Insomnia And Social Support Among Thai Women Who Have Experienced Intimate Partner Violence PDF Download

Insomnia is the most common of all sleep problems. Long-term insomnia affects an individual's overall quality of life. Insomnia can arise from physiological, psychological, or environmental factors. Exposure to stressors such as Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) could lead to insomnia, which eventually affects physical and mental health. Social support is one strategy that alleviates and improves health outcomes. Limited studies in Thailand have addressed insomnia in women and its relationship with IPV and social support. This study aimed: 1) to examine the relationships between number of IPV types experienced, severity of physical abuse, perceived severity of sexual abuse, perceived severity of psychological abuse, social support, and insomnia; 2) to examine the moderating effect of social support on the relationships between number of IPV types experienced, perceived severity of IPV types (physical, sexual, and psychological abuse), and insomnia after controlling for age, education level, and income; and 3) to determine which social support form proved more effective: family support or friends support. The transactional model of stress and coping guided this study (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). This study used secondary data analysis with a correlational but non-experimental design. Two-hundred and eighty four Thai women aged 18 years and older receiving care in the obstetrics and gynecology unit, and read and write in Thai comprised the subjects of this study. Pearson r test and hierarchical multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. The results reported significant relationships between the study variables, except that the relationship between perceived severity of sexual abuse and social support did not appear as significant. The results of hierarchical multiple regression indicated that social support was not a moderator between independents variable and insomnia. R2 change in insomnia variance was not significant when adding the interaction terms of social support with other variables to the regression model. Neither friend nor family support were significant as moderators between study variables. Still, friends support was significant as a predictor of reduced insomnia whereas family support was not.This study findings can contribute to the existing Thai literature by providing new information about insomnia and associated factors. In practice, nurses can use the study findings in determining the underlying factors that might be associated with insomnia, such as IPV. Nursing intervention can then be provided based on underlying factors. Where insomnia does not relate to IPV, available friends support can be provided to a woman to decrease insomnia and simultaneously improve her sleep quality.