An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Child Abuse, Cessation, and Reconstitution of Parent-Child Relationships Focusing on Divorced Mothers

This study employs interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to investigate the experiences, causes, cessation triggers, relationship recovery strategies, and outcomes associated with child abuse from the perspective of divorced mothers. The researcher applied a double hermeneutic approach within IPA to explore participants' subjective experiences and meanings empathetically. Five divorced mothers participated, with data collected through one-on-one semi-structured interviews. These interviews were analyzed following the procedures for IPA outlined by Smith, Flowers, and Larkin (2009). The analysis identified 74 emergent themes, which were then grouped into 15 subordinate themes and subsequently synthesized into six superordinate themes. These superordinate themes offer insight into the participants' lived experiences, with discussions and implications derived from the findings.