Mental Health Promotion: Understanding and Preventing Intimate Partner Violence

This article discusses the relationship between violence, trauma, and mental health. It explores the different types of violence, with a focus on Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), and their negative impacts on the well-being and mental health of individuals and their families. The article also presents effective strategies to prevent IPV and promote mental health for survivors, including comprehensive collaboration between the civil society and government and developing programs at the individual level.

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION 1
Mental health promotion
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MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION 2
Mental Health Promotion
Part A
Violence is an action or behavior using physical force that causes harm to another individual.
The damage may be physical mental or emotional. Violence is not the same as aggression. An
aggressive person is a person who generally exhibits hostile behavior to everyone; it may be
verbal, physical, or passive. Violent behavior can be seen in people of various ages. Children and
women are more susceptible to the harm of violence. Fortunately, there are several programs
which have been designed to help victims of violence and to attempt to reduce and prevent
abuse.
There are four significant types of violence, according to the World Health Organization. This
classification is based on the nature of violent behavior. It includes homicide (the act of killing
another individual), assault (the act of attacking another individual physically with the intent of
causing harm), robbery (the act of taking another individuals belongings through force) and rape
(the act of forcing another individual into sexual intercourse). There are other forms of violence;
however they overlap with these four primary categories, for example, domestic violence (acts of
violent behavior against a spouse or relative) and child abuse (violence behavior towards a
child).
Violence can also be classified into two groups according to the motivation behind it. Reactive
violence is violence which results from anger. The individual develops the desire to hurt another
person and is usually triggered by a provocation. It is also called emotional abuse. A person who
is engaging in reactive violence has increased arousal of the autonomic nervous system, usually

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visible as increased heart rate, excessive sweating, and deep breathing. Proactive violence is
violence that is more calculated. The individual expects a reward or stands to benefit after the
act. It is also called instrumental. A person engaging in proactive acts of violence experiences a
decrease in the autonomic arousal (Alhusen, Ray, Sharps & Bullock, 2015).
Violence is multicausal; it arises from different factors. Previous research has revealed that a
person’s cultural and social environment influences the origin of violence. There are also other
factors which influence violence such as genetic factors, neurochemical abnormalities like high
levels of testosterone, personality characteristics like sadistic behaviors or lack of empathy,
information processing deficits and abuse or trauma as a child
There is a strong relationship between violence, trauma, and mental health. Over 50% of
Australian women who live with a mental illness have experienced trauma either as a child or an
adult. Violence or maltreatment can spark psychotic episodes, substance abuse, or suicidal
tendencies. Domestic violence and other acts of violence have a ripple effect on the
psychological and emotional health of the survivor. The society usually ignores issues
surrounding mental health and abuse. Coping with the trauma either emotionally or
psychologically becomes very burdensome to the survivors of the trauma. Obtaining the
necessary resources required for life becomes even more tedious and strenuous. The individuals
resort to violence in order to cope. This forms a chain, and the problem is passed on from one
individual to the next. It is important to note that although being exposed to a traumatic
experience can trigger the onset of a mental health problem, living with a severe mental health
problem increases the chances of an individual to undergo abuse since they are vulnerable
(Beyer, Wallis & Hamberger, 2015).

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Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects many women in Australia. World Health Organization
declared Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) as an act of violation of against human rights.
According to data obtained in 201 by ABS, one in every six women in Australia has experienced
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) from their partners; either former or current and one in every
seventeen men in Australia have also experienced the same. The violence could be physical or
sexual. The data from ABS also showed that emotional abuse was also very prevalent among
partners in Australia. One in every four Australian women and one in every six Australian men
have experienced emotional abuse from their partners. Also, according to the ABS data, women
were three times more likely to engage in partner homicides as compared to men (Gracia &
Merlo, 2016).
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is often associated with physical violence such as slapping,
kicking, or beating their partner. However, there are other factors that are related to Intimate
Partner Violence (IPV). Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) can be seen through sexual violence
(one partner forcing the other into sexual intercourse or sexual coercion). It can also be seen in
emotional abuse, for example, insults, constant humiliation, belittling, intimidation, threats to
take away the children or risks to harm them. Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is associated with
controlling behaviors like isolating the partner from their friends and family, restricting their
access to joined financial resources, monitoring their physical movements or denying them
education or access to medical care. Other factors also trigger Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)
for example food insecurity, poverty, acceptance of violence as a means of conflict resolution,
disparity in education levels for example woman having a higher education level than the man or
low level of education, inequitable society gender norms that encourage male chauvinism or link

