It Happened Matters More Than What Happened: Associations Between Intimate Partner Violence Abuse Type,Emotion Regulation,and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms
Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online April, 2022
It Happened Matters More Than What Happened: Associations Between Intimate Partner Violence Abuse Type,Emotion Regulation,and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms
Intimate partner violence (IPV) has varied consequences including post-traumatic stress (PTS). One proposed risk factor for PTS is escalating types of violence; however, data are mixed. Because emotion dysregulation acts as a causal mechanism across numerous problems co-occurring in survivors of IPV, this study examined its association with PTS severity versus abuse type. Regression using data from women (n = 89) seeking treatment for IPV-related distress found the following: Type of abuse was not related to emotion dysregulation and emotion dysregulation was more strongly associated with PTS than type of abuse. This suggests emotion dysregulation may be more predictive of PTS than abuse type.
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.).
2.
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing.
3.
BlackM. C.BasileK. C.BreidingM. J.SmithS. G.WaltersM. L.MerrickM. T.StevensM. R. (2011). National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2010 summary report. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs_report2010-a.pdf
4.
BogatG. A.LevendoskyA. A.TheranS.Von EyeA.DavidsonW. S. (2003). Predicting the psychosocial effects of interpersonal partner violence (IPV): How much does a woman’s history of IPV matter?Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18, 1271–1291. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260503256657
5.
BrehD. C.SeidlerG. H. (2007). Is peritraumatic dissociation a risk factor for PTSD?Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 8, 53–69. https://doi.org/10.1300/J229v08n01_04
6.
BreidingM. J.SmithS. G.BasileK. C.WaltersM. L.ChenJ.MerrickM. T. (2014). Prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence victimization—National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, United States, 2011. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries, 63(SS08), 1–18.
7.
BreidingM. J.BasileK. C.SmithS. G.BlackM. C.MahendraR. R. (2015). Intimate partner violence surveillance: Uniform definitions and recommended data elements, Version 2.0. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
8.
CislerJ. M.OlatunjiB. O.FeldnerM. T.ForsythJ. P. (2010). Emotion regulation and the anxiety disorders: An integrative review. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 32, 68–82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-009-9161-1
9.
CloitreM.MirandaR.Stovall-McCloughK. C.HanH. (2005). Beyond PTSD: Emotion regulation and interpersonal problems as predictors of functional impairment in survivors of childhood abuse. Behavior Therapy, 36, 119–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7894(05)80060-7
10.
DeJongheE. S.BogatG. A.LevendoskyA. A.von EyeA. (2008). Women survivors of intimate partner violence and post-traumatic stress disorder: Prediction and prevention. Journal of Postgraduate Medicine, 54, 294–300. https://doi.org/10.4103/0022-3859.41435
11.
FollingstadD. R. (2009). The impact of psychological aggression on women’s mental health and behavior—The status of the field. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 10, 271–289. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838009334453
12.
FruzzettiA. E.IversonK. M. (2006). Intervening with couples and families to treat emotion dysregulation and psychopathology. In SnyderD. K.SimpsonJ.HughesJ. N. (Eds.), Emotion regulation in couples and families: Pathways to dysfunction and health (pp. 249–267). American Psychological Association.
13.
FruzzettiA. E.WorrallJ. M. (2010). Accurate expression and validating responses: A transactional model for understanding individual and relationship distress. In SullivanK. T.DavilaJ. (Eds.), Support processes in intimate relationships (pp. 121–150). Oxford University Press.
14.
GoldingJ. M. (1999). Intimate partner violence as a risk factor for mental disorders: A meta-analysis. Journal of Family Violence, 14, 99–132. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022079418229
15.
GratzK. L.RoemerL. (2004). Multidimensional assessment of emotion regulation and dysregulation: Development, factor structure, and initial validation of the difficulties in emotion regulation scale. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 26, 41–54. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JOBA.0000007455.08539.94
16.
IBM Corp. Released. (2019). IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 25.0.
17.
IversonK. M.ShenkC.FruzzettiA. E. (2009). Dialectical behavior therapy for women victims of domestic abuse: A pilot study. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 40, 242–248. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013476
18.
JonesL.HughesM.UnterstallerU. (2001). Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in victims of domestic violence: A review of the research. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 2, 99–119. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838001002002001
19.
KringA. M.SloanD. M. (2009). Emotion regulation and psychopathology: A transdiagnostic approach to etiology and treatment. Guilford Press.
20.
