Violence in partnership of immigrant women from Turkey

Forty-one female immigrants from Turkey, who were victims of violence in their relationships and diagnosed with "reaction to severe stress and adjustment disorders" (F43, ICD-10) were compared with a controle-group of the same origin, sex, age and diagnosis who had not suffered from such violence. The frequency of emergency treatment and suicide attempts (in the last month before the first consultation) of the victims of violence were higher than in the controle-group. The victims of violence less frequently live in large families and were more often employed than the controle-group. The duration of time until the immigration of the partner was significantly higher in the group of victims than in the controle-group. The results are discussed with regard to studies concerning other ethnic groups and specific aspects of psychodynamics and migration.