The Role of Social Support in the Link Between Economic Abuse and Economic Hardship

Women escaping domestic violence to achieve safe housing: an integrative review

BACKGROUND

This integrative review summarises original research that explores women's experiences of escaping domestic violence to achieve safe housing.

METHODS

Integrative review. A robust search strategy was conducted using the following databases: Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL), Cochrane, Medline and PubMed. All articles were assessed for quality using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tools (MMAT) scoring. Whittemore and Knafl's (2005) five stage approach was used to analyse the primary literature related to women's and stakeholders' experiences of escaping domestic violence to achieve safe housing.

RESULTS

A total of 41 articles were retrieved and 12 papers were included in this review (six qualitative, one quantitative and five mixed methods) that fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Four overarching themes were identified: 'Experiences of leaving domestic violence', 'Barriers to achieving safe housing', 'Facilitators to achieving safe housing' and 'The road to recovery'. The 'Experiences of leaving domestic violence' theme included two subthemes: 'the losses' and 'ongoing contact with the perpetrator'. The 'Barriers to achieving safe housing' theme included three subthemes: 'financial insecurity', 'being judged by others for leaving and service availability'. The 'Facilitators to achieving safe housing' theme included two sub-themes: 'support, partnership, and collaboration between women and service providers' and 'feeling respected and heard'. The 'Road to recovery' theme included two sub-themes: 'being a good mother' and 'empowerment after leaving domestic violence'.

CONCLUSIONS

This review has highlighted the need for service and health care providers to work together and collaborate effectively with the woman experiencing and escaping domestic violence, especially in rural and remote areas. This means giving women access to the most suitable educational resources and services that are appropriate for their unique situation. Tailoring support for women is crucial to enable women to achieve safe housing and to be able to live a safe life with their children, away from the perpetrator of the domestic violence.

Domestic violence survivors' housing stability, safety, and well-being over time: Examining the role of domestic violence housing first, social support, and material hardship

Intimate partner violence remains a significant public health issue and survivors often need various forms of support to achieve safety. The increased likelihood of experiencing housing instability and homelessness among survivors has led to an uptake in domestic violence agencies implementing housing-based interventions, such as Domestic Violence Housing First (DVHF), to address survivors' needs. The present study expands on prior research supporting the effectiveness of DVHF to examine situational factors that moderate the outcomes associated with this model among 406 survivors seeking services from domestic violence agencies located in the Pacific Northwestern region of the United States. Using latent profile analysis, participants were grouped into three latent classes: (a) "high abuse/instability," (b) "still affected," and (c) "doing better." Latent transition analysis was used to estimate the probability that participants would transition into a different latent class over time with social support (SS), material hardship, and receipt of DVHF services included as model predictors. Receipt of DVHF predicted improvements in survivors' safety, housing stability, mental health, and well-being, such that receiving DVHF was associated with higher odds of survivors transitioning into the "doing better" class. Social support and material hardship also emerged as significant factors predicting class membership, such that higher levels of social support and financial stability predicted membership in the "doing better" class. Additionally, social support and financial stability appeared to augment receipt of DVHF services, with DVHF being more strongly associated with positive outcomes among participants who also had high levels of social support and lower levels of material hardship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Depressive Symptoms during Pregnancy: Prevalence and Correlates with Affective Temperaments and Psychosocial Factors

Pregnancy is a unique experience in women's life, requiring a great ability of adaptation and self-reorganization; vulnerable women may be at increased risk of developing depressive symptoms. This study aimed to examine the incidence of depressive symptomatology during pregnancy and to evaluate the role of affective temperament traits and psychosocial risk factors in predicting them. We recruited 193 pregnant women, collected data regarding sociodemographic, family and personal clinical variables, social support and stressful life events and administered the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego-Autoquestionnaire (TEMPS-A). In our sample, prevalence of depressive symptomatology was 41.45% and prevalence of depression was 9.85% (6.75% mild and 3.10% moderate depression). We have chosen a cutoff >4 on PHQ-9 to identify mild depressive symptoms which may predict subsequent depression. Statistically significant differences between the two groups were found in the following factors: gestational age, occupation, partner, medical conditions, psychiatric disorders, family psychiatric history, stressful life events, and TEMPS-A mean scores. In our sample mean scores on all affective temperaments but the hyperthymic, were significantly lower in the control group. Only depressive and hyperthymic temperaments were found to be, respectively, risk and protective factors for depressive symptomatology. The current study confirms the high prevalence and complex aetiology of depressive symptomatology during pregnancy and suggests that affective temperament assessment seems to be a useful adjunctive instrument to predict depressive symptomatology during pregnancy and postpartum.

Exploring Factors Associated with Intimate Partner Violence Survivors' Use of Financial Safety Planning Strategies

The purpose of this study was to explore financial strategies that intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors undertake when engaging in safety planning and to examine the relationship between these strategies and various survivor characteristics. As part of the cross-sectional study, a total of 425 female survivors of IPV were surveyed. To examine the relationship between financial safety planning strategies and participants' demographic characteristics, abuse experiences, and financial knowledge, binomial logistic regression analyses were conducted. Factors associated with financial safety planning varied by strategy; ethnicity and nativity were often significantly associated. Implications for practice and areas for future research are discussed.

Examining the impact of economic abuse on survivors of intimate partner violence: a scoping review

Background

Economic abuse is a unique form of intimate partner violence (IPV) and includes behaviors that control a survivor’s ability to acquire, use, and maintain resources. These tactics can result in someone becoming economically dependent on their partner and may limit their ability to leave the relationship and establish independence. The aim of this study was to conduct a scoping review focused on the impact of economic abuse on survivors of IPV.

