Adult experience of mental health outcomes as a result of intimate partner violence victimisation: a systematic review

Abstract

BackgroundIntimate partner violence (IPV) has been known to adversely affect the mental health of victims. Research has tended to focus on the mental health impact of physical violence rather than considering other forms of violence.ObjectiveTo systematically review the literature in order to identify the impact of all types of IPV victimisation on various mental health outcomes.MethodA systematic review of 11 electronic databases (2004–2014) was conducted. Fifty eight papers were identified and later described and reviewed in relation to the main objective.ResultsMain findings suggest that IPV can have increasing adverse effects on the mental health of victims in comparison with those who have never experienced IPV or those experiencing other traumatic events. The most significant outcomes were associations between IPV experiences with depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and anxiety. Findings confirm previous observations that the severity and extent of IPV exposure can increase mental health symptoms. The effect of psychological violence on mental health is more prominent than originally thought. Individual differences such as gender and childhood experience of violence also increase IPV risk and affect mental health outcomes in diverse ways.ConclusionsPsychological violence should be considered as a more serious form of IPV which can affect the mental health of victims. Experiencing more than one form of IPV can increase severity of outcomes. Researchers should look at IPV as a multi-dimensional experience. A uniformed definition and measure of IPV could help advance knowledge and understanding of this disparaging global issue.

Intimate partner violence, HIV, and mental health: a triple epidemic of global proportions

“…While addressing the physical health of women facing these burdens is vital, there has been increasing focus on the impact of these epidemics on mental health, with both IPV and HIV being associated with adverse mental health outcomes (Brandt, 2009;Lagdon et al, 2014). Understanding this relationship is key to designing effective interventions to alleviate the effects of IPV in vulnerable populations experiencing the burden of HIV.…”

“…Similarly it has been established that levels of mental health problems, in particular common mental disorders (CMD), are high in HIV-infected people and those experiencing IPV (Brandt, 2009;Lagdon, Armour, & Stringer, 2014). While existing literature has focused on the relationship of IPV to either CMD (Golding, 1999;Howard et al, 2010;Lipsky & Caetano, 2007) or to HIV (Kouyoumdjian, Findlay, Schwandt, & Calzavara, 2013;Siemieniuk, Krentz, & Gill, 2013;WHO, 2004), the evidence is less robust for the connections between IPV and HIV, while considering CMD.…”

A scoping review of intimate partner violence educational programs for health care professionals

“…Intimate partner violence (IPV), also known as domestic violence, has serious health and mental health consequences for women (Bhandari et al 2006;Dillon et al 2013;Lagdon, Armour, and Stringer 2014;Mechanic, Weaver, and Resick 2008;Wu, Huff, and Bhandari 2010). Women who experience IPV require more health care resources compared to those who do not experience IPV (Rivara et al 2007).…”

Emotional stability and its relationship with the psychic damage among spanish victims of gender violence

“…Acute psychic damage or damage manifested in the form of emotional sequelae also varies in the case of chronic psychic damage (8). Studies have demonstrated the association between the violence against women, in all its different forms, and physical and mental health (9,10,11,12). Moreover, it has been extensively shown that there are great individual differences in the means of coping a stressful situation, and that these differences in response will determine the effects of such experiences, both in the shortterm response and in the long-term effects upon the health (13).…”

“…When this stability remains at medium-high levels, it indicates a greater capacity to better face the traumatic events which we interpret as a lesser psychological vulnerability. In exploring these differences in response, we found studies about the influence of factors such as age (15); personality (16); the type of violence (17,11); the relationship between the victim and the aggressor (18); the duration (17); the frequency (19), among others.…”