The risk of post-separation violence faced by Chinese abused women and its implication in interventions.

Abstract

Post-separation violence (PsV) against women is referred as any kind of violence perpetrated by former male partners to the moment of physical separation. In fact, leaving from an abusive partner does not end the violence. Separation may increase the danger for abused women, especially on discussing the decision of separation and arrangement of financial and /or children issues. So this paper aims to explore the risk of the PsV against Chinese abused women in the first year after separation and its association with impacts on women’s health. The influence of Chinese culture and the implication on interventions will also be discussed. A quantitative study was conducted from November 2014 to June 2016 in three refuge centers for abused women in Hong Kong, total 51 women were interviewed and among them, 37 women who have been divorced for at least half year. The findings showed that 27% of them experiencing PsV. The impacts of post-separation violence on women’s health were confirmed. Thus, the professionals should be aware of the occurrence and the risk of PsV in helping abused women and a comprehensive protection for abused women as well as their children should be developed.