The Effects of Exposure to Domestic Violence in Children - Research Paper Example

Domestic Violence and the Child: The Effects of Exposure of Domestic Violence in Children 1. Research Question In view of the widely debated association between domestic violence and children’s emotional, cognitive, and behavioral change at different stages of development, our main research question is the effects of exposure of domestic violence in children 2. Rationale The early progress in the filed of domestic violence was in public awareness, police, court responses, and services for victims and perpetrators. Freshly according to Jaffe et. al. (2004) there is an increasing focus on the predicament of children exposed to domestic violence and substantiation on the effect of domestic violence on some children’s emotional, cognitive, and behavioral adjustment at various stages of development were published (p.3). The increasing consciousness of the scale of domestic violence results to growing public policy and political interest. Research shows practice experience and children’s own accounts all demonstrate that domestic violence has a momentous impact on the lives of children and on their future well-being (Hester et. al. 2006, p.11). “Witnessing domestic violence alone has destructive effects on children” (Humphreys and Stanley 2006, p.9) Domestic violence is any aggressive or offensive behavior whether physical, sexual, psychological, emotional, verbal, and financial that is used by one person to have power over and control another with whom they have or have had a relationship (Hester et. al. 2006, p.11). Jones (2003) explains that the key factor when considering victimization is that one type of harm hardly ever occurs in isolation, either at the time of its occurrence or in terms of succeeding events. Moreover, there is a significant crossover among various forms of child abuse and domestic violence. Victimization incident therefore do influence how children then consider and think about the events that took place. They can have an effect on the child’s capability to traverse essential developmental stages, child’s coping strategies that lead to psychological distress (p.41). 3. Literature Review Children have their own discernment on what living with domestic violence is like for them but some more information is essential to provide the setting against which work with children living with domestic violence transpires. According to Humphreys and Stanley (2006), children and young people can hardly ever be protected from the facts that domestic violence is occurring (p.20). In a study conducted by Abraham (1994) as reported by Humphreys and Stanley (2006), nearly 86% of children are either in the same or neighboring rooms during an event of domestic violence. Up to 26% of children had observed violence between their parents at least once and for 5% the violence was recurrent and continuing (p.20). Although there remain inconsistencies in the evidence, the research repetitively shows that children living with domestic violence have much higher rates of dejection and anxiety, disturbance symptoms, and behavioral and cognitive problems than children and young people Catherine Humphreys and Nicky Stanley, 2006, Domestic Violence and Child Protection: Directions for Good Practice, Published 2006 Jessica Kingsley Publishers, ISBN: 1843102765, p. 20 Domestic Violence and Child Protection explores the challenges of working effectively in this complex field and offers positive models for practice. Leading practitioners and researchers outline the essential safety considerations for children, adult victims and child protection workers, and stress the importance of children's experiences, using children's own words to describe their diverse needs. not living with these problems. Humphreys and Stanley (2006) further reports that the effect on children at various developmental stages shows the wide range of ways in which children respond to their surroundings. Citing Hughes (1988) study on pre-school children, they argue that children at this age show the most behavioral disturbance and are predominantly vulnerable to reproached themselves for adult anger. Moreover, babies living in domestic violence are subject to high levels of ill health, poor sleeping habits, and too much screaming (p.20). Bancroft and Silverman (2002) referring to a review in Kolbo et. al. (1996) and Erickson and Henderson (1998) explains that there is a high likelihood that children living with a battered will witness the violence, and they are more aware of the violence that their parents realize (p.37). For instance, a considerable number of children witness sexual assaults against their mothers and there are present in the immediate aftermath. Research shows that children find violence between their parents to be among the most disturbing events involving their parents’ relationship (Bancroft and Silverman 2002, p.37 referring to a review conducted by Cummings 1998). As a result, children exposed to domestic violence are more hostile with peers that are other children and have many more behavioral problems in general. They spend less time with friends, be bothered more about the safety of their friends, and are less probable to have a best Lundy Bancroft and Jay Silverman, 2002, The Batterer as parent: Addressing the Impact of Domestic Violence on Family dynamics, Published 2002 SAGE, ISBN: 0761922776, p. 37 The Batterer as Parent takes the reader inside of homes affected by domestic violence, imparting an understanding of the atmosphere that battering men create for the children who live with them. Bancroft and Silverman show how partner abuse affects each relationship in a family, and explains how children’s emotional recovery is inextricably linked to the healing and empowerment of their mothers. The authors cover the important but often-overlooked area of the post-separation parenting behaviors of men who batter, including their use of custody litigation as a tool of abuse. friend, and have lower-quality friendships than do other children (taken from Graham and Berman (1998) - Bancroft and Silverman 2002, p.38) According to Brittain and Hunt (2004) based on the recommendations of NAPCWA (2000) or the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administration for effective child protection interventions in domestic violence, children can be protected only if the workers know how to identify domestic violence. They must know how to assess its nature, severity, effect, and learn how to use effectively community services and legal protections. Domestic violence should be assessed within a cultural context thus; services and interventions should be culturally sensitive and appropriate (p.101). However, Mullender et. al. (2002) using the work of France et. al. (2000) argues that childhood is not simply socially constructed within a culturally relative context or biologically determined through processes of child development because they also have agency within it. Thus, childhood is a negotiated process where children are active in constructing their own social worlds, reflecting upon, and understanding its meaning and significance to their own personal lives (p.4). Charmaine Brittain and Deborah Esquibel Hunt, 2004, Helping in Child Protective Services: A Competency-based Casework Handbook, American Humane Association, Published 2004 Oxford University Press US, ISBN: 0195161904, p. 101 This second edition of