Examining the Influence of Exposure to Community Violence on Posttraumatic Stress in Community Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence

Women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) report multiple and diverse traumas. Exposure to community violence may be important to consider when examining the development, maintenance, and exacerbation of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in this population. The purpose of this study was to examine the relative and unique associations between PTSD symptom clusters and witnessing and experiencing community violence among women experiencing IPV. Participants were 171 community women experiencing IPV (Mage = 40.56; 40.3% white, 31.5% Black, and 17.5% Hispanic or Latina). Experiencing and witnessing community violence were significantly and positively correlated with overall PTSD symptoms and with each PTSD symptom cluster. The PTSD symptom cluster of arousal and reactivity was uniquely associated with experiencing and witnessing community violence above and beyond other PTSD symptom clusters. Findings indicate the relevance of assessing-and intervening-on arousal and reactivity PTSD symptoms in this population.