NCJ Number
227534
Journal
Trauma, Violence, & Abuse Volume: 10 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2009 Pages: 211-224
Date Published
July 2009
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This literature review examines research that pertains to pathways linking intimate partner violence (IPV) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Abstract
As used in this review, IPV encompasses physical violence, sexual violence, and psychological or emotional abuse. It is now well recognized that IPV victimization can lead to adverse mental health effects such as PTSD, depression, and anxiety. The trauma theorists have not sufficiently addressed the potential implications for trauma-related disorders of the fact that IPV typically involves ongoing exposure to traumatic experiences; however, it is still useful to consider the various links between IPV and PTSD. Research has not adequately addressed how IPV leads to PTSD and whether IPV-related adverse outcomes are related directly or indirectly to PTSD. This article proposes a framework to guide future research that examines PTSD as a key variable for measuring the impact of IPV. The model presented includes variable categories pertinent to the following relationships that have some support in the existing research literature: covariates with a direct relationship to both IPV and PTSD; effects of moderating variables on the relationship between IPV and PTSD; effects of mediating variables on the IPV to PTSD pathways; and long-term outcomes (e.g., chronic health conditions) for both direct effects of IPV and indirect effects mediated through PTSD. The article discusses the selected substantive variables that are hypothesized to exhibit one or more types of relationships to IPV and PTSD in the general structural model. The nested ecological model of IPV applied to battered women is used to identify key variables important to examining PTSD as an adverse outcome. This model provides direction for understanding interlocking substantive domains within which to select factors for understanding the multiple pathways that link PTSD and other related outcomes. 1 figure and 102 references