Methods

A total of 14 databases were reviewed, which resulted in 35 peer-reviewed manuscripts for inclusion in the study. Manuscripts were included if they were: written in English, published since the year 2000, focused specifically on the impact of economic abuse perpetrated by an intimate partner, economic abuse was measured as an independent variable, and if economic abuse was looked at separately from other forms of IPV. Both convenience and population-based samples were included in the review. Information was extracted using a data charting form. The data were analyzed using a combination of grouping techniques and constant comparison methods to identify key findings.

Results

Studies found significant associations between economic abuse and a range of outcomes, such as mental and physical health, financial impacts, parent-child interactions, and quality of life. The most frequently examined were mental health, followed by financial issues.

Conclusions

Limitations of these studies included a lack of longitudinal research and a focus on heterosexual relationships with male-perpetrated violence toward female survivors. Study findings highlight the wide-ranging potential impacts of economic abuse on survivors and the need for additional research to better understand potential outcomes and implement and evaluate interventions to address them.

IPV Experiences and Financial Strain Over Time: Insights from the Blinder-Oaxaca Decomposition Analysis

Financial strain is one hardship faced by female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) that is often overlooked. This paper examined the relationships between multiple forms of abuse-with a focus on economic abuse-and financial strain. Guided by stress process model, this study tested two hypotheses: (1) economic abuse is associated with financial strain more than other types of IPV; and (2) decreased economic abuse relates to financial strain over time. The study sample consists of 229 female IPV survivors who participated in a longitudinal, randomized controlled study evaluating an economic empowerment curriculum. Results from regression models suggest that physical abuse and economic abuse were significantly and positively associated with the magnitude of financial strain. Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition was used to partition the mean differences of financial strain over time that was mainly attributed to the decrease in economic and physical abuse (78%). Particularly, the decrease of economic abuse contributed to over half (58%) of the decrease in financial strain over time. Advocates should assess survivors' risk of economic abuse, evaluate financial strain, and utilize financial safety planning skills to help survivors build economic security and independence. In addition, policy makers should address issues concerning economic security among female IPV survivors.

Exposure to IPV among Children in the Child Welfare System and an Emotional-Behavioral Disability: the Role of Maternal Depression and Social Support

This study examines the relationship between children's exposure to IPV and EBD among children involved in the child welfare system for suspected maltreatment (both substantiated and unsubstantiated). It specifically examines how children's trauma symptoms, maternal depression, and maternal social support may impact the relationship between exposure to IPV and EBD. This study uses structural equation modeling with data from the second National Survey of Child and Adolescent Wellbeing to examine the relationship between exposure to IPV and EBD among 989 children (ages 8-17) involved in the child welfare system. Moderated mediation was employed to examine whether children's trauma symptoms mediate the relationship between IPV exposure and EBD and whether differences in maternal depression and social support impact such mediation effect. Child trauma symptoms and maternal social support were significantly related to EBD. The current study highlights the relationship between children's trauma symptoms and EBD among children in the child welfare system. The study also provides preliminary evidence for maternal social support as a protective factor for children developing EBD. Implications of this research include providing interventions as well as increasing maternal social support to potentially reduce the likelihood of children developing EBD.

Experiences With Help Seeking Among Non-Service-Engaged Survivors of IPV: Survivors' Recommendations for Service Providers

Engaging with formal intimate partner violence (IPV) services can buffer the impacts of violence and reduce future risk. Many survivors do not access or engage with such services. However, much of our knowledge related to the experiences and perspectives of IPV survivors comes from samples drawn from those seeking formal services. Qualitative interviews with 23 survivors of violence who are not currently engaged with formal IPV services were conducted, focused on the process and outcomes of choosing to seek help. Themes emerged within the categories of formal help-seeking experiences, informal help seeking, and recommendations for providers.

Pathways From Intimate Partner Violence to Academic Disengagement Among Women University Students

More knowledge is needed related to collegiate intimate partner violence (IPV) and the pathways between experiencing physical and psychological IPV and academic disengagement. Students in a University System in the southwest completed an online survey including measures of physical and psychological IPV, academic disengagement, sense of community, and safety on campus. Conditional process analyses were used to understand key pathways for 6,818 woman identified students. All models found a significant indirect path between physical and psychological IPV and academic disengagement via depression symptoms. Students' sense of community on campus was associated with less academic disengagement regardless of physical violence. The impact of psychological IPV on disengagement was stronger for those with lower senses of community. Enhancing screening and education, providing effective mental health counseling, and increasing advocacy will help institutions better address IPV.

Measurement of Economic Abuse Among Women Not Seeking Social or Support Services and Dwelling in the Community

Scholars have defined economic abuse (EA) as tactics used by abusive partners to undermine the self-sufficiency and economic self-efficacy of survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). However, no measures of EA have been tested in non-IPV-service seeking samples. The current study assesses the psychometric properties of the Scale of Economic Abuse (SEA)-12 (Postmus, Plummer, & Stylianou, 2016) in a nonservice seeking sample of adult females attending community college. A quantitative web-based survey was administered to a simple random sample of female community college students (n = 435). Analyses included confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). CFA indicated a poor fit for the three-factor model of the SEA-12 in this sample. The results of the EFA found a single factor model retaining four items (the Scale of Economic Abuse-Short, or SEAS). Women are experiencing EA outside of IPV service-seeking populations, and that tactics of economic control seem to be central to EA in this sample.