A literature review of intimate partner violence among immigrant populations: Engaging the faith community

• Abused immigrant women face many unique barriers to seeking and accessing help.
• Faith communities are critical resources for immigrants.
• Traditionally, faith community responses to intimate partner violence include silence, denial, and victim blaming.
• Immigrant faith leaders can provide support and change community attitudes.
• Engagement begins with an understanding of and respect for cultural norms.

As the immigrant population grows in the US, the plight of abused immigrant women may present particular challenges to practitioners. Specifically, due to cultural and religious values and other immigrant-specific barriers, abused immigrant women may not seek help from formal resources. This paper discusses the impact of cultural and religious values and other barriers on abused immigrant women's help-seeking behaviors to posit that natural resources in immigrant communities can play important roles in addressing intimate partner violence. An examination of potential roles for the faith community in addressing intimate partner violence in immigrant communities will be followed by suggestions for engaging the faith community in collaborative efforts to address intimate partner violence in immigrant communities.