Psychological distress in victims of intimate partner violence: the buffering effect of post-traumatic growth and metacognitive abilities

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive public health issue associated with severe psychological consequences, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and global psychopathology. Nevertheless, many survivors also experience positive psychological changes, defined as post-traumatic growth (PTG). The present study aimed to examine the associations between psychopathological symptoms, metacognitive abilities, and post-traumatic growth, and to test whether metacognitive abilities mediate the relationship between psychological distress and PTG in women survivors of IPV. In a cross-sectional design, thirty-one women survivors of IPV (M = 42.77 years; SD = 11.93) were recruited through specialized support services in Northern and Central Italy. Participants completed standardized self-report measures assessing PTSD symptoms, depression, global psychopathology, post-traumatic growth, and metacognitive abilities. Mediation models were tested using correlational and hierarchical multiple regression analyses with bootstrapping procedures. Results showed that PTSD, depression, and global psychopathology were negatively correlated with PTG and metacognitive abilities, whereas metacognition positively correlated with PTG. Regression analyses revealed that metacognition fully mediated the effects of PTSD and global psychopathology on PTG and partially mediated the effect of depression. Higher metacognitive abilities were associated with greater post-traumatic growth despite elevated symptom levels. Findings suggest that metacognitive abilities act as a key intrapersonal resource in trauma recovery, facilitating emotional regulation, cognitive processing, and meaning-making. Enhancing metacognitive functioning could strengthen therapeutic interventions for IPV survivors by promoting adaptive coping and growth beyond symptom reduction.