E-mail Use among a sample of intimate partner violence shelter residents

Although it is estimated that approximately 75% of U.S. adults have e-mail access, the proportion of battered women's shelter residents who use e-mail is currently unknown. Remaining in contact with residents following shelter stays is challenging. E-mail might hold promise for follow-up contact if a sufficient number of survivors use e-mail and safety concerns can be addressed. Among a convenience sample of residents of 11 Massachusetts shelters (N = 57), the authors find that 47% had a current e-mail account. Among those with e-mail accounts, 89% used e-mail in locations other than their own homes; 81% reported that, to their knowledge, their e-mail accounts had never been accessed by unauthorized dating partners; and 88% reported that they thought it would be safe for the shelter to e-mail them following their departure. Additional research assessing the feasibility (i.e., safety, acceptability, and cost benefit) of remaining in contact with shelter residents via the Internet would be beneficial.