title: Women's response to intimate partner violence.
abstract: The responses of women to a situation of abuse by their partner has hardly been addressed in the literature. Using a self-administered, anonymous questionnaire, 400 women attending three practices in a primary health care center in Granada (Spain) were studied. The women's response to abuse was used as a dependent variable. Sociodemographics, intensity, duration, and combination of the types of abuse were used as independent variables. Lifetime prevalence of any type of partner abuse was 22.8%. Of abused women, 68% showed an active response, attempting to resolve the situation mainly through separation (58.2%). The factors independently associated with a woman's active response were being separated, widowed, or divorced; reporting a greater intensity of abuse; and being younger than age 35 years. The results of this study show that a large majority of abused women in Spain try to resolve their situation, and that they are not passive victims.
authors.affiliation: Andalusian School of Public Health, Granada, Spain. isabel.ruiz.easp@juntadeandalucia.es
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ruiz-Pérez
authors.forename: Nelva
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mata-Pariente
authors.forename: Juncal
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Plazaola-Castaño
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D018585:Battered Women / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D013179:Spouse Abuse / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires