How Thai Women Manage Living in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

Although there is literature that describes coping strategies of women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV), the definitions of common coping strategies and the two-dimensional model of coping styles (emotion-or problem-focused) may not fully delineate how these women manage their day-to-day lives. Using an Interpretive Description method and feminist standpoint principles, in-depth interviews were conducted with 40 Thai women regarding how they managed living in the context of IPV. Data were analyzed using an iterative thematic analysis procedure. In this study, the highly changeable and adaptive strategies use by participants could not be easily categorized into emotion-or action/problem-focused. Indeed, the strategies used by Thai women in this study were better described as survival focused. Based on our analysis, the process of managing their day-to-day life in the context of IPV revealed six major themes: keeping silent, disconnect between the fantasy of love and reality, seeking emotional support, ambivalence surrounding leaving, living with negative emotions, and despair and suicide. An undercurrent that was woven throughout multiple themes was the dominant lens of motherhood through which women made day-to-day decisions. These data also highlight the specific impacts that Thai society and religious beliefs have on increasing the risk of IPV and maintaining its duration. All levels of government, religious leaders, and public policy makers must engage in intersectoral initiatives to make public what is now private. Social and health service providers must create safe spaces where women can disclose IPV and where they can get funded multilevel supports to help them live independent of violence. The participants' stories give voice to why Thai health professionals need to fully engage with women to understand the past and current contexts of women's lives and how their experiences impact their health.

Mediating Roles of Intimate Partner Violence, Stress, and Social Support on Depressive Symptoms Among Thai Women

“…Feelings of helplessness may contribute to the associations between IPV victimization and depression in adulthood (Bargai et al, 2007). However, research has shown that abused women use more emotion-focused coping strategies to reduce their stressors and that coping is linked to increased risk of depression (e.g., Choi et al, 2015; Khodabakhshi-Koolaee et al, 2018; Thananowan et al, 2018). In addition, social stigmatization can directly discourage abused women from seeking medical help and create difficulties in obtaining social and emotional support (Štulhofer et al, 2017).…”

“…Disclosing IPV to anyone or seeking help from others would bring shame to a woman and her family. Thus, many of the abused Thai women remain silent about their experiences of violence (Thananowan et al, 2018), resulting in underreporting of IPV.…”

“…Few abused women receive help and support they need because they are unlikely to disclose their abuse to anyone, even their family or close friends (Rujiraprasert et al, 2009). Thai women may be more reluctant than Westerners to seek help from outsiders unless the IPV situation was severe or life-threatening (Thananowan et al, 2018). Consequently, IPV must be endured and tolerated.…”

Intimate partner violence and factors associated with sexually transmitted infections among Thai women attending gynecology clinics

“…22 Victims of IPV may keep silent and face a substantial amount of shame and stigma, making it difficult for them to seek help from outsiders until their health or overall situation becomes severe. 23 As a result, IPV might undermine a woman’s ability to access health care services and disclose the abuse to someone. In practice, though, few clinical settings in Thailand support routine screening or assessment for IPV, and most Thai providers do not screen for IPV.…”

Binge-drinking and household role’s associations with prevalence of domestic violence: findings from the Thailand smoking and drinking behaviour survey 2017

“…Drinking serves as a symbol of masculine gender identity, and alcohol is used as a tool to justify men's IPV and violence against other family members [19]. Studies on domestic violence in Thailand in the literatures are all in the context of IPV in married or cohabitating heterosexual relationships [4,[20][21][22]. The prevalence of lifetime experience of IPV in Thailand varied from 16% in a survey of 1444 women in 4 provinces in 4 regions [20] to 27% in a survey of 580 women in seven Bangkok slums [4].…”