Women cry out: Cross-cultural support group strategies for women experiencing the aftermath of intimate interpersonal violence

Within and across cultures women who experience intimate interpersonal violence share commonalities in their experience of violence and strategies for healing. The incidence of intimate interpersonal violence across the world varies in severity with 10-69% of women reporting being physically assaulted by an intimate male partner at some time in their lives. The risk of violence for women increases in low-income groups and in societies where marked inequalities and rigid gender roles pervade relationships (World Health Organization, 2002). Environments at highest risk offer the least amount of interventions for survivors of intimate interpersonal violence who struggle with the aftermath of depression, post traumatic stress disorder, and overwhelming physical and emotional wounds (Fabri, 2002). A support group modality offers a comprehensive intervention that can reach large numbers of survivors while using paraprofessional support to guide the group process. Caplan (2004) posits a support group model that promotes emotional safety, collaboration, validation, and client self-disclosure while exploring central themes such as marginalization and powerlessness that together prove crucial to an effective healing process. This presentation describes a support group model that utilizes Caplan's themes in its conceptual framework and provides multiple strategies to identify the dynamics of violence, build coping skills, and develop healthy relationships within communities. In addition to describing the support group model and conceptual framework that guides it, this paper will relate the process of developing comprehensive relationships with colleagues and community partners across the globe to develop a useful group work intervention and strategies for its implementation.