trauma into the larger context of their lives. This article highlights an exploratory study of the photovoice method as a narrative therapeutic technique for college sexual assault survivors. The photo-taking, dialoguing, and exhibiting process of photovoice empowered participants to take control over their story and their recovery, as well as to increase campus understanding of the posttraumatic impacts of sexual assault.
A B S T R AC TThis study examined 68 females, who as children were exposed to domestic violence, to explore childhood risk and protective factors and their relationship to adult levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and resilience. Independent sample t-tests indicated significant differences in PTSD levels between participants with and without police involvement during childhood. There were also significant differences in PTSD levels between participants who reported their mothers had mental-health problems with those who did not. Additionally, participants whose mothers had full-time steady employment had significantly higher resilience than those with mothers who did not work or worked inconsistently. Implications include advancing ecological theory and conceptual insights regarding childhood risk and protective factors and their association to adult psychological distress and hardiness for daughters exposed to their mothers' intimate partner violence.
The authors conducted thirty-two in-depth interviews with 20 rural, low-income, women residing in the United States, who were pregnant (n =12) or three months postpartum (n =8) and had experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). Using purposive sampling and the grounded theory method, the authors generated a conceptual model of coping. The urge to protect the unborn baby was the primary influence for participants’ decisions about separating from or permanently leaving an abusive relationship. Implications include universal screening for IPV in child-bearing women, inquiry into maternal identity development during pregnancy, and improved resource access for rural, low-income women.
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