Defining and Assessing Spirituality for Women Coping With Partner Abuse
Principal Investigator:
Dawnovise N. Fowler, Ph.D.
Noel Busch, Ph.D.
Duration: 8/03-6/04
There is a growing body of literature on the role of spirituality in coping with psychosocial problems, but its impact on the lives of women survivors coping with partner abuse is not well-understood. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, this study examines spirituality by (a) determining its definitional components, (b) comparing cultural differences, (c) assessing its relationship to specific psychosocial factors, including socioeconomic status, substance abuse, physical and mental health in a sample of women survivors of partner abuse. This study also assesses the interest of the women survivors in the integration of spirituality into partner abuse intervention. It is critical to effective service delivery and provision to partner abuse survivors that factors relevant to their coping capacity are identified and understood. The results of this study will have important implications for meeting their coping needs and continued investigations in this area.
Sponsor:
The Institute for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, Center for Social Work Research, The University of Texas at Austin
Keywords: domestic violence, sexual violence, community violence, sexual abuse
