Psychological Problems and Behavioral Changes of Destitute Women in Coimbatore District

Five hundred destitute women were selected based on judgment sampling from home for women in difficulty, home for the aged destitute, old age home and Tsunami rehabilitation centre in Coimbatore District. Among the selected destitute women majority (22.8 per cent) were in the age group of 65-74 years. Of the selected destitute women, majority (30.4 per cent) of them became destitute due to widowhood. Majority (29.2 per cent) of the women live as destitute for more than 16 years. All the selected 500 destitute women (100 per cent) had the psychological problem of feeling sad, wandering thoughts, depression and restlessness. Many cases go unrecognized and so are not offered potentially beneficial interventions.