Impact of Family Violence on Children

Children and Family Violence (FV)TerminologyTerminology reflects growing understanding of the issue and the complexity and diversity of children and young people’s experiences.

Earlier term: children who ‘witness’ violenceMore recently: children exposed to violence In Australia, the terms ‘experiencing,’ ‘affected by,’ and ‘living with’

violence have increasingly been used This language acknowledges that children are not passive onlookers

or unaffected bystanders.

Some Common Myths

Common myths about children and trauma include:

Children are too young to be aware of what is going on around them

The effects of a major incident will be short-lived

Children are resilient and will naturally recover by forgetting the experience, getting over it or growing out of it

A lack of an obvious behavioural response means the experience has not had a negative impact.

Facts

Children of all ages are affected by FV. They witness emotional and physical trauma, they experience the states of mind and emotions of their parents and they often experience the effects of a ‘helping system’

The helping system can either facilitate recovery from the trauma or further perpetuate it.

Children’s Experiences of Family Violence

Children experience FV in myriad ways. Most research has looked at physical abuse and has found:

Physical harm Violence may begin during a woman’s pregnancy

A woman may be assaulted while holding an infant or when trying to protect her child

A child or young person may be injured when they try to intervene to protect a parent.

Children’s Experiences of Family ViolenceObserving violence and experiencing its effects Children may directly observe violence, or they may hear it or see

the consequences of it (bruising, distress, damaged property)

Children also live with the effects of family violence on the health and parenting capacity of the parent who is the victim

Children may feel (or be made to feel) responsible for the violence

Children may live in fear of violence

Children of separated parents may feel at the centre of the conflict

Children’s lives and routines (friends, pets) may be disrupted

Secrecy and shame may pervade their lives

Impact on Children In the research there is most consensus about the short to medium

term effects of behavioural and emotional problems, compared to other children

There is less consensus about longer-term effects. Exposure to FV tends to go hand in hand with other developmental risk factors such as child abuse and neglect, substance abuse and poverty

NB: Effects are complex and varied, as are research methodologies;

therefore it is difficult to generalise.

Some say there is a cycle of violence, i.e. Inter-generational transmission of violent behaviour

However, there is some consensus that most children exposed to FV do not become either perpetrators or victims of FV in their adult relationships

It is important to acknowledge that there are many causes of violence in the community.

Impact on Children

Exposure to FV impacts on children in each of the developmental stages, from pregnancy, infancy, school age through to adolescence

Differing responses are exhibited at different ages and developmental stages

Some commentators talk of the effects as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Such stress typically overwhelms a person’s coping abilities and may manifest as extreme fear, helplessness and/or horror

The traumatic responses of children witnessing the abuse of their parent are likely to be intensified if the perpetrator is known to them

Trauma in childhood is thought to be especially harmful because it overwhelms the child’s developing sense of self and coping mechanisms.

Understanding the Effects

When a child is not helped to deal with and ‘integrate’ the impact of FV, behaviour can become separated from emotion and emotion separated from the event.

If this separation occurs, the child is left with impaired pathways for understanding aggressive behaviour and frightening information.

In these circumstances, a child’s responses are likely to ‘break through’ in seemingly disconnected ways. Symptoms include: Chronic tension Arousal (agitation) Numbing Avoidance Intrusive thoughts about the violence (or ‘playing out’ the emotions of the

violent context).

Children Living with Family Violence

A child’s trauma reaction can be resolved or intensified according to the immediate and longer-term responses they encounter

The quality of responses that the child receives in situations of FV strongly influences how that child will deal with the experience.

Children Living with Family Violence

The types of adult conflict most distressing to children are those that lack resolution and include high levels of hostility, physical violence and threats to leave. Important findings include:

Intensity of conflict is a predictor of children’s adjustment

A single exposure can result in trauma

The strongest likelihood of distress occurs when there is a combination of exposure to domestic violence and direct maltreatment by parents

Covert conflict – unspoken tension, resentment – is linked with internalising behaviours (depression, anxiety and withdrawal)

Types of Conflict

Children are also affected by the informational content of parental conflict (i.e. what is said about the other)

Children’s distress is reduced according to the degree to which the conflict is resolved

Children are less distressed by non–resolution when the parents are optimistic about ultimate outcomes of the conflict.

