How Women”s Past Violence Can Shape Their Futures

Women who have witnessed or been victims of violence are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior. These are the findings of a recent study conducted in the United States.

The study involved 481 women being treated for sexually transmitted diseases in private clinics. The researchers collected information on whether the women had experienced violence in the past, whether they had witnessed violence, and whether they were noted to engage in certain forms of risky sexual behavior.

The subjects were divided into three categories:

• Those who had not actually experienced violent forms of communication (39%);
• Those who had experienced physical or emotional abuse as adolescence (20%);
• Survivors of violent childhood cycles (23%);
• Victims of multiple forms of violence (18%). Read also:

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Part 5. Sexual Violence and Its Consequences

The highest rates of risky sexual behavior were found in the second and fourth groups, among those who experienced violence as adolescents and those who had repeatedly been victims of violence.

Jennifer Walsh, lead author of the study, explains the following. “Violence not only exposes a person to the risk of HIV or certain sexually transmitted infections. It also influences the sexual strategies a potential victim uses to protect themselves.”

These findings offer a new perspective on the problem of violence, especially among the large segment of the population with lower financial incomes and, consequently, greater social vulnerability. “It is important to understand that this population group requires special attention,” says Jennifer. In many cases, women who had not experienced rape per se, but had suffered other forms of violence, also began to exhibit dangerous behavior patterns.

Violence includes not only physical intercourse against the victim”s will, but also forms of cruelty such as obsessive sexuality on the part of the aggressor, manipulation, and the coercion of physical relationships on the part of other types. Doctors and psychologists should focus their attention on women and girls in vulnerable groups, even if they do not report obvious instances of violence in their lives.

Experienced, past, violence, women