3.8 Models of coping (MCM) 51
3.9.7 Avoidance and self-blame as coping strategies 58
According to Weiss et al. (2017) the third domain that abused women use as a coping strategy is avoidance such as physical or psychological withdrawal. Avoidance coping is
59 consistently linked with negative mental health outcomes among women experiencing IPV. It
worsens the negative impact on women‟s health. Avoidance coping can result in high PTSD symptom severity, depression, and drug use problems. This happens because women who use avoidance as a coping mechanism cannot effectively deal with their problems and will „find something else to do,‟ to avoid dealing with the actual problem. Many abused women use alcohol to avoid dealing with their problems which worsens the abuse severity and has negative mental health implications (Flanagan et al., 2014).
Richman et al. (2011) found that some women who are victims of IPV use coping strategies such as denial and self-blame while others use adaptive coping techniques such as positive reframing and humour. Although self-blame is a negative it is believed to influence coping and the social adjustment of victims positively because it restores their perceived control over the environment. Nonetheless, many abused women ultimately blame themselves for causing their partner‟s violence. Women who blame themselves for their victimisation will become very depressed, even suicidal, if the violence persists.
Kennedy and Prock (2018) indicate that IPV occurs within social contexts that shape how survivors judge themselves and are evaluated by others. Because these are gendered, sexual and intimate crimes that violate social norms, survivors may experience stigma. This includes victim-blaming messages from broader society as well as specific stigmatising reactions from others, particularly family and peers, in response to disclosure. This stigmatisation can be internalised among survivors as self-blame and shame. Stigmatisation plays an important role in shaping survivors‟ thoughts, feelings, and behaviours as they recover. Survivors of IPV often feel shunned by their own families and communities, furthering the isolation they feel. Self-blame is conceptualised as a cognitive attribution by a survivor, in which she places the blame for the abuse/assault on herself. This can lead to depression and
suicidality.
3.9.8 Religion, emergency shelters and victim empowerment used to help women cope with IPV
Aldridge - Gerry et al. (2011) and Flanagan et al. (2014) agree that different coping strategies exist which include religion, resisting violence, pacifying the abuser, safety planning and accessing formal and informal supports systems to get to safety. Ramsay et al. (2009) and Human Rights Watch (2021) assert that though not used by all victims, emergency shelters serve as an important protective strategy, especially for severely abused women and those with limited financial and social resources.
Slakoff and Penzeymoog (2020) reported that IPV is the leading cause of womens homelessness, which precipitates and exacerbates poor health conditions. These victims may seek help from informal supports such as friends, family and neighbours and formal supports such as courts, police, shelters, and social service providers. Social service providers help victims secure safe shelter or housing, review safety plans, facilitate peer support groups and find mental health counselling. West et al. (1998) argued that although human service agencies are often thought of as a gateway for victims of violence, they are not as universal as sometimes thought because they are few, far between, and often full (which is particularly true in South Africa).
Simonič (2020) indicated that IPV is a specific form of trauma where
spirituality/religiosity (especially positive religious coping) can play a major role for victims, in helping them reshape their perceptions, establish new behaviours, and promote recovery by providing hope and preventing feelings of helplessness. Religiousity and/or spirituality helps survivors find meaning and purpose in life events and suffering. The author suggests that aspects of religion and spirituality can help a woman gain integrity and a sense of dignity.
61 Hodges and Cabanilla (2011) and Shivambu (2015) indicate that many women can cope with IPV because of their spirituality and religious beliefs. In their opinion prayer and spiritual guidance helps victims of domestic violence carry on with their lives. Furthermore, Ahinkora (2021) and Lipsky et al. (2006) found that faith in God (Christian) was an important coping mechanism for battered women. This notion is supported in various research studies (Hassouneh-Phillips, 2001; Mwenesi et al., 2004; Shivambu, 2015).
Moreover, Ahinkora (2021) reports that culturally specific spiritual practices play an important role in the process of healing and protection of women who have suffered physical and emotional violence. The author reports that this can include the use of prayer as it helps build resilience among domestic violence victims.
Leburu-Masigo et al. (2019) report that in SA, the Department of Social Development (DoS) is the principal department driving victim empowerment programmes (VEP). The aim of a VEP is to bring together multidisciplinary services that seek to address the needs of victims of violence, as well as promoting the reduction of secondary victimisation.
According to Watson and Lopes (2017), the DoS also provides shelters to women and children who experience high levels of trauma. This is to ensure they have a safe place to stay, psycho - social support, access to medical and para-legal services, skills development initiatives, and associated services. However, they also report that there are too few of these services, particularly in semi-rural and rural areas.
In this research I highlight the coping strategies used by Tsonga women in Mpumulanga, which can be seen in the results section. These have not been a focus of previous research in SA on the topic.
3.9.8.1 Differences between rural and urban women who suffer IPV which impacts on their ability to cope
Bhandari et al. (2011) argue that there are differences in abusive relationships when comparing rural and urban women in Africa. In rural areas, access to safety through shelters or hospitals is limited due to physical and geographic isolation, as well as lack of public
transportation. This impacts on how women deal with IPV as women in rural areas may not be able to access services which help them cope. The services that could help them may be located a few hundred kilometres away and thus are not easily accessible. As a result, battering can go on without any interventions. Additionally, rural women have less social support, lower levels of education and income, have usually experienced more childhood physical and sexual abuse, and worse overall health than urban women. In more westernised settings women have been found to adopt more constructive coping mechanisms, because they are easily accessible, such as spiritual, medical, mental health help and the use of social support facilities (Rothman et al., 2007). These have been found to be effective in helping victims cope with their emotional burden (Shivambu, 2015).
Shannon et al. (2006) suggests that there are differences in coping skills between rural and urban women facing IPV. They noted that urban women used more emotional support, positive self-talk, and exercise/meditation to manage the abuse whereas rural women rely on denial, that is not telling their friends or family and telling themselves that the violence will not happen again.