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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Victims of Domestic Violence: A Review of the Research
Abstract
The objectives of this research were to analyze data from literature based on studies of battered women to determine (a) the correlation of domestic violence and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), (b) the best treatment strategies for PTSD, and (c) the evidence of PTSD treatment effectiveness with battered women. Findings were (a) symptoms of battered women are consistent with PTSD symptoms; (b) certain populations are at higher risk of developing PTSD symptoms; (c) intensity, duration, and perception of the battering experience is a significant factor in the severity of the PTSD symptoms; (d) demographic variables influence PTSD severity; (e) standardized PTSD assessment is needed by professionals working with women experiencing domestic violence; (f) there is a need for greater public health involvement for prevention, identification, and medical treatment of domestic violence and PTSD; and (g) certain treatment strategies are recommended for PTSD but lack rigorous testing of their efficacy.
... Among these there are the number of violent episodes and of abusive partners encountered, the timing of the IPV incidents, the presence of other life-threatening situations during the violent episodes, and the increase in violence occurrences [23,24]. Regarding the latter, the literature demonstrates that an increase in violence occurrence is closely associated with PTSD symptoms [25][26][27][28]. As the severity and frequency of various forms of IPV escalate, the likelihood of developing PTSD symptoms rises accordingly [25][26][27][28]. ...
... Regarding the latter, the literature demonstrates that an increase in violence occurrence is closely associated with PTSD symptoms [25][26][27][28]. As the severity and frequency of various forms of IPV escalate, the likelihood of developing PTSD symptoms rises accordingly [25][26][27][28]. The experience of an increase in IPV episodes, however, is not an isolated phenomenon [29]: for example, a study by Krause et al. (2006) [30] found that around 36.7% of women reported IPV revictimization by the same partner within 12 months of seeking help for the violence. ...
(1) Background: Experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) can greatly impact victims’ physical and mental health, often leading to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Emotion regulation has been identified in the literature as a factor that contributes to the manifestation of PTSD. Consequently, this study aims to investigate the relationship among the increase in IPV victimization (i.e., physical, psychological, sexual, and economic violence), emotion dysregulation, and PTSD symptoms. It has been hypothesized that emotion dysregulation may mediate the increase in IPV occurrence and PTSD symptoms. (2) Methods: 284 women (Mage = 40.92) exposed to IPV were recruited in Italy. IPV experience was screened using the Revised Conflict Tactic Scale questionnaire. A mediational analysis was performed using Rstudio. (3) Results: The findings corroborated the mediating role of emotion dysregulation: the relationship between the increase in IPV and PTSD symptoms appears to be mediated by emotion dysregulation. (4) Conclusions: These findings bolster the existing literature regarding the association between emotion dysregulation and PTSD, underscoring the important role of emotion dysregulation in trauma symptoms. This highlights the significance of prioritizing the treatment of emotion dysregulation as a focal point for intervention and support for those who have experienced IPV.
... Pârvan, 2014, Nunes & Barros, 2022.Posttraumatické reakcieVystavenie násiliu vedie k vyššej miere disstresu, posttraumatickým reakciám a depresii. Štúdie naznačujú, že exponovaní dospelí vykazujú vyššiu úroveň distresu,(Jones et al., 2001; Stein et al., 2001;Kaminer et al., 2008;Beydoun et al., 2012;Muldoon a Downes 2007; Canetti a kol. 2010). ...
... Moreover, variations in DA across different racial/ethnic groups, individuals' sexual orientation, and disabilities have been documented (Niolon et al., 2017), with higher lifetime DA prevalence among ethnic minority women, bisexual, lesbian, and gay individuals, and those with disabilities, particularly physical and mental health impairments (Niolon et al., 2017). DA adversely affects physical health and has also been linked to a range of mental health impacts, including depression, anxiety, psychosis, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and serious mental illness (Chandan et al., 2020), post-traumatic stress disorder (Jones et al., 2001), and eating disorders (Bundock et al., 2013). Lifetime experience of any type of DA is associated with suicidal ideation, psychological distress, and depression in women (White et al., 2023). ...
Individuals experiencing domestic abuse (DA) struggle to disclose victimization, but as frequent users of mental health services, this is a pivotal setting for identification and addressing DA. This systematic review of 20 studies investigates DA identification, screening, and responses within mental health settings. Three databases were searched using these inclusion criteria: adults aged 18 and older accessing mental health services, samples comprising mental health professionals (or combination). No geographical restrictions were applied. All studies were peer-reviewed and published in English between January 2000 and December 2023. Studies had to incorporate screening for DA between (ex-)partners and/or response to disclosure within mental health settings. The findings revealed considerable variation in DA screening methods from direct screening tools to retrospective analyses of patient files. Professionals report barriers in identifying DA, including uncertainty about their role, time constraints, and the importance of building trust with service users. Nonetheless, many highlight the importance of routinely asking about DA. A small number of interventions have been effective in enhancing professionals’ readiness to address DA, but it remains unclear what format of training is most effective. Service users report feelings of shame and fear of not being believed when disclosing DA, but are aided by therapeutic engagement and enhanced professional awareness. There is a lack of diverse inclusion in the research. In summary, there is considerable scope to develop good practice to support mental health professionals’ ability to identify and respond to DA across assessment tool and training, but also in understanding what facilitates service users to disclose.
