The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #40765

Stacey B Plichta, ScD, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, 129 Spong Hall, Norfolk, VA 23529, 757-683-5942, splichta@odu.edu, M. Elizabeth Vogel, MHSA, Urban Services – Management, Old Dominion University, Hughes Hall, Room 2091, North Hampton Boulevard, Norfolk, VA 23529, Yan Zhang, MS, Urban Health Services, College of Health Science, Old Dominion University, 3565 Norland Court, Norfolk, VA 23513, and Cheryl Marks, MSEd, MBA, Women In Transition, YWCA, 5215 Colley Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23508.

Activities undertaken by women during a short-term domestic violence shelter stay were studied for effect on self-efficacy, depression levels and knowledge of domestic violence characteristics. The study examines two years of data collected from one of seven domestic violence shelters serving a collective population of 1.5 million in the mid-Atlantic region. Staff-administered surveys were used to measure self-efficacy (SES Scale), depression level (CES-D Scale), knowledge of domestic violence characteristics and activities accomplished within the first two weeks of the shelter stay. Instruments were administered at time of arrival and after two-weeks in order to measure changes in responses. Ninety percent of women surveyed were first time users of this shelter. More than a third had no income; a third had two children; and half had no insurance. Eighty percent held high school or higher degrees. Within the first two weeks of stay, more than half of the women accomplished nine of eighteen support tasks such as obtaining financial, medical and social services, setting job goals, and job hunting. Seventy-seven percent had completed a safety plan. Sixty percent of women’s depression symptoms decreased significantly during their stay, and levels of self-efficacy increased markedly. Knowledge about domestic violence, already high among respondents at entry, increased slightly. This study examines factors determining the effects of short-term shelter stays on women=s self-empowerment. It provides a strong foundation for future research into best practices to enhance shelter programs serving as platforms for women transitioning out of a life of violence.

Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to

• identify the types of tasks that women accomplish toward achieving such objectives as personal safety for self and children and economic stability during a short-term domestic violence shelter stay; 2)recognize changes in levels of depression and self-efficacy that women experience during a short-term domestic violence shelter stay; and
• consider and discuss implications for future research that this study identifies.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.