Shame, Fear, and Stigma: Understanding Psychosocial Barriers to Help Seeking Behavior among Female Survivors of IPV in Nairobi County

In Kenya, and particularly in urban contexts like Nairobi, many women continue to experience Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) yet remain silent or reluctant to seek help. However, help seeking rates among female survivors remain low. This paradox points to deep-rooted psychosocial barriers that point to shame, fear, and stigma. This study sought to identify internal barriers to help seeking behavior among women survivors of IPV. Conducted in one of the hospitals in Nairobi County that provides psychosocial support, this study employed the modified survivor theory as developed by developed by Gondolf and Fisher (1988). The study purposively sampled 390 women survivors and 12 key informants who respondent to survey using the 1996 Revised Conflict Tactics Scales-2 (CTS2) and interview guide respectively. A mixed-methods research approach was adopted, integrating both quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques. The positivist philosophy informed the quantitative strand, while the interpretivist philosophy guided the qualitative component. A convergent parallel mixed-methods design was used for data collection and analysis simultaneously. The study findings indicated that internal barriers such as confusion (???? = 2.342, SD = 0.565), shame (???? = 2.286, SD = 0.524) and the fear to be tagged weak (???? = 2.182, SD = 0.324) significantly hindered survivors’ help seeking behavior. The qualitative findings depicting personal barriers and family dynamics complemented the quantitative results. The study recommends strengthening survivor-centered services and increasing community awareness to reduce barriers and promote recovery among women survivors.