... A study conducted by Jones et al. (2001) revealed that the symptoms experienced by women who experienced domestic violence closely resemble those associated with PTSD, with specific populations being more susceptible to these symptoms. The severity of symptoms associated with PTSD is affected by the frequency, length, and perception of the traumatic experience. ...
Domestic violence is associated with significant health problems, including increased mental health challenges, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), often resulting in neuropsychological impairment. This study investigates the relationships between neuropsychological functioning, psychological wellbeing and TBI among domestic violence victims. A sample of 509 women who were domestic violence victims was recruited using a purposive sampling technique. The data was gathered through a survey that included four standardized scales; Neurobehavioral Inventory (NSI), HELPS screening Tool, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and the PTSD- PCL-5. The study found a significant relationship between NPF, TBI, and age, but no significant correlation was found between NPF, depression, anxiety, stress, or PTSD. PTSD was significantly correlated to depression, anxiety, and stress, but no significant relationship was observed between TBI and NPF. The study also revealed TBI positive respondents had significantly poorer neuropsychological functioning than the TBI negative group. Divorced women generally have better NPF but were more likely to have experienced TBI. No significant difference was found in psychological well-being or PTSD among marital status groups. The study found similar mental health issues across continents, but TBI prevalence varies significantly, with higher rates in America compared to Asia, Europe, or Africa, indicating the universal nature of mental health problems among domestic violence victims. Based on these results, clinicians and future researchers should utilize clinical assessments and neuroimaging practices in domestic violence cases, to study cognitive issues and potential brain injuries, aiding accurate diagnosis and psychological wellbeing.
... The results of the present study showed that Intimate Partner Violence has a strong positive correlation with the development of PTSD in women survivors and that PTSD was associated with all forms of intimate partner violence. More specifically, the examined literature revealed that physical and psychological partner violence are main risk factors for the development of PTSD (Jones et al., 2001, Pengpid & Peltzer, 2020. The financial/economic violence as another form of IPV is also a main risk factor for the development of PTSD. ...
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is associated with traumatic experiences stemming from traumatic situations such as war conflicts, accidents and natural disasters, while it thrives in abusive situations. In the context of partner relationship abuse, female survivors make up a high proportion of people with PTSD. This systematic literature review aims to investigate the relationship between PTSD and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in female survivors and examine the risk factors which may play a role in the development of PTSD in women IPV survivors. Following the PRISMA 2020 writing protocol, this study collected research in order to present the impact of Intimate Partner Violence on PTSD. The findings highlighted a positive correlation between partner violence and PTSD and between PTSD and risk factors such as brain injury, low self-confidence, history of child abuse, negative social reactions, lack of resources and insecure attachment bonds. The negative consequences of Intimate Partner Violence manifest both on women's mental and physical health and there is often comorbidity between mental disorders such as depression, and physical health problems such as chronic pain and injuries.
... 3 Domestic violence can be physical, sexual, emotional, economic, psychological, or technological actions or threats of actions or other patterns of coercive behaviour that influence another person within an intimate partner relationship. 4,5 This research article highlights a case report of a women suffering from domestic violence and thereby developing C-PTSD (Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). ...
... Second, the study did not explore the duration of the abusive relationship, which has been identified as a predictor of PTSD. Future research should delve into this aspect (Jones et al., 2001;Pico-Alfonso, 2005). Future studies should also include a qualitative research design since it can offer valuable insights into the subjective experiences of guilt, alexithymia, and posttraumatic symptoms of women. ...
Objective: The objective of this article is to explore the relationships between two significant predictors, as indicated by existing literature, of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms: guilt and alexithymia. The investigation centers on a clinical sample of women who have encountered intimate partner violence (IPV). Method: A total of 740 women who had experienced IPV (Mage = 42.84, SD = 11.092) were recruited to participate in this study. Mediation analysis was employed to examine the mediating role of guilt and alexithymic difficulties in the relationship between IPV and PTSD symptoms. Results: The findings of this study provide empirical support for the mediating effects of guilt and alexithymia in the link between IPV and PTSD symptoms. Specifically, higher levels of guilt and alexithymia were found to be associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing symptoms of PTSD among women with an IPV experience. Conclusion: The results of this study have important implications for the development of interventions tailored to the specific needs of women who have experienced IPV. In particular, interventions that target and address guilt and alexithymia hold promise for effectively mitigating symptoms of PTSD in this population. By addressing these underlying factors, interventions can help women navigate their trauma, facilitate emotional processing, and support their journey toward recovery and well-being.
