What is it about?
There is a significant association between domestic violence and psycho-social wellbeing. Women who have experienced domestic violence or abuse are at higher risk of experiencing a range of mental health conditions. Lack of coping mechanisms and social support leaves women to stay in distress condition throughout their life. Thus, this paper attempts to evaluate the relationship between empowerment, social support, and psycho-social wellbeing of women whohave experienced violence and their awareness level and coping mechanism.
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Why is it important?
The finding shows that around 78% of women faced any form of domestic violence across the four cities. The physical form of violence was around 59.6%, emotional violence was 73% and sexual violence was 34.7%. The highest prevalence of domestic violence was in Jaipur, followed by Lucknow, Delhi, and Hyderabad. The relationship of violence with social support and empowerment shows a significant association: i.e with decreasing social support the chances of facing domestic violence increase by 83% (OR: 1.83; p < 0.01), and with lower empowerment the chances of facing domestic violence increases by 14% (OR:1.14; p < 0.05). To cope with domestic violence, more women from Jaipur and Hyderabad sought help. Most women relied on their own families for help, while some knew about the 181-helpline number and tried seeking help. The findings show the lack of policies and programs on the psycho-social well-being of women.
Perspectives
Domestic violence has emerged as a pressing global concern, especially in countries like India. Intimate partner violence and domestic violence can affect individuals of all genders within both heterosexual and homosexual relationships, perpetrated by individuals of any gender. However, research consistently indicates that women bear a disproportionately higher burden of domestic violence compared to men. Therefore, it becomes imperative to recognise and address the issue. Considering that acceptance of violence among the victim is manifold, power dynamics, economic dependence, and cultural norms create a barrier in addressing the same. It is often retorted as infringing on one's matter. Exploring the pathways to navigate the 'personal' to bring it into the frame of social justice is important.
sanghmitra acharya
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Experiencing Domestic Violence in Urban Spaces- Issues of Psycho-Social Wellbeing, Population Medicine, April 2023, E.U. European Publishing,
DOI: 10.18332/popmed/163984.
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