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manhood with aggression, physical disability, poor health, marrying at a young age, and husband
having more than one wife (Ouellet‐Morin et al., 2015)
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) has many negative impacts on the well-being and mental health
of individuals and their families. It causes mental conditions such as post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD), depression, bipolar disorder, dissociative identity disorder, anxiety, and
borderline personality disorder. There are other problems that may arise as a result of Intimate
Partner Violence (IPV), for example, poor anger management, insecurity, pathological lying,
impulsiveness, manipulative behavior, lack of empathy, suicidal ideation, panic attacks,
insomnia, and poor social skills. IPV can also cause substance and drug abuse. There is a
relationship associated with being exposed to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and the well-being
of an individual. Victims of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) may tend to act in internalizing
ways, for example, developing anxiety, insecurity or depression, while others react in
externalizing ways for example being antisocial or poor anger management.
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) results in physical damage. It can cause bruises in various
healing stages, abrasions, lacerations, lethargy, hearing or sight loss, chronic headaches,
numbness from injuries, chronic backaches, fractures, back injuries, and abdominal injuries.
There are also other illnesses that are as a result of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Doctors
identify these illnesses as stress-related conditions or functional disorders. Symptoms range
from; a gastrointestinal disease such as irritable bowel syndrome characterized by diarrhea and
acute abdominal pain, fibromyalgia, hypertension, low blood pressure and exacerbation of
asthma. Partners who have undergone physical abuse have a tendency to have poor health even
after they have been removed from the violence.

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Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) can lead to negative reproductive health consequences,
especially in women. It can lead to miscarriages, unwanted pregnancies, abortions, pregnancy
complications, urinary tract infections, sexually transmitted diseases, sexual dysfunction, or
pelvic inflammatory disease. Violence during pregnancy can lead to stillbirths, lack of prenatal
or postnatal care, fetal injury, premature labor and birth, low birth weight, antepartum
hemorrhage, and maternal mortality.
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) also affects the social health of an individual. Intimate Partner
Violence (IPV) has left many women in Australia homeless. Women who are abused by their
partner eventually leave their homes. This is usually after an escalation in the severity of the
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), finding an alternative means of economic support, fear that the
violence will affect the children, help from friends and family and realization that their partner
will never change. Some of these women check into group homes as homeless people while
others run to new cities to start a new life (Ponce, Lawless & Rowe, 2014).
IPV against the mother can also affect the children. Children who are exposed in IPV early in life
tend to be prone to male perpetration or experience female IPV later on in their adult life. A
recent study has shown that families which tend to suffer from IPV have a high risk of child
abuse occurring in the same households. Children from IPV households are less likely to have
proper immunization. They also suffer from poor health and well-being. Infant mortality is
higher in homes that experience IPV.
Studies from various countries have shown that 40-70% of the female murders were caused by
their abusive husband or boyfriend. In addition, partners in an abusive relationship are at a higher
risk of committing suicide or murdering their partner. There is also a high risk of one or both
partners dying from an AIDS-related death in abusive relationships.

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Part B
In the past few years, there have been various evidence that has proven to be effective in
preventing Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). These strategies have helped to promote mental
health to survivors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Two approaches, however, have proven
to be more productive; comprehensive collaboration between the civil society and government
and developing programs at the individual level (Daoud et al., 2016).
Collaboration between the government and the civil society will help in reforming the legal
frameworks. This will require strengthening the women’s civil rights. It will also require
improving the current laws and implementation, for example, enhancing the rules that define
sexual assault in the context of marriage. The government can draw a line to what is socially
acceptable and develop consequences against the perpetrators. The police and the judges can be
trained about partner violence and the course of action to take against them, for example,
increasing the jail term for perpetrators (Iverson, Dardis, Grillo, Galovski & Pogoda, 2019).
The government can develop policies to protect the privacy and confidentiality of women in
marriages. It can also develop written protocols to the survivors of Intimate Partner Violence
(IPV) to access the necessary services while still marinating confidentiality. This collaboration
can help in monitoring and assess the quality of service provided in the society and the benefits
or risk to women. This approach should not only be limited to the women affected to Intimate
Partner Violence (IPV) but also their children. The children should be able to obtain medical care
and education services. The government can have a data collection system to help monitor the
survivors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) to be able to allocate the appropriate resource when
developing the national budget (Saint-Eloi Cadely et al., 2019)

