Navigating Online and in-Person Support: Views and Experiences From Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse

TL;DR

The study explores how survivors of intimate partner violence use online and in-person support, finding that blended care could improve their recovery journey.

Contribution

The novel contribution is identifying interest in blended care and suggesting ways to optimize support for survivors.

Findings

Blended care is of interest to nearly 60% of participants.

Little correlation exists between online and in-person support types.

Mixed-methods reveal insights into help-seeking behaviors.

Abstract

Various types of in-person and online support are available to women intimate partner violence and abuse (IPVA) survivors. However, we know little about the interplay between them. We investigated the transitions and interactions between these types of help and how their use can be optimized, using a mixed-methods approach (survey N = 107; interviews N = 18). Significant but weak correlations were found for specific IPVA and support types. No significant correlations were found between online and in-person help types. Almost 60% of survey participants expressed interest in blended care. Integration and optimization of online and blended care options can increase outreach and provide an enhanced, tailored help-seeking and recovery journey.

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