Women's Strategies against Economic Violence Case Study Bandar Abbas
Subject Areas : Violence
Hadi Salimi
1
,
Fatemeh Zaheri
2
,
Fatemeh Roustaei
3
,
Mohamad Bazle
4
,
Akbar Hasannejad Ghorvali
5
,
Hasan Akhgar
6
1 - Assistant Professor Counseling Department, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University.
2 - M.A in Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
3 - M.A in Counseling Department, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
4 - M.A in Department of Management, Faculty of Management, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
5 - M.A in Department of Management, Faculty of Management, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
6 - M.A Student, Department of Psychology and Education of Exceptional Children, Faculty of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, University of Rehabilitation Sciences and Social Health, Tehran, Iran.
Keywords: Domestic violence, intimate partner violence, economic violence, coping strategies, women.,
Abstract :
Women's Strategies against Economic Violence
Case Study Bandar Abbas
Hadi Salimi*
Fatemeh Zaheri **
Fatemeh Roustaei***
Mohammad Bezleh ****
Akbar Hasan Nejad Qoroli*****
Hasan Akhgar******
Economic violence is one of the most important gender-based problems and a form of domestic violence that occurs in a hidden and invisible way against women and has negative effects on their quality of life. Currently, due to the economic situation, this type of violence is on the rise. Since it has unpleasant consequences, understanding women's coping strategies is of particular importance. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to examine women's strategies against economic violence. The present research design was qualitative and phenomenological. The statistical population included all housewives who were victims of economic violence in Bandar Abbas; 27 housewives’ women were selected using snowball sampling. Semi-structured interviews and the Economic Abuse Scale (SEA2) were applied to collect data. The data were analyzed using the Colaizzi method. In the study of women's coping strategies with their husband's economic violence, in coding and examining the main and sub-themes, 82 initial codes were initially identified, and by eliminating duplicates, 20 initial concepts remained. Then, the concepts were combined, and 6 categories were finally identified. The sub-themes were conceptually placed together, and 2 main themes were identified. The results showed that women's strategies against economic violence include two general strategies: adaptive (resilient, participatory, and planning strategies) and maladaptive (avoidance, submission, and confrontation strategies). In general, it can be concluded that victimized women may use different strategies against economic violence. Maladaptive strategies lead to temporary relief of distress, and adaptive strategies lead to reduced tension and improved conditions.
Keywords: Domestic violence, intimate partner violence, economic violence, coping strategies, women
Introduction
One of the hidden or “invisible” forms of violence occurring within marital relationships is economic violence (Postmus et al., 2020: 1). Economic violence includes behaviors that control a person's ability to acquire, use, or maintain economic resources, thereby threatening their financial security and potential for self-sufficiency (Adams et al., 2008: 264). Research indicates that economic violence has a high prevalence. In the general population, the lifetime prevalence of economic violence experienced by women is 15.7%, which is higher than that of men at 7.1% (Kutin et al., 2017: 269). In clinical samples, various studies have reported that this rate reaches 93% (Stylianou, 2018a: 3) and 94% (Postmus et al., 2011: 411) among women.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that victims of economic violence experience a wide range of consequences on individual, interpersonal, social, and economic levels (Alkan et al., 2021: 3; Johnson et al., 2022: 2; Eriksson & Ulmestig, 2021: 1642). In response to the adverse outcomes of economic violence, individuals attempt to cope with it through various strategies. These coping strategies include cognitive, emotional, and behavioral efforts that individuals employ when confronted with psychological stress, to overcome, endure, or minimize the consequences of distressing situations (Salehi Moghadam et al., 2024: 230). Existing research has mostly examined women’s coping strategies against intimate partner violence in general, with far less focus on specific coping mechanisms related to economic violence (Yakubovich et al., 2022: 23; Renner & Hartley, 2022: 585). Iran, as a country facing high inflation and extensive economic challenges in recent years, has experienced unique conditions that have intensified economic violence within marital relationships. This is particularly since men are generally regarded as the primary breadwinners of the household (Alavi Rad & Sabbaghchi Firouzabad, 2022: 279; Daliri, 2019: 35). However, what has been neglected in previous research is the way housewives respond to this form of abuse by their husbands. Due to the lack of employment and independent income, housewives are more economically dependent on their spouses. Therefore, the present study was conducted to identify the coping strategies employed by housewives in Bandar Abbas in response to economic violence. Overall, considering the limited background and lack of research in the Iranian academic context—particularly within the socio-cultural setting of Bandar Abbas—on women’s coping strategies in response to economic violence, there exists a significant theoretical and empirical gap in the existing literature. The present study, by focusing on an in-depth exploration of Iranian women’s coping strategies, seeks to address this gap.
Methodology
The present study employed qualitative design using the phenomenological approach. The statistical population included all married housewives who had experienced economic violence in Bandar Abbas in 2023. Participants were selected using a snowball sampling method, resulting in 27 housewives being interviewed. The participant selection process aimed to achieve theoretical saturation.
