Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence

ObjectiveThe present cross-sectional study aimed to examine the nature of domestic violence among women in Saudi Arabia, to explore its association with mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety, and to examine its impact on victims’ quality of life.MethodsThis cross-sectional descripti...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hend Faye AL-shahrani, Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Public Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1568733/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850239989876523008
author Hend Faye AL-shahrani
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
author_facet Hend Faye AL-shahrani
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
author_sort Hend Faye AL-shahrani
collection DOAJ
description ObjectiveThe present cross-sectional study aimed to examine the nature of domestic violence among women in Saudi Arabia, to explore its association with mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety, and to examine its impact on victims’ quality of life.MethodsThis cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from 387 women from the Riyadh region who had experienced domestic violence (Mean age = 32.47 years; SD = 4.26 years) using a systematic random sampling method. Quantitative data were gathered using the Domestic Violence Scale, the Depression Scale (CES-D-10; Andresen et al., 1994), the General Anxiety Scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006), and the Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF; Group, 1998).ResultsThe results revealed that 36.68% of the participants experienced moderate to severe levels of domestic violence. Psychological violence was more common than physical violence, while sexual violence was the least prevalent. Additionally, employed, more educated, and older women tended to experience lower levels of domestic violence as compared to their counterparts. Moreover, women who had experienced domestic violence exhibited higher severity of depression and anxiety symptoms. A linear regression analysis indicated that domestic violence was a powerful predictor of depression, anxiety, and poor quality of life in this sample.ConclusionThese findings highlight the need to further examine the adverse effects of domestic violence on women and their children, and to prioritize mental health and quality of life interventions for such women. The insights gained from this study could also inform the design of programs aimed at preventing domestic violence.
format Article
id doaj-art-222d06c7137b45f5a7083b3bc37720fb
institution OA Journals
issn 2296-2565
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Public Health
spelling doaj-art-222d06c7137b45f5a7083b3bc37720fb2025-08-20T02:01:00ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652025-05-011310.3389/fpubh.2025.15687331568733Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violenceHend Faye AL-shahrani0Mohammad Ahmed Hammad1Mohammad Ahmed Hammad2Department of Social Planning, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Princess Noura bint Abdul Rahman University, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaCollege of Education, Najran University, Najran, Saudi ArabiaCollege of Education, Assiut University, Assiut, EgyptObjectiveThe present cross-sectional study aimed to examine the nature of domestic violence among women in Saudi Arabia, to explore its association with mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety, and to examine its impact on victims’ quality of life.MethodsThis cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from 387 women from the Riyadh region who had experienced domestic violence (Mean age = 32.47 years; SD = 4.26 years) using a systematic random sampling method. Quantitative data were gathered using the Domestic Violence Scale, the Depression Scale (CES-D-10; Andresen et al., 1994), the General Anxiety Scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006), and the Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF; Group, 1998).ResultsThe results revealed that 36.68% of the participants experienced moderate to severe levels of domestic violence. Psychological violence was more common than physical violence, while sexual violence was the least prevalent. Additionally, employed, more educated, and older women tended to experience lower levels of domestic violence as compared to their counterparts. Moreover, women who had experienced domestic violence exhibited higher severity of depression and anxiety symptoms. A linear regression analysis indicated that domestic violence was a powerful predictor of depression, anxiety, and poor quality of life in this sample.ConclusionThese findings highlight the need to further examine the adverse effects of domestic violence on women and their children, and to prioritize mental health and quality of life interventions for such women. The insights gained from this study could also inform the design of programs aimed at preventing domestic violence.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1568733/fulldomestic violencemental healthanxietydepressionquality of lifeSaudi women
spellingShingle Hend Faye AL-shahrani
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
Mohammad Ahmed Hammad
Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
Frontiers in Public Health
domestic violence
mental health
anxiety
depression
quality of life
Saudi women
title Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
title_full Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
title_fullStr Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
title_full_unstemmed Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
title_short Mental health disorders and quality of life among Saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
title_sort mental health disorders and quality of life among saudi women who have experienced domestic violence
topic domestic violence
mental health
anxiety
depression
quality of life
Saudi women
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1568733/full
work_keys_str_mv AT hendfayealshahrani mentalhealthdisordersandqualityoflifeamongsaudiwomenwhohaveexperienceddomesticviolence
AT mohammadahmedhammad mentalhealthdisordersandqualityoflifeamongsaudiwomenwhohaveexperienceddomesticviolence
AT mohammadahmedhammad mentalhealthdisordersandqualityoflifeamongsaudiwomenwhohaveexperienceddomesticviolence