Research shows that women are at higher risk for being victimized simply because of their gender. Women with mental illness living independently are especially vulnerable, since they underreport victimization and underutilize available resources. This study evaluated the benefits of educating women with mental illness about safety and violence. Twenty women utilizing outpatient services at two community mental health centers participated in one of two 12-week groups: 15 received an educational curriculum and 5 a control condition. Outcomes were assessed using pretest and posttest measures of quality of daily life, self-esteem and perceived control over life events, awareness of available resources to them as women, awareness of violence, attitudes about safety, and confidence in abilities to protect themselves. The greatest improvement was in the curriculum women's awareness of resources. Intra-group variability, a small sample size, and other unexpected complications precluded a definitive evaluation of the curriculum, but overall results suggest further research in this area would be beneficial. / Department of Psychological Science
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BSU/oai:cardinalscholar.bsu.edu:handle/186058 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Briggs, Melissa L. |
| Contributors | Ball State University. Dept. of Psychological Science., Perkins, David V. |
| Source Sets | Ball State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | 54 leaves : ill. ; 28 cm. |
| Source | Virtual Press |
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