Intimate Partner Violence and Barriers to Leaving Among Low-Income African American Women: the Role of Self-Esteem as a Mediating Factor

Little is known about mechanisms through which intimate partner violence (IPV) is associated with African American women’s barriers to leaving an abusive relationship. In a sample of low-income African American women with a recent suicide attempt and IPV exposure (n = 213), this study examined interrelations among IPV, self-esteem, and barriers to leaving an abusive relationship and tested if self-esteem mediated the IPV (physical, nonphysical)—decision to leave link. Findings revealed a positive correlation between nonphysical but not physical IPV and barriers to leaving an abusive relationship, negative correlation between both physical and nonphysical IPV and self-esteem, and negative correlation between self-esteem and barriers to leaving. Bootstrapping mediation analyses showed that nonphysical IPV was associated with low self-esteem, which in turn was related to more barriers to leaving the relationship, suggesting a mediation through self-esteem. Culturally-responsive interventions that bolster abused women’s self-esteem can empower them to leave abusive partners.