A Mixed Methods Study of Barriers to Protection Order Use Among Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence Residing in Shelter
Methods: In this mixed methods design, quantitative data were collected using a cross-sectional survey design. A convenience sample of IPV survivors residing in temporary emergency shelter (n=496) was recruited from ten shelters across a large-metropolitan city in the southwestern United States. Participants completed a 98 item survey instrument assessing demographics; experiences of violence; protection order seeking; attitudes, knowledge, and beliefs about protection orders; and other help-seeking strategies. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured, face-to-face interviews with survivors (n = 100) to more fully explore quantitative findings and understand the contextual and experiential circumstances around women’s decisions not to seek a protection order.
Results: Of the respondents who participated in the survey, 80% had knowledge of protection orders, but 68.5% had never filed for a protection order. A majority of the women who did not seek a protection order (61.6%) thought that attempting to obtain one would increase the violence that they experienced from their partner: “To me, that’s not gonna protect me. That’s just gonna make them angrier and just come at me next time harder.” Women thought this particularly true of very violent abusers: “They’re gonna hurt you no matter what.” About half (52%) of the women who did not seek a protection order felt that it would not be helpful for them – the two most common reasons for this belief were that their abusive partner would not follow the protection order (77%) and their abuser would not be arrested for a violation of the order (47%; despite a mandatory arrest policy): “It’s just a little piece of paper. What’s that gonna do, ya know? They can still come and do whatever they wanna do. Whaddya gonna do? Throw it at their face?”
Implications: Overall, in both the quantitative and qualitative findings, women who did not seek protection orders reported a belief that it would not be an effective tool in their situation and that it may increase harm from an abusive partner. The choice not to obtain an order appears to be a conscious one, and not due to lack of knowledge about this particular intervention. Being aware of the complex and difficult choices women must make in prioritizing safety will help social workers assist their clients in making difficult choices from among the many interventions available, including protection orders. Given many survivors’ fear that seeking a protection order would increase the violence that they experience, and previous research demonstrating that leaving an abuser is often a dangerous time for women (e.g., Campbell et al., 2003), listening to women’s concerns and ensuring safety are of primary importance.