Posttraumatic Growth in Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

Adverse consequences of intimate partner violence (IPV) are well documented, whereas less research has explored positive changes. Recent efforts indicate that survivors report posttraumatic growth (PTG), but the schema reconstruction hypothesis by which this is achieved is in need of further investigation. One model of PTG suggests that growth is triggered by trauma(s) that challenges an individual's assumptive world. This threat promotes cognitive processing and schema reconstruction that fosters a sense of meaning and value in one's life. As schema change is posited as the main cognitive antecedent of PTG, a longitudinal assessment of world assumptions was used to examine whether assumption change predicts PTG in IPV survivors. Results indicate that world assumptions became more positive 1 year after an initial interview but only for women who had not been revictimized in the year between study assessments. Furthermore, positive world assumption change was associated with greater PTG scores. Implications for intervention and research are discussed.

Mining for Posttraumatic Growth (PTG) in Sexual Minority Women Who Survive Intimate Partner Violence: A Conceptual Perspective

“…While reviewing overall quantitative studies looking at outcomes of PTG and how it relates to IPV within heterosexual relationships, the limited results are variable. Valdez and Lilly [ 52 ] found in their study of PTG in female (heterosexual) survivors of IPV, and similar to earlier research conducted by Calhoun and Tedeschi [ 53 ], that 87% of their respondents reported PTG post-IPV related trauma found that women who experienced more abuse in their relationships experienced higher rates of posttraumatic growth. Doane [ 54 ] explored the role of timeline posttrauma and found that the greater the distance the participant had from the abusive relationship, the higher the scores on the PTGI, but this study looked at IPV survivors in comparison to violent crime survivors and did not focus on sexual minorities.…”

“…By understanding the intersection of minority stress, intimate partner violence and the possibility of posttraumatic growth, stronger programs in emergency shelters and in inpatient and outpatient counseling programs could be developed and implemented that are tailored to the nuanced needs of SMW. Deeper understanding of how individuals and marginalized groups can adapt positively from experienced trauma answers Valdez & Lilly’s recent [ 52 ] call for a more comprehensive framework for working with trauma survivors. Through a clearer understanding of this posttrauma adaptation, more nuanced programming that fosters these domains may prevent future behavioral health risk factors for survivors and increase the ability to not only survive, but thrive.…”

“…Trauma, as conceptualized by Calhoun and Tedeschi [ 50 ] is identified as a singular or repeated traumatic event, also known as a crisis or major stress, that is defined by very difficult circumstances that “significantly challenge or invalidate important components of the person’s assumptive world” and thus the posttraumatic framework should be explored when considering risk and protective factors in working with survivors of IPV. PTG has been identified as present with survivors of assault in particular areas of the five domains, including become a stronger person and identifying higher levels of empathy with others, yet there remains a gap in exploring PTG and IPV as a whole, particularly to seek understanding as to why growth may not be seen in some but not all five domains [ 52 , 65 , 66 ].…”

Religion and Spirituality in the Life of Individuals with Paraplegia: Spiritual Journey from Trauma to Spiritual

“…A person's cognitive processes play a role in post-traumatic growth. The traumatic events people experience lead to a change in existing schema (Valdez & Lilly, 2015;Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1995;. When a person accepts the reality of an experienced event, acceptance comes to fruition (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1995).…”

Spiritually Oriented Psychotherapy for Trauma and Meaning Making Among Ethnically Diverse Individuals in the United States

“…This is difficult because we do not know in advance who will experience a trauma. One small study attempted to address this issue by comparing changes in assumptions among survivors of physical intimate partner violence who had or had not experienced interpersonal revictimization 1 year later (Valdez & Lilly, 2015). If traumatic events shatter assumptions, those who were revictimized should report more negative changes in assumptions than those who were not revictimized.…”