... More than half of survivors of IPV experience trauma as a negative outcome of violence (Jones et al., 2001;Smyth et al., 2017), resulting in a greater likelihood of posttraumatic stress than depression or anxiety (Dekel et al., 2020). Posttraumatic stress or PTSD, referring to overwhelming or intrusive responses to a negative or complex situation, can make it difficult for survivors of IPV to heal from violence (Carlson & Dalenberg, 2000;Herman & van der Kolk, 2020). ...
This study used simulation-based research (SBR) to gain a better understanding of how intimate partner violence (IPV) service providers engage in trauma-informed practice in a simulated session with a standardized patient. Our qualitative study recruited 18 IPV service providers from Canada and the United States. Each participant engaged in a virtual 30-minute case-based simulated session with an actor portraying a survivor of IPV experiencing vulnerabilities related to violence and immigration status. Following each simulation, IPV service providers participated in a 30- to 45-minute reflective dialogue. The data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Identified themes included: (a) simulation builds trauma-informed responses that recognize intersecting identities (e.g., race, immigration status, culture) and (b) simulation helps train service providers in responding to IPV. Implications for social work research and practice, including the benefits of using simulation for training IPV service providers, will be discussed.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant social issue affecting women in rural India, with deleterious consequences for their physical and mental health. The “mental health problems and psychosocial factors associated with IPV” is an under-researched topic in Central India. The cross-sectional observational descriptive study was part of a project aimed at strengthening the health sector response to gender-based violence. Eighty consenting women from 19 villages in a district in Central India, who acknowledged experiencing IPV, participated in the study. A predesigned and pretested sociodemographic questionnaire, the WHO multicountry women’s questionnaire, and self-report scales for depression, anxiety, stress, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were used to interview the women. The mean age of the respondents was 31.13 ± 6.96 years. The majority of the women (95%) experienced severe physical violence. In addition, a majority of these women simultaneously faced emotional abuse, whereas more than one-third suffered from sexual abuse from their partners. Self-reporting measures showed that nearly two-thirds of the participants had PTSD and moderate-to-severe depression and anxiety. A substantial number of study participants believed that IPV is a private matter for a couple and justified violence if the wife was unfaithful, disobedient, or neglectful of children and household duties. The under-reporting of IPV, presence of misconceptions, and high prevalence of associated mental health problems among IPV-affected women highlight the need for interventions tailored to the needs of battered women.
In the present study, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) prevalence rates were compared among 50 battered women and 37 maritally distressed women who had not experienced battering (N = 87). Participants were administered R. Spitzer and I. B. S. Williams's (1985) Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM–III–R (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [3rd ed., rev.]) to assess PTSD status and previous traumatic experiences in addition to other standardized measures of PTSD and violence exposure. Battered women exhibited significantly higher rates of PTSD than maritally distressed women (58% vs. 18.9%). Although both groups had similar rates of previous trauma experiences, women with a PTSD-positive status (both battered women and maritally distressed women) were significantly more likely to have experienced self-reported childhood sexual abuse and a higher overall number of previous traumas than those with a PTSD-negative status. Battering exposure and childhood sexual abuse predicted 37% of the variance in overall PTSD intensity levels.
Empirical research addressing the decision to leave an abusive relationship is reviewed, methodological limitations in that research are outlined, and theoretical models potentially useful for explaining this decision process are discussed. The review of past research suggests that a variety of factors influence the decision to leave an abusive relationship, including employment outside the home, length of relationship, presence of child abuse, and number of previous separations. Many of these studies, however, are limited by nonrandom samples, retrospective designs, and overreliance on self-report measures. Four interrelated models show promise for aiding in the understanding of this complex decision situation: psychological entrapment, learned helplessness, cost/benefit analysis, and reasoned action.
Eighty four abused women seeking therapy with their husbands were accepted into a group treatment program for spouse abuse. In the current study, we evaluated the treatment outcome of those women (n = 27) diagnosed with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD diagnosis, itself, did not differentiate those women who dropped out of treatment. Results indicated, however, that across all women, avoidance symptomatology significantly differentiated treatment completers from dropouts. Although women with PTSD began treatment in worse condition (lower marital satisfaction, higher depressive symptomatology, greater fear of spouse), post-assessment revealed they achieved positive treatment gains parallel to those of women without PTSD. Women with PTSD improved on each outcome variable measured, including a reduction in fear of spouse. Women with PTSD also did not differentially drop out of either treatment condition (men's/women's versus conjoint groups) which lends support to the appropriateness of conjoint treatment for spouse abuse.
