The Role of Social Connectivity for South Asian Women Survivors of Sexual Trauma
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Authors
Grewal, Ann
Issue Date
2026-02-20
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
sexual trauma , South Asian women , social connectivity , healing , stigma , barriers to healing , pathways to healing , collectivism
Alternative Title
Abstract
For many South Asian women, recovery from sexual violence is shaped not only by trauma-related impacts but also by cultural, relational, and systemic barriers, including collectivistic values, honour-based expectations, shame, and limited access to culturally appropriate services. Despite this complexity, much of the existing trauma literature is grounded in individualistic, western perspectives that overlook the social context of healing from sexual violence for South Asian women. This review explored how social connectivity hinders and supports recovery among South Asian women survivors of sexual violence, and how this knowledge can inform culturally responsive interventions.The thematic integrative literature review synthesized the results of qualitative studies (which included phenomenological studies and interview studies) and quantitative studies (which included population and cross-sectional survey studies) and mixed-methods studies and systematic/narrative reviews and conceptual studies and grey literature. Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological systems model guided the organization and interpretation of data to capture the influence of social connections across multiple ecological levels. Findings indicated that social connectivity plays a central role in sexual trauma recovery; with family, peer, community, and institutional relationships acting as sources of either support or stigma, silence, and exclusion. Culturally relevant relational support was associated with increased service utilization and improved psychological outcomes, whereas engagement with culturally incongruent systems often hindered healing. Overall, the findings highlighted the need for clinicians to integrate relational, cultural, and ecological considerations into trauma-informed practice.
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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
openAccess
openAccess