Citation

Posada-Abadía CI, Marín-Martín C, Oter-Quintana C, González-Gil MT. BMC Womens Health 2021; 21(1): 216.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group - BMC)

DOI

10.1186/s12905-021-01353-x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Violence against women places them in a vulnerable position with regard to homelessness. Although sometimes invisible, women's homelessness is a complex reality shrouded in dramatic biographies that should be sensitively addressed to avoid revictimization.

METHODS: With the aim of understanding the chaotic discourse of homeless women's experiences of violence, a qualitative single-case study was conducted using the photo-elicitation technique. Data were analyzed in accordance with grounded theory.

RESULTS: The participant's discourse could be summarized in the following categories: "Living in a spiral of violence", "Confronting vulnerability and violence", "Being a strong woman", "New family networks", "Re-building mother-child relationships", and "Nurturing spiritual wellbeing".

CONCLUSIONS: Supporting homelessness women requires an approach that focuses on the prevention of re-victimization and the consequences of violence in terms of physical and mental health. Shelters are spaces of care for recovery and represent referential elements for the re-construction of self.

Language: en

Keywords

Adaptation; Psychological; Gender-based violence; Homeless persons; Single-case study