Mental Health of Women Exposed to War and Violence in Africa: A Community-Based Approach

DiClemente, Kira

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Year:: 2021
Contributor:: DiClemente, Kira (creator); Harrison, Abigail (Advisor); Pellowski, Jennifer A. (Reader); Operario, Don (Reader); Nugent, Nicole (Reader); Brown University. Behavioral and Social Sciences Department (sponsor)
Genre:: theses
Subject:: Public health; Mental health; refugee health; Black Women
Extent:: xviii, 131 p.

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Abstract:: Despite sharing a culture of resilience and strong community, African women exposed to war and violence carry a high burden of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. Using a community-based approach, this dissertation examines the social context of the mental health experiences of African women exposed to war and violence. The objective of this dissertation is to generate a framework for understanding the complex system driving mental health experiences over time of African women exposed to war and violence through meaningful engagement with affected communities. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 present unique studies using different methodologies towards that end. In partnership with the African refugee community in Providence, RI, Chapters 2 and 3 investigate key influences on women’s mental health, including exposure to traumatic events, sociocultural norms, and intimate partner relationships. Chapter 2 analyzes N=15 qualitative with African refugee community stakeholders and uses Grounded Theory to describe the mental health experiences of African women exposed to war and violence. Chapter 3 analyzes the same qualitative dataset using system dynamics to identify causal relationships within the complex and dynamic web of factors driving mental health outcomes over time. Chapter 4 then suggests a theoretical model of how lifetime traumatic exposures and current intimate partner dynamics affect present mental health experiences, and tests this among Rwandan women who have remained in post-genocide Rwanda. Overall, this body of work offers three key findings. First, mental health experiences of women exposed to war and violence in Africa are best understood by the affected community as feelings over time rather than individual diagnoses employed by Western medicine. Second, cultural norms are a significant contributor to mental health experiences. For refugee women, cultural norms affect mental health primarily through the tension felt between African and U.S. norms during resettlement, whereas for women living in post-conflict Rwanda, cultural norms that create a ripe environment for intimate partner violence has a direct detrimental effect on mental health. Finally, the research herein that pertains specifically to refugees suggests that community organizations with refugees in leadership are uniquely suited to address the mental health needs of this community.
Notes:: Thesis (Ph. D.)--Brown University, 2021

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Citation

DiClemente, Kira, "Mental Health of Women Exposed to War and Violence in Africa: A Community-Based Approach" (2021). Public Health Theses and Dissertations. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library. https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:mxdpqw4b/

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Public Health Theses and Dissertations

Theses and Dissertations for the Public Health department.
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