Responding to Intimate Partner Violence: Urban Women’s Decisions About Getting Personal Protection Orders When Other Resources are Scarce

Abstract

Intimate partner violence continues to be a widespread and serious problem. African American women experience a high lifetime prevalence of physical intimate partner violence, but resources for them are often scarce. This mixed-methods analysis of telephone survey responses found that women who were African American, had less education, and were dissatisfied with criminal justice responses to an abusive incident were less likely to seek personal protection orders (PPOs). The qualitative analysis showed that many women did not seek POs because their assessment of their partners indicated it was not needed or increased risk. Practical obstacles in obtaining orders were noteworthy.