Investigation of the relationship between social support and post traumatic stress disorder in women exposed to domestic violence by their spouses during the pandemic period: A case - Control study

Violence against women is a universal problem in the world. The pandemic, directly and indirectly, increases domestic violence against women. In this study, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and its relationship with social support levels were investigated in women who experienced domestic violence. A total of 238 women, 124 women who have been exposed to domestic violence and 114 women who have not been exposed to violence, participated in the online research. Sosyodemographic information form, DSM-5 First Level Cross-sectional Symptom Scale, DSM-5 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL-5), and Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale were used as data collection tools. According to the findings, 51,6% of participants in the case group and 36,0 % of the participants in the control group met the diagnostic criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In terms of social support levels, the case group was at a disadvantage compared to the control group. As a result, the case group experienced traumatic stress symptoms more frequently and lacked social support during the pandemic period compared to the control group.