Citation
Wright, Elizabeth; Hanlon, Alexandra; Lozano, Alicia; & Teitelman, Anne M. (2018). The impact of depressive symptoms, alcohol dependence, and perceived stress on the relationship between intimate partner violence and 30-year cardiovascular disease risk among young women: A multiple mediation analysis. 2018 Add Health Users Conference. Bethesda, MD.Abstract
Intimate partner violence (IPV), the physical, sexual, psychological abuse or control by a former or current intimate partner, affects almost one-third of women in the United States. IPV exposure can result in many negative outcomes including physical injury, increased stress, and depression. Currently, there is a small, but growing body of literature examining the link between IPV victimization and increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among young adult women. To better prevent this negative outcome, it is imperative to understand what factors associated with IPV victimization may be increasing this risk. A secondary analysis of Wave IV of Add Health was conducted to examine possible factors mediating past year IPV exposure and 30-year CVD risk score including perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and alcohol dependence among a representative sample of young adult women in the United States. IPV was assessed using the revised Conflict Tactic Scale questions. Thirty-year CVD risk was calculated consistent with the Framingham score by clustering important risk factors such as are age, gender, systolic blood pressure, use of antihypertensive medications, diabetes diagnosis, body mass index and smoking status. The mediators, perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and alcohol dependence, were calculated using Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale, and the Alcohol Dependence measure from the DSM-IV, respectively. Multiple mediation analyses were run to examine the possible mediating factors in the relationship between IPV and CVD risk. The mediation analyses revealed that perceived stress and depressive symptoms were partial independent mediators of the relationship between IPV and 30-year CVD risk score. In a multiple mediation model, the indirect effect of perceived stress became insignificant when depressive symptoms were introduced. The findings of this study reveal that 30-year CVD risk in the context of IPV victimization should continue to be examined among this population. The mediation models suggested the importance of stress and depression in the context of IPV and heart health. Screening for depression among women exposed to IPV should be considered as an important intervention point, not only to mitigate mental health issues, but to also help prevent the development of cardiovascular disease.Reference Type
Conference proceedingBook Title
2018 Add Health Users ConferenceAuthor(s)
Wright, ElizabethHanlon, Alexandra
Lozano, Alicia
Teitelman, Anne M.