Co-Occurring Substance Use, PTSD, and IPV Victimization: Implications for Female Offender Services

Abstract

The co-occurrence of substance use disorders (SUDs) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among women who have been the victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) is complex and causal associations cannot be assumed. Although the presence of co-occurring disorders among IPV victims is a well-established research finding, there is a need for improved understanding of their prevalence and related mental health treatment requirements among female offenders. We review research indicating that service providers working with IPV victims can expect to encounter women with extensive concurrent problems and examine evidence for integrated treatment for SUD, PTSD, and IPV. We propose an outline for assessing and treating SUD and PTSD among female offenders who have experienced IPV victimization. We intend this review to build on previous calls in the co-occurring disorders literature and help integrate the research and treatment evaluation literatures in a way that points to practical implications for policy and practice in female offender services.

Correlates of reproductive coercion among college women in abusive relationships: baseline data from the college safety study

“…RC was not significantly associated with abusing alcohol or drugs. Studies on IPV have found consistent associations between IPV and substance use, [46][47][48] so it may be that the independent association of RC with substance abuse was not able to be detected in this sample of abuse survivors. While this study focused on depression as a primary mental health outcome, PTSD is also known to be linked to IPV, 49 and would be useful to study in future research.…”

“The Traps Started During My Childhood”: The Role of Substance Abuse in Women’s Responses to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

“…Holistic addiction treatment addresses substance abuse within the context of mental health and trauma. This approach is crucial for women as a large proportion experience co-occurring disorders (60-75%; McKee & Hilton, 2017;Scott et al, 2015).…”

The Criminogenic and Noncriminogenic Treatment Needs of Intimate Partner Violence Offenders

“…Bonta and Andrews (2016) explained that treatment services should place less emphasis on addressing noncriminogenic needs due to their lower association with recidivism, unless attending to an offender's noncriminogenic need influences a criminogenic one. For example, offenders with major mental disorders may be unable to reduce their substance use unless both problems are treated (e.g., McKee & Hilton, 2017).…”