USING THE ECOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK TO EXPLORE THE CONTEXT OF WOMEN’S EXPERIENCES OF PTSD AND PTG IN THE AFTERMATH OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE.

ABSTRACT The literature on abused women, both Western and South African, has established post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as one of the consequences of intimate partner violence. At the same time, emerging research in trauma literature has identified that trauma survivors, such as abused women, may experience positive changes after encountering trauma, such as post-traumatic growth (PTG). However, most of these studies have been conducted in the West, with limited qualitative studies documenting the experiences of abused women in South Africa. Hence, the possibility exists of the development of a Eurocentric understanding of the processes and factors that shape women’s experiences of violence; in relation to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or post-traumatic growth (PTG). The research aimed to explore the factors and processes that contributed to challenges with trauma adjustment and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and those that contributed to recovery and post-traumatic growth (PTG). It involved a feminist epistemological framework and a sample focus group selected from women from three shelters. The main data collection methods were narrative interviews and focus-group discussions. Two self-report measures were used to assess the women’s experiences of post-traumatic stress disorder and post-traumatic growth. This research makes a significant contribution by extending the application of the ecological model proposed by Campbell, Dworkin & Cabral (2009) of the impact of sexual assault on women’s mental health model to the context of intimate partner violence and trauma in South Africa. The model explores for the first time the factors and processes that contributed to challenges with trauma adjustment and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and those that facilitated positive adjustment, recovery and post-traumatic growth (PTG) over time in abused women in South Africa.