The present study focused on 1,111 engaged Arab women in Israel, examining the different patterns of abuse and battering they experience at the hands of their fianc??s. The results revealed that between 8% and 48% of the respondents had experienced psychological aggression by their partners, and between 1% to 10% had experienced physical aggression. Moreover, between 5% and 11% of the respondents had experienced acts of sexual abuse at least once during the engagement period. In addition, some mental health consequences of these experiences were examined. Analysis revealed that when negotiation tactics were not used to resolve conflicts and when respondents had experienced different patterns of abuse and battering by their fianc??s, they also expressed relatively low levels of self-esteem and relatively high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. The main predictors of the study explained a greater share of the variance in mental health than did some of the background variables.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119932778/abstract