Interpersonal violence and mental health outcomes following disaster

Robyn Molyneaux; Lisa Gibbs; Richard A. Bryant; Cathy Humphreys; Kelsey Hegarty; Connie Kellett; H. Colin Gallagher; Karen Block; Louise Harms; John F. Richardson; Nathan Alkemade; David Forbes

doi:10.1192/bjo.2019.82

BJPsych Open (Jan 2020)

Interpersonal violence and mental health outcomes following disaster

Robyn Molyneaux,
Lisa Gibbs,
Richard A. Bryant,
Cathy Humphreys,
Kelsey Hegarty,
Connie Kellett,
H. Colin Gallagher,
Karen Block,
Louise Harms,
John F. Richardson,
Nathan Alkemade,
David Forbes

Affiliations

Robyn Molyneaux: ORCiD; Research Fellow, Child and Community Wellbeing Unit, Centre for Health Equity, University of Melbourne, Australia
Lisa Gibbs: Director, Child and Community Wellbeing Unit, Centre for Health Equity, University of Melbourne; and Academic Lead, Community Resilience & Public Health, Centre for Disaster Management and Public Safety, University of Melbourne, Australia
Richard A. Bryant: ORCiD; Scientia Professor and NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow, School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Australia
Cathy Humphreys: Professor of Social Work, Department of Social Work, University of Melbourne, Australia
Kelsey Hegarty: Professor, Centre for Family Violence Prevention, Department of General Practice, The University of Melbourne and The Royal Women's Hospital, Australia
Connie Kellett: Family Violence Principal Practitioner, Department of Social Work, University of Melbourne; and Victorian Department of Justice and Community Safety, Australia
H. Colin Gallagher: Postdoctoral Researcher, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Faculty of Business and Law, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia
Karen Block: Associate Director, Child and Community Wellbeing Unit, Centre for Health Equity, University of Melbourne, Australia
Louise Harms: Chair and Head, Department of Social Work, University of Melbourne, Australia
John F. Richardson: National Resilience Adviser, Emergency Services, Australian Red Cross, Melbourne, Australia
Nathan Alkemade: Phoenix Australia: Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne; and Senior Clinical Psychologist, Monash Health, Australia
David Forbes: Director, Phoenix Australia: Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Australia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1192/bjo.2019.82
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 6

Abstract

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BackgroundDisasters pose a documented risk to mental health, with a range of peri- and post-disaster factors (both pre-existing and disaster-precipitated) linked to adverse outcomes. Among these, increasing empirical attention is being paid to the relation between disasters and violence.AimsThis study examined self-reported experiences of assault or violence victimisation among communities affected by high, medium, and low disaster severity following the 2009 bushfires in Victoria, Australia. The association between violence, mental health outcomes and alcohol misuse was also investigated.MethodParticipants were 1016 adults from high-, medium- and low-affected communities, 3–4 years after an Australian bushfire disaster. Rates of reported violence were compared by areas of bushfire-affectedness. Logistic regression models were applied separately to men and women to assess the experience of violence in predicting general and fire-related post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and alcohol misuse.ResultsReports of experiencing violence were significantly higher among high bushfire-affected compared with low bushfire-affected regions. Analyses indicated the significant relationship between disaster-affectedness and violence was observed for women only, with rates of 1.0, 0 and 7.4% in low, medium and high bushfire-affected areas, respectively. Among women living in high bushfire-affected areas, negative change to income was associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing violence (odds ratio, 4.68). For women, post-disaster violence was associated with more severe post-traumatic stress disorder and depression symptoms.ConclusionsWomen residing within high bushfire-affected communities experienced the highest levels of violence. These post-disaster experiences of violence are associated with post-disaster changes to income and with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression symptoms among women. These findings have critical implications for the assessment of, and interventions for, women experiencing or at risk of violence post-disaster.

Published in BJPsych Open

ISSN: 2056-4724 (Online)
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry: Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system: Psychiatry
Website: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-open

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