Understanding Intimate Partner Violence among Immigrant and Refugee Women: A Grounded Theory Analysis

Immigrant and refugee women may experience considerable multifaceted and interrelated barriers that place them at heightened risk for intimate partner violence (IPV). The objective of this analysis was to increase our understanding of immigrant and refugee women’s responses to abuse. We conducted in-depth interviews with 84 women who immigrated from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Engendering Resilience to Survive emerged as the core category explaining women’s strength to stay safe and survive IPV experiences. In the face of the violence they experienced, women in this sample demonstrated remarkable resilience and the ability to harness their strength to survive. Resilience as a process and outcome could facilitate empowerment, and self-directedness to access health services and resources to stay safe. The developed Engendering Resilience to Survive Model can be utilized as a framework to inform research, policy, and practice to support abused women.