Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health Issues Among Young Women in Nairobi County

Abstract

This study explored intimate partner violence (IPV) and mental health issues among young women in Nairobi County. Specifically, it sought to determine the different types of IPV experienced by young women IPV survivors in Nairobi as well as the mental health issues that affect them. The study was guided by two assumptions: that young women in Nairobi experience IPV of different forms including physical, sexual, psychological, and socio- economic; and that mental illnesses occur among IPV survivors. The study used a cross-sectional descriptive study design with qualitative data collection methods including in-depth interviews, case narratives and key informant interviews. A total of 40 young women IPV survivors at the Nairobi Women’s Hospital Gender Violence Recovery Center was purposively sampled to participate in the study. The unit of analysis was the individual IPV survivor. The radical feminist theory was applied to explain the social relationships in terms of gender oppression as well as the violence that women go through in the hands of men. The study found that physical violence is the most commonly reported form of violence followed by sexual, psychological, and socio-economic forms of violence. Depression was found to be the leading mental health issue arising from IPV. Other mental health issues included post-traumatic stress disorder, suicidal ideation, bipolar disorder impulse control addiction, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The study revealed that the victims were willing to talk about the violence and were seeking help since they were battling attendant mental illness. Those who sought help were found to be able to recover and continue with their lives normally. The study recommends the establishment of additional safe houses for survivors to find refuge during the healing process. Finally, there is need for women’s economic empowerment as a way to give them a voice and reduce vulnerability.