Domestic Violence Shelter Essay

Domestic violence shelters emerged out of the 1970s during second-wave feminism to provide a refuge for victims of intimate partner violence. With the provision of food and shelter for women and their children fleeing an abusive home, these shelters can be seen to be positive reform for women. There are many avenues for women’s psychological support, such as support groups and counselling, many of which are offered within these shelters. While these shelters and psychological support undoubtedly provide a crucial service for many women and their children, there are some aspects of them that cannot be seen as positive reform. Many shelters only help women with their immediate problems and do not attempt to stem the growing levels of intimate

partner violence in society. Many shelters are seen as extensions of social services and are therefore governed by strict rules that form a controlling and oppressive environment. Additionally, many shelters are being forced to turn women away or close due to overcrowding or convert into a generic shelter.

Australian women who experience intimate partner violence are far more likely to experience mental illness over their lifetime than women who do not, with a higher rate for women who are sexually abused than just physically abused.

A representative study (Rees et al. 2011, p. 513) concluded the rates for female victoms in intimate partner violence: 77% for an anxiety disorder, 53% for a mood disorder, 47% for a substance abuse disorder and 56% for post-traumatic stress disorder with 35% having attempted suicide. These statistics clearly show a need for psychological help for these women, and this is reflected in the psychological services offered within domestic violence shelters, support groups and specialised counselling services. There is very limited empirical research done on the efficacy of domestic violence shelters and the psychological help provided, but the scarce body of work indicates that counselling assists in improving these women’s lives dramatically. Tutty, Bidgood & Rothery (1993) evaluated 12 support groups for female victims of intimate partner violence and found that the women who had left their abusive partner and continued to attend the support groups sessions had significantly improved “self-esteem, belonging support, locus of control… [and] perceived stress” (Tufty, Bidgood & Rothery 1993, p. 325). It was found that in comparison to when they started attending sessions, these women held less traditional views of family and marriage and marital functioning. With these conclusion the support groups being instrumental to women’s recovery (Tufty, Bidgood & Rothery, 1993), it can be seen that the creation of psychological support shows positive reform for

women.

In recognition of the high rate of post-traumatic stress disorder in victims of intimate partner violence Jonker et al. (2014) attempted to map the best possible care for women residing in shelters. The researchers sat down with shelter reisdents, social workers and staff members and produced a concept map of their priorities in the shelters’ operations. It was discovered that “”help finding a safe house if necessary,” “safety and suitable care for the children,” and “a personalised, respectful approach”” (Jonker et al. 2014, p. 465) were consistently identified as being the most important areas. The statement that took the highest priority from all sectors was to “take women seriously and treat them with respect” (Jonker et al. 2014, p. 465). This research has now been used to develop an intervention program for women in shelters in the Netherlands; aiding professionals to provide tailor-made psychological and physiological care to women, which will hopefully be adopted into more shelters in the future.
With the disproportionate occurrence of mental illnesses in victims of intimate partner violence, it can be seen that psychological support is crucial to aid these women in their recovery. Psychological support can be seen as a positive reform for women, with the attendance of counselling sessions, support groups and the recognition of women’s autonomy and independence being proven to be instrumental in this recovery.