Posttraumatic Outcome of Intimate Partner Violence: An Examination of Risk Factors

Not all individuals who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization experience clinically significant negative outcomes following IPV exposure. For those that do experience negative outcomes, researchers need to identify the mechanisms through which they develop and the manner in which negative symptoms may develop differentially across individuals. This paper provides a review of risk factors associated with negative outcomes following IPV victimization. Accumulated lifetime maltreatment experiences and maladaptive cognitions are both proffered as potential risk factors for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) outcomes following IPV exposure. A community sample (N = 244) of adult females was recruited to assist in elucidating the relation between IPV victimization and PTSD symptomatology. IPV victimization and PTSD symptomatology were found to be significantly associated. Childhood maltreatment experiences and maladaptive cognitions were hypothesized to mediate the relation between IPV victimization and PTSD symptomatology, a hypothesis which the results of the study supported. Multiple post-hoc analyses were conducted to further delineate these associations, and directions for future research, including research design accommodation of the new DSM-5 criteria for PTSD, are discussed