Empowerment and resilience through a behavioural intervention among pregnant women facing domestic violence in India

Women’s empowerment programmes may contribute to reducing domestic violence (DV) by strengthening women’s agency and ability to exercise greater control over decisions affecting their lives. A Behavioural Intervention Package (BIP) incorporating yoga-based techniques for self-development, interpersonal skills development, and awareness sessions was developed to support pregnant women who have experienced DV. This study aimed to assess the effects of the BIP on empowerment and resilience among pregnant women who had experienced violence and were attending antenatal care at a tertiary care hospital in India. A randomised controlled trial was conducted among 243 pregnant women recruited between 18 and 20 weeks’ gestation who were randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. The intervention group received the BIP in addition to standard care, while the control group received standard care alone. For the per-protocol analysis, 105 women in the intervention group and 106 in the control group completed the required follow-up and were included in the final analysis. Study assessments were conducted at baseline and again six weeks postpartum. Outcomes were compared between and within groups using appropriate statistical methods to assess changes from baseline to post-intervention. The BIP was associated with improvements in quality of life and reductions in DV, stress, and depressive symptoms. The findings further indicated improvements across personal, relational, and socio-environmental domains, with participants describing greater positive self-perception, resilience, and hope for the future. The BIP may help empower pregnant women from low socioeconomic backgrounds who experience DV and may contribute to improvements in their quality of life and psychosocial well-being. In the absence of standardised interventions specifically addressing this population, the BIP may have potential for implementation in supportive healthcare settings to address the psychosocial health needs of women experiencing DV. Trial registration: The Indian Registry of Clinical Trials number is CTRI/2019/01/017009 dated 9.1.2019.