This study investigated the type, severity, and frequency of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms experienced by battered women prior to killing male partners. Eighteen women were assessed for frequency and severity of lifetime PTSD symptoms and type of abuse endured. Correlations were performed between clusters of PTSD symptoms and composites of violent experiences. It was found that before killing male partners, these battered women suffered moderate to high levels of PTSD symptom frequency and severity, except for an inability to recall important aspects of the trauma. Significant canonical correlations were found between the frequency and severity of PTSD symptoms and the severity of types of abuses inflicted.
A sample of 70 women who had experienced marital violence were studied to assess degree of placing blame on self and on partner for violence. It was hypothesized that the focus of blame would change with marital circumstances and that different types of attributions for violence while in the violent relationship would be associated with different antecedent and outcome factors. Women currently living with violent partners reported the highest rate of self-blame, and women no longer living with such a partner reported a significant change from past self-blame to current partner-blame. Attributions while in the relationship fell into four categories; characterological self- and partner-blame, behavioral self-blame, and partners' situational response. Characterological self-blame was shown to be most highly associated with repeated physical or sexual abuse in childhood, lack of social support concerning the violence, and a high rate of depression once out of the relationship.
This study examined battered women's psychological symptoms using instruments developed to assess posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in other trauma victims. Women who had been in a physically violent relationship (n = 26) were assessed for PTSD using self-report measures and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID). Results indicated that 45% of those subjects interviewed met full DSM-III-R criteria for PTSD on the SCID, and that exposure to violence was significantly associated with PTSD symptomatology. When divided into high and low exposure groups based on degree of life threat, 60% of those in the high exposure group met criteria for diagnosable PTSD in contrast to a 14% rate in the low exposure group. These data suggest that battered women do experience symptoms of psychological trauma, and future cross-trauma research that includes this population, along with other previously identified trauma groups, would be beneficial.
The focus of the present study was twofold: (a) to examine the differences between children from maritally violent homes who witnessed marital violence and those who were both witnesses as well as victims of abuse; and (b) to determine the best predictors of child abuse among maritally violent families. Participants included 184 children, ages 7 to 13, and their mothers who were residing at battered women shelters. Compared to children who witnessed interparental violence, children who were both witnesses as well as victims of physical abuse scored significantly higher on externalizing behavior problems. A stepwise logistical regression analysis identified numerous predictors of child abuse among maritally violent families. These included a greater frequency and severity of marital violence, less marital satisfaction, and a poorer quality of father-child relationship as perceived by the children. In addition, children from families where child abuse occurred were more likely to exhibit aggressive behavior problems than children who only witnessed marital violence.
This study evaluates the effectiveness of an outreach counseling and support group intervention for battered women who are not staying in a shelter. The intervention, provided by social workers and other staff members, is relatively unstructured. AB single-case designs are aggregated across 6 women participating in the program. Outcome is assessed via daily telephone moni toring of the frequency of specified thoughts, feelings and behaviors of the women and of abusive behaviors by their partners. Findings do not indicate consistent beneficial intervention effects. Alternative explanations are postulated for the findings, and implications are drawn to enhance future applications of single-case evaluation to this problem area.
This study examined the differential effects of child or non-offending mother participation in a cognitive behavioral intervention designed to treat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other behavioral and emotional difficulties in school-aged sexually abused children. The 100 participating families were randomly assigned to one of three experimental treatment conditions—child only, mother only, or mother and child—or to a community control condition. Pre- and post-treatment evaluation included standardized measurement of children's behavior problems, anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms as well as of parenting practices. Two-by-two least-squares analyses of covariance were used to compare outcome measures. Results indicated that mothers assigned to the experimental treatment condition described significant decreases in their children's externalizing behaviors and increases in effective parenting skills; their children reported significant reductions in depression. Children who were assigned to the experimental intervention exhibited greater reductions in PTSD symptoms than children who were not. Implications for treatment planning and further clinical research are discussed.
Descriptive and clinical accounts of wife abuse consistently report a high incidence of depression and anxiety among samples of battered women. However, these studies all suffer from methodological shortcomings such as nonrepresentative samples, small sample size, and lack of comparison groups. This study corrects many of the methodological shortcomings of previous studies and analyzes reports of psychological distress among victims of violence and abuse by examining data from the Second National Family Violence Survey. A national probability sample of 6,002 households comprised this survey. The examination of the effects of violence is based on an analysis of the information provided by 3,002 female respondents who lived with their husband or male partner, or who had been separated from their husband or male partner less than 12 months at the time of the interview. Women who reported experiencing violence and abuse also reported higher levels of moderate and severe psychological distress. Multivariate analysis indicated that violence made an independent and nonspurious contribution to the psychological distress experienced by women.