Internet-Based Intervention to Improve Mental Health Outcomes for Abused Women

描述(由申请人提供)：申请者提出一项研究，旨在防止女性接触亲密伴侣暴力(IPV)，并减少与亲密伴侣暴力密切相关的负面心理健康后果，包括抑郁症、创伤后应激障碍(PTSD)、药物滥用和自杀。利用一项实验设计，跨学科团队将测试基于互联网的交互式安全决策辅助工具在减少受虐女性决策冲突和增加寻求安全行为方面的有效性，从而防止重复接触暴力并改善心理健康。据我们所知，还没有实验研究评估安全规划的有效性或使用安全决策辅助来解决这一重要的妇女健康优先事项。解决这种缺乏研究的问题很重要，因为对于面临安全决策和为自己和家庭进行规划的女性来说，风险很高。相对较少的妇女有机会评估自己的危险程度或系统地研究她们如何权衡所考虑的相互竞争的安全偏好(例如，拥有足够的资源，如住房、就业和托儿以及保证其子女的安全)。决定结束一段虐待关系的女性，在疏远后，面临着被虐待的前伴侣实施致命暴力的风险增加。由于离开或停留在虐待关系中的危险，女性在采取行动之前了解自己的危险程度并充分探索影响其决定的复杂的安全偏好是至关重要的。这种基于互联网的交互式安全决策辅助工具将为女性提供一个亟需的机会，为自己和家人的安全制定优先事项和计划。未来，这种基于互联网的安全决策辅助工具应该提供一种具有成本效益、基于证据的安全规划工具，可由多个学科转化为实践，包括心理健康护理专业人员和与IPV受害者一起工作的倡导者。 公共卫生相关性：叙事这项研究将建立必要的证据，以推进暴力预防和精神健康服务计划和政策，以支持家庭暴力受害者及其家人。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The application proposes a study to prevent women's exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) and reduce the negative mental health outcomes strongly associated with IPV, including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance abuse and suicidality. Using an experimental design, the interdisciplinary team will test the effectiveness of an interactive internet based safety decision aid on reducing abused women's decisional conflict and increasing safety-seeking behaviors, thus preventing exposure to repeat violence and improving mental health. To our knowledge, there have been no experimental studies that have evaluated safety planning effectiveness or use of a safety decision aid to address this significant health priority for women. Addressing this paucity of research is important because the stakes are high for women faced with safety decisions and planning for themselves and families. Relatively few women have the opportunity to assess their own danger level or systematically examine how they weigh the competing safety preferences under consideration (e.g., having adequate resources, such as housing, employment and childcare as well as keeping her children safe). Women who decide to end an abusive relationship are at increased risk of lethal violence by the abusive ex-partner following the estrangement. Because of the danger of leaving or staying in an abusive relationship, it is critical that women gain understanding of their own danger level and fully explore the complex safety preferences that influence their decision before taking action. This interactive internet-based safety decision aid will give women a much-needed opportunity to prioritize and plan for safety for themselves and their families. In the future, this internet-based safety decision aid should provide a cost-effective, evidence-based safety- planning tool to be translated into practice by multiple disciplines, including mental health care professionals and advocates who work with victims of IPV. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Narrative This study will build the evidence necessary to advance violence prevention and mental health service programs and policies to support victims of domestic violence and their families.