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There are different types of programs to help at the individual level. There are programs which
will provide the woman with gender equality training combined with microfinance. This will
empower the woman socially and economically, thus reducing the levels of Intimate Partner
Violence (IPV). The program will encourage women to stand up for themselves and provide for
them avenues to create a living without depending on their partner (Mulawa et al., 2019).
There are also other programs that will require community mobilization to change the overall
behavior of the community. Television, print, or radio can help to improve the societal norms. It
can also help to mobile the society to reevaluate the gender norms and their response towards
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). The program can also encourage boys and men on how to
prevent Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in the community. Creating awareness about Intimate
Partner Violence (IPV) will equip society with a knowledge base to avoid stigmatization. This
program can also be combined with reproductive health awareness campaign (Penti, Timmons &
Adams, 2018).
Developing a program for early intervention services for vulnerable families can help reduce
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Programs that are aimed at parents can help in identifying the
effects of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) among their children. The program can encourage
home visits and school visits. This program can help reduce child abuse or maltreatment, which
can result in violent behavior in the child’s adult life. In low-income communities, school-based
programs can be incorporated into the students' curriculum. This will equip the child with
knowledge, skills, and attitudes to encounter Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). It will also teach
the child various life skills on what to do in the event of Intimate Partner Violence (Porter,
Williams & Love, 2018).

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A program can also be created for the initiators of the Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). This
program will target the violent partner. It will attempt to find the root cause of violent behavior
and develop a solution to the problem. The program will cover mental service. According to
behavioral research, therapy has proven to be very effective in reducing violence among
individuals. Using various counseling theories, the clinician can help rectify the problem and
help reduce the occurrence of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) (Gladden & Cleator, 2018).
Developing programs at the individual level will require the help of nurses and other medical
professionals. These programs will aim at providing the appropriate medical services the
survivors; this includes physical and mental medical services. Most victims of Intimate Partner
Violence (IPV) have undergone physical abuse are require medical attention. Some victims have
experienced psychological abuse and developed antisocial behaviors or mental illness. The
program will cover the needs of the patient from the first time they enter the program up to when
they complete and are able to move away from the violence. This program can help the survivor
leave a healthy life after experiencing Intimate Partner Violence (Jung et al., 2019).
Before the nurse can begin asking the survivor any questions about the violence, they should
understand the problem of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) . The nurses should be trained don
the various community services available and the appropriate referral options for the survivor.
The nurse should then proceed to create a rapport with them to help build trust. This requires that
the nurse should create a supportive and welcoming environment where the individual does not
feel threatened. The nurse should assure them of safety, privacy, and confidentiality. Besides, the
nurse should be respectful, compassionate, and non-judgmental (Carton & Egan, 2017).
When the individual raises the issue of domestic violence, the nurse should not pressure or probe
to find out more details. Allow the individual to share what they feel comfortable to share. The

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nurse should take every piece of information given very seriously, and they should respect the
woman’s unique concerns. Any decision made should arise from the survivor, and the nurse
should not pressurize then to follow a specific course of action. The nurse should validate the
experience and provide encouragement. They should put the needs of the survivors first. Any
concerns to safety should be addressed first. Before the nurse can allow the survivor to make a
decision, they should give them appropriate information and will enable them to weigh their
choices (Wuerch, Zorn, Juschka & Hampton, 2019).
In conclusion, there are a variety of programs which have been created to prevent or reduce
violence. These programs usually affect behavior changes. Violent offenders can receive training
to help them improve their parenting skills and teach them proper social skills.

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References
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partner violence: A systematic review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 16(1), 16-47.
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Individual Differences, 105, 84-88.
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O’Campo, P. (2016). Pathways and trajectories linking housing instability and poor
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