Living With and Within the Rules of Domestic Violence Shelters

Abstract

As emergency domestic violence (DV) shelters have proliferated, there has been an increase in rules that shelter residents must follow. This qualitative descriptive study explores intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors' experiences living with DV shelter rules. Five thematic clusters emerged from interviews with 11 survivors: (1) shelter environment/staff approach, (2) making sense of the rules, (3) staff enforcement of the rules, (4) short-term impact of the rules, and (5) coping. Results suggest that residents benefit from more flexible boundaries between staff and residents, less restrictive rules, and collaborative, transparent rule enforcement. Recommendations are made for shelter practice and future research.