Social Counseling Strategies to Strengthen the Psychosocial Resilience of Women Survivors of Violence

Abstract

This study investigates social counseling strategies designed to strengthen the psychosocial resilience of women who have survived violence. The research responds to the growing urgency for gender-responsive interventions amid rising violence cases and counseling services that remain limited in scope and sensitivity. A qualitative approach was employed to capture survivors’ subjective experiences and relational dynamics influencing recovery processes. A phenomenological design was selected to explore the meaning embedded in traumatic experiences and identify psychosocial response patterns that are not observable through quantitative methods. Data were collected from an integrated referral service at a women’s support center in Jakarta, involving ten informants comprising survivors and social counselors. The findings reveal that layered counseling encompassing emotional reinforcement, identity reconstruction, and facilitation of social support networks plays a significant role in fostering psychosocial resilience. The study recommends strengthening integrated service policies, developing counselor capacity in gender-sensitive counseling, and coordinating cross-institutional referral systems to ensure sustainable recovery for women survivors of violence.