A comprehensive review of the literature on the impact of exposure to intimate partner violence on children and youth
Date
2014
Authors
Artz, Sibylle
Jackson, Margaret A.
Rossiter, Katherine R.
Nijdam-Jones, Alicia
Géczy, István
Porteous, Sheila
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Victoria
Abstract
Children living in homes where intimate partner violence occurs are often exposed to such violence through witnessing, seeing its effects, hearing about it, or otherwise being made aware that violence is taking place between parents or caregivers. Exposure to intimate partner violence is considered to be a form of child maltreatment, and affected children are often also the victims of targeted child abuse. This paper presents findings from a comprehensive review of the literature on the impact of exposure to intimate partner violence for children and youth, focusing on: (a) neurological disorders; (b) physical health outcomes; (c) mental health challenges; (d) conduct and behavioural problems; (e) delinquency, crime, and victimization; and (f) academic and employment outcomes. The notion of cascading effects informed our framework and analysis as it became evident that the individual categories of impacts were not only closely related to one another, but in a dynamic fashion also influence each other in multiple and interconnected ways over time. The research reviewed clearly shows that children who are exposed to intimate partner violence are at significant risk for lifelong negative outcomes, and the consequences are felt widely in society.
Description
Portions of this article were presented at the 2012
National Research
Day Conference
in Vancouver, Canada.
Keywords
children, domestic violence, intimate partner violence, witnessing
Citation
Artz, S. Jackson, M., Rossiter, K., Nijdam-Jones, A., Géczy, I., & Porteous, S. 2014, A comprehensive review of the literature on the impact of exposure to intimate partner violence on children and youth. International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 493-487.