Evidence of Effectiveness of a Psychotherapy Protocol for Women with a History of Intimate Partner Violence: Follow-up Study

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the therapeutic effects of the cognitive behavioral psychotherapy protocol for women with a history of intimate partner violence 6 months after the end of the intervention. The study employed a mixed method with pre-experimental design. Fifteen women (M = 36.67 years; SD = 11.89; 22 to 60 years) who had completed the intervention participated in the study. The majority of the participants were white, divorced, with complete higher education, and employed. Data collection was carried out from May 2019 to September 2020 in person at Psychology Practice and Research Service (Serviço de Atendimento e Pesquisa em Psicologia—SAPP) of the university with 7 participants, and online with 8 participants. Instruments applied aim to assess levels of self-esteem, life satisfaction, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, post-traumatic beliefs, and complex trauma. The instruments were applied at pretest, post-test, and follow-up. A structured interview was applied only at the follow-up. Descriptive analyses of frequencies were carried out, Friedman’s test to verify differences between the evaluation times, analyses with JT method to evaluate individual differences, and clinical significance. Content analysis was also carried out from the structured interviews. The intervention reduced symptoms of depression (Cohen’s d = 0.45), post-traumatic stress disorder (Cohen’s d = 0.33), and complex trauma (Cohen’s d = 0.57), which were maintained at follow-up. Participants showed higher levels of self-esteem and life satisfaction after the intervention, when comparing pretest and follow-up evaluations (p < 0.005). In the interviews, participants indicated that the psychotherapy process contributed to better quality of life. The study results indicate the potential of the intervention for the replication in mental health services for women with a history of intimate partner violence. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is an effective approach and it can be a tool to reduce negative mental health outcomes in long-term process.