Inclusion criteria were: having experienced economic violence based on an initial psychological assessment, obtaining a score higher than 9 on the Scale of Economic Abuse (SEA2), being a housewife with no employment, having been married for at least one year, giving full consent to participate in the interviews, and residing in Bandar Abbas. To ensure ethical standards and maintain participant confidentiality, all ethical considerations were explained at the beginning of the interview process, and the confidentiality of the data was emphasized. Given the phenomenological nature of the research topic, Colaizzi’s seven-step method (1978) was employed for data analysis. To ensure the validity and reliability of the data, strategies such as member checking (reviewing the findings with participants), careful coding and categorization of concepts, and the use of an independent evaluator were implemented.
Findings
In the descriptive section, the mean age of the 27 housewives who had experienced economic abuse was 33.11 years (SD = 6.69). Regarding the duration of marriage, 13 participants had been married for 1–5 years, 5 for 6–10 years, 3 for 11–15 years, 2 for 16–20 years, 3 for 21–25 years, and 1 for 26–30 years. Concerning the number of children, 8 had no children, 3 had one child, 7 had two children, 6 had three children, 2 had four children, and 1 had five children. Regarding educational level, 2 participants were illiterate, 5 had completed primary school, 2 had junior high school (middle school) education, 9 held a high school diploma, and 9 had a bachelor’s degree. In terms of housing type, 15 women lived in private (owned) homes, 11 in rental properties, and 1 in a government-provided residence.
In analyzing women’s coping strategies with economic abuse from their husbands, a total of 82 initial codes were identified. After merging overlapping items and removing duplicates, 20 initial concepts remained. These were then synthesized into six subthemes, which were conceptually grouped into two overarching main themes. The sub-themes were conceptually placed together, and 2 main themes were identified. The results showed that women's strategies against economic violence include two general strategies: adaptive (resilient, participatory, and planning strategies) and maladaptive (avoidance, submission, and confrontation strategies).
Table 1 – Women’s Coping Strategies Against
Economic Abuse by Husband
|
Main Themes |
Subthemes |
Initial Concepts |
|
Maladaptive Strategies |
Avoidant Strategy |
Concealment, indifference, sulking, crying, passivity |
|
Submissive Strategy |
Acceptance of victim role, silence, yielding, need suppression |
|
|
Confrontational Strategy |
Aggression, stubbornness, role imposition, conditional affection |
|
|
Adaptive Strategies |
Resilient Strategy |
Patience and trust in God, accommodation |
|
Participatory Strategy |
Negotiation and dialogue, professional counseling |
|
|
Planning Strategy |
Financial management, saving, income generation |
Discussion and Conclusion
This study aimed to identify the coping strategies of women in response to economic violence. The findings indicated that housewives who were victims of economic violence in Bandar Abbas utilized a variety of coping strategies, which could be categorized into two main groups: maladaptive and adaptive strategies. Maladaptive strategies primarily included withdrawal (avoidance), passive acceptance of the situation (submission), or emotional confrontation. While these strategies may offer temporary relief, they are likely to lead to the continuation of abuse and a further erosion of women’s self-esteem in the long term. In contrast, adaptive strategies—such as participation in problem-solving (dialogue and counseling), resilience (patience and accommodation), and economic planning (financial management and income generation)—though less commonly used, were associated with greater potential for empowerment and harm reduction.
In general, it can be concluded that women victims of economic abuse employ various adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies depending on their individual, familial, and cultural circumstances. Based on this, it is recommended that women's empowerment programs in regions such as Bandar Abbas be designed and implemented at multiple levels, considering the specific socio-cultural context and economic conditions of these areas.
At the individual level, teaching effective coping skills, enhancing psychological resilience, and promoting financial empowerment through improved economic literacy and resource management training can help reduce the use of maladaptive strategies. At the structural level, supporting small-scale and locally based employment initiatives, creating income-generating opportunities tailored to the conditions of housewives, and offering economic incentives for productive activities are considered key actions. At the social level, establishing family counseling centers with a culturally sensitive approach and promoting couple therapy with a focus on the negative consequences of economic abuse can play a crucial role in reshaping the interactive patterns between spouses.
This study was subject to certain limitations. These included difficulties in accessing female victims due to fear of disclosing their experiences or potential repercussions, and the influence of cultural context on how experiences were articulated, which may have introduced some bias into the data. Moreover, due to the specific cultural characteristics of the Bandar Abbas region, the findings of this study may have limited generalizability to other areas. It is recommended that future research explore the role of individual factors such as resilience, self-esteem, and social support in shaping coping strategies. Additionally, comparative studies among women in urban, rural, and nomadic areas could offer a more comprehensive picture of this phenomenon. Furthermore, evaluating the effectiveness of educational and counseling interventions in reducing maladaptive strategies could pave the way for designing more effective support policies and programs for women who are victims of economic abuse.
References
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* Corresponding Author: Assistant Professor Counseling Department, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University.
hadisalimi69@yahoo.com
** M.A in Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
fatemeh.zaheri1994@gmail.com
*** M.A in Counseling Department, Faculty of Humanities, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
fateme.rousta77@gmail.com
**** M.A in Department of Management, Faculty of Management, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
444bazleh@gmail.com
***** M.A in Department of Management, Faculty of Management, Hormozgan University, Bandar Abbas, Iran.
akbar.hasannezhad.75@gmail.com
****** M.A Student, Department of Psychology and Education of Exceptional Children, Faculty of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, University of Rehabilitation Sciences and Social Health, Tehran, Iran.
hassanakhgar1377@gmail.com
