Biesen Judith N, Fink Brandi C, Keeling Lori A, Lindsey Larissa
Department of Mental Health Law & Policy, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.
J Aggress Maltreat Trauma. 2025;34(2):185-203. doi: 10.1080/10926771.2025.2462943. Epub 2025 Feb 12.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, persons with co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders tended to be particularly poorly equipped to cope with social distancing and stay-at-home orders and were less likely to have the resources to manage interpersonal difficulties. Therefore, in the present investigation, the link between social contact frequency and intimate partner violence (IPV) among patients with comorbid substance use and mental health disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic was examined. A total of 89 patients (61 women and 28 men) receiving outpatient care for comorbid substance use and mental health disorders completed questionnaires assessing their contact frequency with friends and family prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as physical and psychological aggression perpetration and victimization during the enactment of COVID-19 public health orders. Results indicated that a decrease in contact with friends and family during versus prior to the pandemic was negatively associated with both physical aggression perpetration and victimization, and not related to psychological aggression perpetration or victimization. Overall, the present results suggest that patients with co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders are particularly vulnerable to experiencing bi-directional physical IPV during public health emergencies or national disasters. These findings underscore the importance of providers routinely assessing for violence in their patients' relationships, even in individual therapy, and provide resources and support to patients to help improve their social skills, reconnect with loved ones, or expand their social support networks to mitigate these risks.
在新冠疫情期间，同时患有物质使用障碍和精神健康障碍的人往往特别缺乏应对社交距离和居家令的能力，而且不太可能拥有应对人际困难的资源。因此，在本调查中，研究了新冠疫情期间患有合并物质使用障碍和精神健康障碍的患者的社交接触频率与亲密伴侣暴力（IPV）之间的联系。共有89名因合并物质使用障碍和精神健康障碍而接受门诊治疗的患者（61名女性和28名男性）完成了问卷调查，评估他们在新冠疫情之前和期间与朋友和家人的接触频率，以及在新冠公共卫生令实施期间身体和心理攻击行为的实施情况和受害情况。结果表明，与疫情之前相比，疫情期间与朋友和家人的接触减少与身体攻击行为的实施和受害情况均呈负相关，与心理攻击行为的实施或受害情况无关。总体而言，目前的结果表明，同时患有物质使用障碍和精神健康障碍的患者在突发公共卫生事件或自然灾害期间特别容易遭受双向身体亲密伴侣暴力。这些发现强调了医疗服务提供者常规评估患者关系中暴力情况的重要性，即使是在个体治疗中，并为患者提供资源和支持，以帮助他们提高社交技能、与亲人重新建立联系或扩大其社会支持网络，从而降低这些风险。
