The long-term health consequences of relationship violence in adulthood: an examination of low-income women from Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio.
OBJECTIVE
We examined the long-term health consequences of relationship violence in adulthood.


METHODS
Using data from the Welfare, Children, and Families project (1999 and 2001), a probability sample of 2402 low-income women with children living in disadvantaged neighborhoods in Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; and San Antonio, Texas, we predicted changes in the frequency of intoxication, psychological distress, and self-rated health over 2 years with baseline measures of relationship violence and a host of relevant background variables.


RESULTS
Our analyses showed that psychological aggression predicted increases in psychological distress, whereas minor physical assault and sexual coercion predicted increases in the frequency of intoxication. There was no evidence to suggest that relationship violence in adulthood predicted changes in self-rated health.


CONCLUSIONS
Experiences with relationship violence beyond the formative and developmental years of childhood and adolescence can have far-reaching effects on the health status of disadvantaged urban women.
Hill
Terrence D
TD
Department of Sociology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124, USA. tdh@miami.edu
Schroeder
Ryan D
RD
Bradley
Christopher
C
Kaplan
Lauren M
LM
Angel
Ronald J
RJ
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001900:Boston / Q000453:epidemiology; D002641:Chicago / Q000453:epidemiology; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty; D012494:Sampling Studies; D013179:Spouse Abuse / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016387:Women's Health; D055815:Young Adult