Gender-Based Violence Prevalence, Psychosocial Effects, and Coping Mechanisms Among Refugee Women in Kebribeyah Camp, Ethiopia: Baseline for Interventions to Prevent Psychosocial Challenges

The study investigated the prevalence of gender-based violence, its psychological effects, and coping mechanisms among refugees in Ethiopia’s Kebribeyah Camp, which is believed to be the least recognized issue for female refugees. Owing to the loss of a social network and power, refugee women are the most vulnerable to different forms of gender-based violence and psychosocial challenges. The data collection and analysis were performed using a cross-sectional explanatory, quantitative design. The study involved 357 women refugees who were eligible for the study and found that there was a prevalence of 10.98% for GBV. In this study, it was determined that the most prevalent forms of GBV are psychological, physical, and sexual forms, respectively, which require immediate interventions. Irrational verbal and physical violence against women by men is identified as a signal for sexual violence. The mediation analysis examines the relationship between GBV acts, psychosocial challenges, and survivors’ coping strategies. GBV was found to be a significant predictor of both psychological and social difficulties, accounting for a significant variance in psychological difficulties (71%) and phobias (59%), and a substantial portion of social challenges (35%). GBV accounts for 82% of the variance in coping strategies. The study deduces the multidimensional pathway of the adverse effects of GBV among survivors, and suggests a combination of interventions to address GBV acts, psychological challenges, social challenges, and psychological phobias through an intersectional approach.