Cited by 670Intimate Partner and Family ViolenceChild Abuse and TraumaElder Abuse and Neglect

Social Support Protects against the Negative Effects of Partner Violence on Mental Health

Coker, Ann L., Smith, Paige H., Thompson, Martie P., McKeown, Robert E., Bethea, Lesa, Davis, Keith E.·2002·Journal of Women's Health & Gender-Based Medicine

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Social support for abused women may reduce the impact of abuse on mental health, yet few studies have addressed this issue. We wish to determine associations between intimate partner violence (IPV) and mental health outcomes and to assess the protective role of abuse disclosure and support on mental health among abused women. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 1152 women, ages 18-65, recruited from family practice clinics from 1997 through 1999. They were screened for IPV during a brief in-clinic interview, and physical and mental health status was assessed in a follow-up interview. RESULTS: IPV, defined as sexual, physical, or psychological abuse, was associated with poor perceived mental and physical health, substance abuse, symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), current depression, anxiety, and suicide ideation/actions. Among women experiencing IPV and controlling for IPV frequency, higher social support scores were associated with a significantly reduced risk of poor perceived mental health (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 0.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3, 0.6) and physical health (aRR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5, 0.8), anxiety (aRR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2, 0.4), current depression (aRR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5, 0.8), PTSD symptoms (aRR 0.5, 95% CI 0.4, 0.8), and suicide attempts (aRR 0.6, 95% CI 0.4, 0.9). CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare providers can be instrumental in identifying IPV and helping women develop skills, resources, and support networks to address IPV. Physicians, family, or friends may provide needed social support.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1089/15246090260137644

Cites

73 of 73 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Coker, A. L., Smith, P. H., Thompson, M. P., McKeown, R. E., Bethea, L., & Davis, K. E.
Affiliations
  • University of South Carolina (US)
  • University of North Carolina at Greensboro (US)
  • Clemson University (US)
Venue
Journal of Women's Health & Gender-Based Medicine
Published
2002-06
Volume
11
Issue
5
Pages
465-476
ISSN
1524-6094 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1990857078
Cited by
669
References
72
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 40 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 46 · 2019: 47 · 2018: 45 · 2017: 34 · 2016: 46 · 2015: 33 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 33 · 2012: 35
FWCI
15.96
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Journal of Women s Health & Gender-Based Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • UKnowledge (University of Kentucky) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (R49 CCR412752)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Health › Intimate Partner and Family Violence
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
  • Social Sciences › Demography › Elder Abuse and Neglect
Keywords
intimate partner violence, social support, mental health, battered women, disclosure of abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, substance abuse, physical health, protective factors, family practice clinics
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Cross-Sectional Studies, Data Collection, Female, Humans, Mental Health, Middle Aged, Risk Factors, Social Support, Spouse Abuse, Prevalence, Confidence Intervals, Age Distribution, Risk Assessment

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review