title: Predictors of Perceived Need for and Actual Action Taking Among Women in Violent Relationships.
abstract: Decision-making of women in violent relationships is poorly understood. The study seeks to identify predictors of need-for-action and actions taken by women in violent relationships. The participants were 143 women who experienced violence in previous month from 6 primary care clinics. The methods involved multiple times series using daily assessments of household environment, marital relationship, concerns, violence, and need-for-action collected via telephone interactive voice response for 8 weeks. Outcomes include daily need-for-action and reports of actions taken. Same-day correlates and prior-day associations using vector autoregressions were sought, combined across subjects using meta-analytic techniques.Need for helpdepended on stalking, concern for child safety, forgiveness, and low perceived control; actuallyseeking helpdepended on sense of control with same-day stress and need for help.Need for legal actiondepended on concern for child safety and finances with desire to keep family together; actuallytaking legal action, correlated only with prior-day stalking and concerns about child safety but less about effects of violence on child.Need to leavedepended on his violence, with concern about its effect on child, her forgiveness, and a low desire to keep family together, while actuallyleavingwas primed by a day of his drinking, and triggered by same-day stress and need to leave, but lower levels of her drinking or his seeking forgiveness. Once gone, prior-day stalking and his alcohol use correlated with returning to the relationship. Taking action depends upon few prior- and same-day factors unique to each action.
authors.affiliation: 1 University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Katerndahl
authors.affiliation: 1 University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
authors.forename: Sandra K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Burge
authors.affiliation: 1 University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Ferrer
authors.affiliation: 1 University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Becho
authors.affiliation: 1 University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wood
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D061347:Forgiveness; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008875:Middle Aged; D013179:Spouse Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D055807:Stalking / Q000523:psychology
keywords: battered women; disclosure of domestic violence; domestic violence; intervention/treatment; legal intervention