Disclosure of Intimate Partner Violence to Informal Social Support Network Members

Abstract

This article presents a review of the published literature to date on rates, experiences, and correlates of victims' disclosure of or help seeking for intimate partner violence to informal social support network members (e.g., friends, family, classmates, and coworkers). Research indicates that the majority of individuals disclose to at least one informal support and that victims' disclosure is associated with a number of demographic (e.g., victims' sex, age, race), intrapersonal (e.g., victims' feelings of shame/embarrassment, perception of control over abuse), and situational (e.g., violence frequency and severity, if abuse is witnessed) factors. Following disclosure, victims experience a wide range of positive (e.g., believing the victim's reports, validating the victim's experiences) and negative (e.g. disbelieving, blaming the victim) social reactions, with positive reactions rated as the most common and most helpful forms of support by victims. Finally, a review of psychological correlates associated with reactions to disclosure indicates that positive social reactions are associated with more psychological health benefits and fewer negative health symptoms, whereas negative social reactions were associated with increased negative psychological health symptoms. Future research methodologies and implications for violence prevention, intervention, and policy are discussed.

Social support factors associated with psychological resilience among women survivors of intimate partner violence in Gauteng, South Africa

“…Social support, or the lack of it, is important in enabling or hindering perpetrators’ ability to sustain abusive relationships through social isolation of victims. Levels of social support are lower among abused women compared to non-abused women [26,28]. Moreover, mental ill health symptoms – for example, depression and suicidality – are heightened among victims who are more socially isolated [26,29].…”

“…Among abused women, seeking support from a network of people who are supportive and sympathetic enhances women’s coping skills and mitigates the adverse mental health outcomes of IPV [26,28–30]. On the contrary, in many instances women victims of abuse receive negative reactions from social resources who may blame, or be unsupportive.…”

“…On the contrary, in many instances women victims of abuse receive negative reactions from social resources who may blame, or be unsupportive. This is not beneficial and may pose as a further deterrent to women seeking help [28]. The availability of positive social support is associated with women’s greater access and utilization of services.…”

“…The availability of positive social support is associated with women’s greater access and utilization of services. Abused women who lack positive social support tend to be less knowledgeable about available formal support systems, and are less likely to utilize formal services [28]. However, the relationship of positive social support and service utilization is confounded by socio-economic status, in particular the lack of financial resources or low accessibility of services that is common in low-income settings [28,31].…”

“…Abused women who lack positive social support tend to be less knowledgeable about available formal support systems, and are less likely to utilize formal services [28]. However, the relationship of positive social support and service utilization is confounded by socio-economic status, in particular the lack of financial resources or low accessibility of services that is common in low-income settings [28,31]. The utilization of formal services is also influenced by severity and frequency of abuse, availability of personal resources, perceived efficacy and reactions of formal support systems [28,31,32].…”