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Aim: This thesis explores the lived experiences of women with disabilities subjected to intimate partner violence (IPV) and assesses support providers’ readiness and self-perceived competence to support them. It applies an intersectional and epistemic injustice lens to understand how gender, disability, and structural aspects shape both experiences of IPV and institutional responses.

Methods: This study employed both qualitative and quantitative methods and comprises two sub-studies. The first sub-study involved in-depth interviews with 11 women with disabilities who had experienced IPV and sought support from various formal support institutions, including the police, social services, shelters, healthcare, and the Centre against Violence. Their narratives were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. The second sub-study assessed the perspectives of support providers through a nationwide survey (N=1,151) and 18 qualitative interviews, focusing on their self-perceived competence and readiness to support women with disabilities subjected to IPV.

Findings: The women with disabilities interviewed reported experiencing multiple forms of IPV — physical, psychological, sexual, economic, digital — and disability-specific abuse, often extending beyond intimate partners to others in their intimate personal spaces. They described psychological abuse as being particularly harmful yet often overlooked in institutional responses. The women’s experiences were marked by testimonial injustice, where their credibility was undermined and hermeneutical injustice, where support systems lacked the conceptual and structural frameworks needed to understand and respond to their needs. Support providers indicated that IPV and disability-specific training enhanced their self-perceived competence. However, where disability-specific guidelines existed, they were inconsistently followed. Readiness to support women with disabilities was shaped not only by individual training but also by systemic and organizational factors, including employer support, the presence of clear routines and guidelines, collaboration within and between institutions, and adaptations to ensure accessibility.

Conclusions: This thesis underscores the need for structural reforms to ensure disability inclusion in IPV support services. Tailored guidelines, meaningful accessibility, institutional collaboration, and recognition of disabled women as credible knowers are essential.