The aim of this research was to develop a psycho-educational program to form a framework for educational psychologists to promote and facilitate the mental health of women who are unhappy in their marriages. The assumption is made that a mentally healthy and happy mother exercises a great influence on the rest of her family. The circumstances in unhappy long-term marriages appear to be a stressful situation which is associated with much uncertainty and confusion. It seems that women in such a situation tend to withdraw in order to attempt to address their pain, confusion and uncertainty in isolation, without being effective in solving their problems. Affluent women’s mental health in the situation of a long-term, unhappy marriage seems to be characterized by a spectrum of unpleasant emotions, an identity crisis, an unhealthy dynamic in their relationship with their life partner and the use of a number of defence mechanisms to ease the pain. Lack of knowledge regarding the specific ways in which their marriage upsets them leads to misperceptions in women. Long-term unhappiness and uncertainty in isolation can also lead to mental disorders that may assume alarming proportions. Clinical disorders are definitely not excluded. / Prof. C.P.H. Myburgh

Background: The HIV/AIDS pandemic has largely affected women in Africa. Apart from the physiological susceptibility to HIV infection, factors such as intimate partner violence (IPV) are considered to heighten the risk of infection for women. In 2009, sixty percent of all new infections were contracted within married unions in Zambia. HIV prevalence rates for women continue to remain high in Zambia while IPV is a rampant social problem in this society. Thus, this study examines the relationship between intimate partner violence and HIV status of currently married women in Zambia. Methods: The study used the 2007 Zambian Demographic and Health Survey data to achieve the objectives of the study. The study included a sample of 2 895 currently married women aged 15-49 who participated in the domestic violence module and the HIV test. The main independent variable of the study was IPV and covariates included: age of respondent, age at sexual debut, religion, highest education level, household wealth index, place of residence, the country’s provinces, partners age and partners education. The dependent variable of the study was HIV status. Data analysis was conducted in three stages. First ly, a univariate analysis was conducted to show the prevalence’s of HIV and IPV. A bivariate analysis was also conducted; which illustrate the distribution of the population’s characteristics by the dependent variable. Secondly, Binomial Logistic regression was used to examine the relationships between each of the independent variables and dependent variable. Thirdly, Multivariate Logistic Regression was used to examine the relationship between IPV and HIV status while controlling for selected covariates. Results: HIV prevalence of 14 percent was found among currently married women while 43 percent of the women experienced violence from an intimate partner. It was found that women who experienced both physical and sexual violence were more likely to be HIV positive. The more educated and affluent the women were; the more likely they were to be HIV positive. Age of the respondent and partner’s age were also found to have significant relationships with the HIV status of women. Conclusion In Zambia, there was a relationship found between IPV and the HIV status of currently married women. The sustained high prevalence of IPV and HIV amongst women in Zambia is of social and public health concern and should be addressed if the country wants to effectively reduce the infection rate of