Coping strategies of women survivors of domestic violence residing with an abusive partner after registered complaint with the family counseling center at Alwar, India

Abstract

Coping is one of the most important and widely studied aspects of domestic violence (DV). Women adopt a wide variety of coping strategies to manage abuse, ranging from individual estrangement to institutional entitlements. The condition of women becomes complex when they seek institutional support while living with an abusive husband and his family under the common hearth. The present study aims to analyze the coping strategy of mediation between informal and formal justice while residing with an abusive husband and his family. Further, the study explores the coping strategy as an outcome of the contextual factor and associated psychological distress. It is a prospective intervention study with a 4‐month span building awareness, counseling (individual, couple, and family counseling), and case‐specific advice (safety plan, choice‐making, and problem‐solving). A baseline and endline assessment with SRQ‐20 and in‐depth interviews were carried out on 299 married women who had registered a complaint with a family counseling center (FCC); Mahila Suraksha Evam Salah Kendra (MSSK) in Alwar district, India. To understand the context and the coping strategy adopted by women, in‐depth interviews were carried out. The results show that there is a differential impact of DV, psychological distress, and coping strategy based on contextual factor; women having an informal support system have a better result in coping; and intervention at the formal system resulted in improving coping strategy and simultaneously reducing psychological distress. As the mediation period is interminable and traumatic, the institutional support to women survivors of DV is an important policy alternative for improving survivors’ well‐being, especially in an unsupportive informal context.

Role of Social Support in Women facing Domestic Violence during Lockdown of Covid-19 while Cohabiting with the Abusers: Analysis of Cases Registered with the Family Counseling Centre, Alwar, India

“…At the time of crisis, when the women are in distress due to DV, they are left with meager social support to cope with violence they are subjected to ( Mahapatro & Singh, 2019 ). Therefore, the investigation of social support is a prerequisite for social and mental resilience during family violence.…”

“…In the absence of social support, these interventional programs are the only remaining instruments to create a positive impact by translating the abuse experienced by individual women into a cumulative human-rights discourse. In these processes of intervention, the victims are actively engaged and made empowered in order to utilize different methods of coping ( Mahapatro & Singh, 2019 ). The institutional support to women survivors of DV is an important policy instrument for improving the survivors’ well-being, especially in an unsupportive social context.…”

“…Having stronger family support increases the strength to deal with psychological distress as well as with the abuse. A woman staying with an abusive husband and his family is twice more likely to develop psychological distress compared to a woman having the support of her parents ( Mahapatro & Singh, 2019 ). Adequate social support decreases the risk of violence in a relationship and its negative impacts if present ( Cohen et al, 2000 ; Katerndahl et al., 2013 ).…”

“…Earlier studies have reported that social support works in both ways, directly promoting recovery from stressful experiences and crises experienced in the family as well as the protective role of a buffer against the effects of life stressors ( House 1981 ). A study conducted by Mahapatro and Singh (2019) revealed that women who were supported by their parental family moved on to engage in active coping. It was also reported that they needed more social support, particularly from their parental family.…”

A Qualitative Analysis of the Coping Strategies of Female Victimisation After Separation

“…Bahadir-Yilmaz and Öz ( 2018 ) found a positive significance between the effectiveness of empowerment programme and the use of coping strategies of women exposed to domestic violence. Coping is seen as the most important method in helping to reduce psychological distress and further enhance victims’ survival (Mahapatro & Singh, 2020 ). Therefore, a study related to women’s coping strategies at the individual level is highly significant to enhance greater empowerment amongst women at the macro level.…”