Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 16, 2026

Use of a Psychophysiological Script-driven Imagery Experiment to Study Trauma-related Dissociation in Borderline Personality Disorder
Published on: March 8, 2018
Identifying factors that predict women's inability to maintain separation from an abusive partner
Eman Abdulmohsen Alhalal1, Marilyn Ford-Gilboe, Mickey Kerr
1Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada. ealhalal@uwo.ca
In this study, the extent to which nine indicators of intrusion (i.e., unwanted interference in everyday life) predicted the odds of women maintaining separation from an abusive partner was examined using data from a community sample of 286 Canadian women. Higher levels of depression and PTSD symptoms significantly and independently increased women's risk of being unable to maintain separation from a former or new abusive partner over a 12-month period (Odds Ratios 4.6 and 2.7, respectively). These finding underscore the importance of supporting women to identify and manage mental health problems as a means of enhancing their safety.
In this study, the extent to which nine indicators of intrusion (i.e., unwanted interference in everyday life) predicted the odds of women maintaining separation from an abusive partner was examined using data from a community sample of 286 Canadian women. Higher levels of depression and PTSD symptoms significantly and independently increased women's risk of being unable to maintain separation from a former or new abusive partner over a 12-month period (Odds Ratios 4.6 and 2.7, respectively). These finding underscore the importance of supporting women to identify and manage mental health problems as a means of enhancing their safety.
Related Concept Videos
Ending Relationships
Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood
Hazan and Shaver's Attachment Styles
Jealousy in Romantic Relationships
Attachment Styles
Psychological and Sociocultural Causes of Schizophrenia