LaceyK. K.McPhersonM. D.SamuelP. S.Powell SearsK.HeadD. (2013). The impact of different types of intimate partner violence on the mental and physical health of women in different ethnic groups. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 28, 359–385. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260512454743
21.
LeeD. J.WitteT. K.WeathersF. W.DavisM. T. (2015). Emotion regulation strategy use and posttraumatic stress disorder: Associations between multiple strategies and specific symptom clusters. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 37, 533–544. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-014-9477-3
22.
LeeJ.FruzzettiA. E. (2017). Evaluating a brief group program for women victims of intimate partner abuse. Journal of Traumatic Stress Disorders & Treatment, 63(3). https://doi.org/10.4172/2324-8947.1000174
23.
McDonaldS. D.CalhounP. S. (2010). The diagnostic accuracy of the PTSD checklist: A critical review. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 976–987. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2010.06.012
24.
McFarlaneJ.MalechaA.WatsonK.GistJ.BattenE.HallI.SmithS. (2005). Intimate partner sexual assault against women: Frequency, health consequences, and treatment outcomes. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 105, 99–108. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.AOG.0000146641.98665.b6
25.
McLaughlinK. A.KoenenK. C.FriedmanM. J.RuscioA. M.KaramE. G.ShahlyV., et al. (2015). Sub-threshold posttraumatic stress disorder in the world health organization world mental health surveys. Biological Psychiatry, 77, 375–384. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2014.03.028
26.
MechanicM. B.WeaverT. L.ResickP. A. (2008). Mental health consequences of intimate partner abuse: A multidimensional assessment of four different forms of abuse. Violence Against Women, 14, 634–654. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801208319283
27.
NathansonA. M.ShoreyR. C.TironeV.RhatiganD. L. (2012). The prevalence of mental health disorders in a community sample of female victims of intimate partner violence. Partner Abuse, 3, 59–75. https://doi.org/10.1891/1946-6560.3.1.59
28.
Pico-AlfonsoM. A.Garcia-LinaresM. I.Celda-NavarroN.Blasco-RosC.EcheburúaE.MartinezM. (2006). The impact of physical, psychological, and sexual intimate male partner violence on women’s mental health: Depressive symptoms, posttraumatic stress disorder, state anxiety, and suicide. Journal of Women’s Health, 15, 599–611. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2006.15.599
29.
ReesS.SiloveD.CheyT.IvancicL.SteelZ.CreamerM., et al. (2011). Lifetime prevalence of gender-based violence in women and the relationship with mental disorders and psychosocial function. Journal of the American Medical Association, 306, 513–521. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2011.1098
30.
ShepherdL.WildJ. (2014). Emotion regulation, physiological arousal and PTSD symptoms in trauma-exposed individuals. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 45, 360–367. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2014.03.002
31.
SmithS. G.ZhangX.BasileK. C.MerrickM. T.WangJ.KresnowM.ChenJ. (2018). The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2015 data brief—Updated release. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
32.
StarkE. (2007). Coercive control: The entrapment of women in personal life. Oxford University Press.
33.
StarkE. (2012). Re-presenting battered women: Coercive control and the defense of liberty. Violence Against Women: Complex Realities and New Issues in a Changing World, Les Pressess de L’Université du Québec. http://www.stopvaw.org/uploads/evan_stark_article_final_100812.pdf
34.
TempleJ. R.WestonR.RodriguezB. F.MarshallL. L. (2007). Differing effects of partner and nonpartner sexual assault on women’s mental health. Violence Against Women, 13, 285–297. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801206297437
35.
TranH. N.BeckJ. G. (2019). Are peritraumatic perceptions of fear/fife threat and posttraumatic negative self-conscious appraisals/emotions differentially associated with PTSD symptoms?Cognitive Therapy and Research, 43, 272–283. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-018-9903-z
36.
WeathersF. W.LitzB. T.HermanD. S.HuskaJ. A.KeaneT. M. (1993, October). The PTSD Checklist (PCL): Reliability, validity, and diagnostic utility [Paper presentation]. Annual Convention of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, San Antonio, TX, United States.
37.
WeathersF. W.LitzB. T.KeaneT. M.PalmieriP. A.MarxB. P.SchnurrP. P. (2013). The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). www.ptsd.va.gov
38.
WeaverT. L.AllenJ. A.HopperE.MaglioneM. L.McLaughlinD.McCulloughM. A., et al. (2007). Mediators of suicidal ideation within a sheltered sample of raped and battered women. Health Care for Women International, 28, 478–489. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399330701226453
