Factors that mediate the relationship between intimate partner violence and mental health among mid-aged Australian women

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has been consistently associated with poorer mental health among women. The current study investigated the status of demographic and psychosocial variables as mediators in the relationship between IPV and poorer health among 14,100 mid-aged Australian women participating in the first survey of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH). Increased stress, a higher number of life events, and lower social support were found to mediate the relationship between lifetime experiences of IPV and poorer mental health. Qualitative interviews conducted with a subset of ALSWH participants showed the complex ways in which these indirect pathways to poorer health have occurred for women who have lived with IPV. Quantitative results implied that interventions designed to mitigate the impact of stress and stressful life events, and to increase social support might assist with improving mental health outcomes among women who have experienced IPV. However, qualitative results indicated that such interventions may need to take into account the factors that underlie the occurrence of psychosocial mediators in order to be maximally effective.