Qualitative study of divorced women\'s experiences of the consequences of divorce (case study: divorced women in behbahan)

Abstract

Background: Post-divorce consequences is a context-based phenomenon and in every community it is affected by the personal, social and cultural factors of that community. A number of studies have been carried out on the consequences of divorce over the world, but there is a reaearch gap on its consequences for divorced women, espicially in small and traditional citiez in Iran. Aims: The purpose of this study is qualitative study of the experiences of divorced women in Behbahan of the consequences of divorce. Methods: The present study is the result of a qualitative study and a semi-structured interview with 13 divorced women in Behbahan, who were selected using purposive sampling method. The data collection method was semi-structured interview and these interviews continued until theoretical saturation. The thematic analysis method (Braun & Clarke, 2006), were selected in order to analyze the data. Results: Data analysis showed 210 codes in 4 main themes (Socio-cultural, Psychological, Personal consequences, Economic consequences) and 15 sub-themes (mposing society's perceptions on divorced women, social stigma, greed, reconnection, relationships with friends and relatives, the role of family, conflicting emotions, emotional thoughts, lack of life skills, communication with children, meta-parenting, crisis of residence, seeking of psychological help, behavioral measures and economic insecurity). Conclusion: Divorce for women is a cycle of vulnerability and individual and social consequences that lead them to use protective mechanisms such as isolation, secrecy and aggression in interpersonal relationships to try to adapt to new circumstances.

Keywords

• consequences of divorce
• thematic analysis
• divorced women