Types of Conflict

ResponsesChildren from violent homes are more likely than children from non–violent homes to demonstrate the following responses:

Clinical disturbance in emotions and behaviour

Heightened aggression, impulsiveness and anxiety (even as young as 3–5 years)

Restricted range of contacts with peers and people outside the family

Endorsement of the idea that men have the right to be the most powerful and privileged member of the family.

In addition to these observable behaviours, there can be other layers of damage that can have long term consequences. e.g. the ability to think about and process experience is affected.

Mediating Factors

Much research has been directed at identifying factors that mediate theeffects of children witnessing violence:

Being a victim of child abuse appears to lead to a more severe impact

The victim’s ability to parent effectively and provide a nurturing and safe environment for the children appears to lessen the impact. This can be enhanced by social support.

Factors that contribute to children’s resilience (coping capacities) would appear to include: support within the family (e.g. a parent) support outside the family – social networks, especially a reliable

and capable adult within walking distance attributes of the child.

N.B. Danger: In emphasising children’s resilience, the focus can be shifted away from the responsibility of the perpetrator. It is important to acknowledge that resilience is not ‘innate’ but developed socially. The violence needs to stop and effective responses from significant adults within the family and helping system are needed.

Mediating Factors

Some factors that influence the impact of a traumatic event include:

The proximity to the event broadly corresponds with the impact it has on the child

Existing conditions, such as ill health, history of trauma (current trauma can re-awaken impact of past trauma)

Relationship to victim. Children are more vulnerable if they know the victim or if they are worried about the safety of someone close to them

Impact on parents – this profoundly influences the meanings that children ascribe to trauma and their ability to integrate the experience.

What makes the Event Traumatising for a Child?

Short term: Dazed, confused, regression

New fears and insecurities

Preoccupation and/or frequent talk and play about the incident

Withdrawal, sadness, irritability, anger, moodiness, demanding behaviour

Increased comfort seeking

Separation problems

Short and Medium Term Symptoms of Trauma

Medium term: Constant need for attention Frequent fighting Seeking of pain Possessiveness towards toys Withdrawing Poor school performance & peer relationships Mood changes Stealing, lying Depression

Short and Medium Term Symptoms of Trauma

Unable to progress in a flexible, productive manner. Dominated by anxious recollection of the trauma

 Anxiety disorders, phobic and obsessive responses  Avoidance e.g. in denial, emotionally absent, distant, lacking energy

for living and learning  Substance abuse, conduct disorders in adolescence  Delinquency, aggression  Limited means for dealing with interpersonal conflict and intimacy NB. It is important to note that trauma caused by ‘natural disasters’ often brings with it a high level of community support. However, trauma caused by FV is surrounded by taboos.

Long Term Symptoms of Trauma

After a critical incident a child’s sense of safety is re-established through re-engaging with the “protective cocoon”. This sense of safety within a cocoon is usually provided by parents, significant others, family and community

It is important to find out who these people are in the child’s life and brief them to ensure that they are able to support the child. The professional worker also needs to establish a comforting presence for the child.

Psychological First Aid

Begin the re-establishment of trust and predictability Reduce the child’s engagement in the incident and establish

distance from the event Help children name and understand their experience Identify and discuss relevant facts Give information, clarify errors and ambiguities and help the child

understand the ‘status’ of the incident Manage connection with other adults sensitively Assist parents to deal with their own traumatisation and be aware of

the children’s needs.

Early Goals of a Response to Children who have Experienced Trauma

Support coping skills and validate difficulties Screen for children needing comprehensive/therapeutic intervention Inform relevant support networks Monitor progress.

It is important to keep in mind the difference between psychological first-aid and clinical de-briefing.The focus should be on respectful situational actions that promote safety and establish contexts where violence is rejected as an option.

Early Goals of a Response to Children who have Experienced Trauma

Helpful approaches include:

Starting where the child is at (rather than with what you want to know)

Following the child’s direction (encouraging them to tell their story in their own ways)

Knowing that resistance is understandable (not construing it as negative behaviour or taking it personally)

Being careful about re-traumatising or prolonging traumatic stimuli.

Interviewing Traumatised Children

It is useful to consider:

The quality of thought and reflection within the family about what the child has experienced

The resources and capacities available in the child’s world for assisting the child’s recovery

Ask: Is this enough now? 

Screening for Specialist Treatment