Helping in Child Protective Services: A Competency-Based Casework Handbook is a comprehensive desk reference that serves as both a daily guide for workers and a training tool for supervisors and administrators. This invaluable resource provides CPS workers with the knowledge and skills necessary to assist vulnerable families, covering such key issues as assessment, decision-making, intervention, child development, medical evaluation, accountability, and the legal framework of culturally responsive practice. Audrey Mullender, Gill, Hague Umme Imam, Ellen Malos, Liz Kelly, and Linda Regan, 2002, Children's Perspectives on Domestic Violence, Published 2002 SAGE, ISBN: 0761971068, p. 4 The research methodology and the problems encountered when studying a subject such as domestic violence, coupled with the ethical problems of researching with children, are discussed at length in the book. This gives a good insight into the intricacies of conducting such a research study. The research looked at not only children who were known to have direct contact with domestic violence, but also what children in general thought and felt about domestic violence. An estimated three million children witness family violence each year and many children try to stop the violence between their parents, only to bear injuries themselves. However, Sonkin and Durphy (1997) explains, whether a child is openly abused or not, studies show that children who grow up in home where there is domestic violence frequently acquire severe emotional problems shortly in life (p.1). It may be comforting to think that many children are affected by domestic violence, as they are too young to become aware of or comprehend what is happening. However, statements of children involved in a study conducted by McGee (2000) shows that they are indeed aware of the violence and not deceived by their mother’s effort to hide them. They also made it clear that they feel very strongly about the violence that they have heard, witnessed, or experienced personally. They strive to convey intense feelings of fear, sadness, anger, shame, guilt, confusion, and despair. Feelings which inevitably affect their self-esteem, their behavior, their education, health, ability to make friends and there relationship with their mother (p.7). Understanding their own weakness to deal with domestic violence, children often look to adults to sort it out. How we react sends a clear message about our society’s determination or inability to tackle this issue. Sonkin Jay Daniel and Durphy Michael, 1997, Learning to Live Without Violence: A Handbook for Men, Published 1997 Volcano Press, ISBN: 1884244165, p. 1 This updated edition of Learning to Live Without Violence represents the compilation of knowledge derived from many sources, researchers studying the psychology of the male batterer and the battered woman, clinicians treating this population, and activities in the domestic violence field working to change and improve public policy. McGee Caroline, 2000, Childhood experiences of domestic violence, Published 2000 Jessica Kingsley Publishers, ISBN: 1853028274, p.7 Children's Experiences of Domestic Violence focuses on first-hand accounts from children and young people regarding their experiences of both domestic violence and support services. It is the first book to examine the user's experience of service provision for the victims of domestic violence and it seeks to encourage a more effective and professional approach in the services that serve to support and protect children. Therefore, we as a society must know how we can help children to deal with the huge emotional burden inflicted by their experiences of domestic violence. The key issues on these literatures are the effects of domestic violence to the young, community services and legal protection, public policy, and confidentiality. The apparent theoretical perspective is that domestic violence indeed affects children’s development. Since these literatures did not elaborate on the effects of domestic violence in children, our study’s contribution will be to prove further in detail the effects of exposure of domestic violence in children. 4. Methodologies/Methods “Research on domestic violence raises important ethical and methodological challenges” (Lee and Stanko 2003). This is because confidentiality, safety, interview skills, experience, and training are more important than in other areas of investigation. Maxfield et. al. (2004) argues, “survey tends to be high on reliability and generalizability, but validity can often be a weak point”. Comparable to other modes of collecting data in criminal justice research they added, surveys have strengths and weaknesses thus it is essential to consider these in deciding whether the survey format is suitable for a particular research purpose. Using surveys to study crime and criminal justice policy presents exceptional challenges. The target population often includes lower income, transient persons who are difficult to contact through traditional sample methods. However, as with all methods of observation, a full awareness of the intrinsic or possible weaknesses of survey research may resolve these inconveniences (p.273). Measuring domestic violence is not easy since it is measured in the context of a crime survey where some participant may not see what happened to them as ‘crime’ or be reluctant to do so. However, a specially designed questionnaire with carefully selected interviewer may help. Field studies in criminal justice according to Maxfield et. al. (2004) may also produce quantitative data that can used to test hypothesis or evaluate policy innovations. Normally, qualitative exploratory observations held define the nature of some crime problem and suggest policy response. For instance, collecting data about the nature and dimensions of the specific crime problem, and monitor results and disseminate experiences (p.285). Our research design will use a qualitative approach. Our sample will include individual and group interviews with children age 10 to 11 who had recently left violent situations to find out individualized distress and fear reactions, and also resilience and coping strategies in relation to living with domestic violence. Another is to learn about children’s general understandings and perceptions of domestic violence. More importantly, to know what they consider would be the most helpful forms of response. This sample population was chosen based on the evidence presented by Abrahams (1994) as mentioned by Mullender et. al. (2002) that children react uniquely to their circumstances. Moreover, a large number of children had talked to an online forum about domestic violence (p.15). A survey sample group according to pre-determined questionnaire will be our method of data collection. 5. Ethical Issues The issues of confidentiality and safety are the guiding ethical principles in research approach as it is important to protect the physical safety and emotional well-being of the participants. Aside from being confidential, participants are free to skip questions that are upsetting to them. This research will make sure that certain sensitive topics that cause distress to the respondents will be eliminated. Since children need consent, this research would apply for ethics approval from appropriate institution. 6. Reflection Designing a research is definitely not that simple particularly in domestic violence. There is a need to determine the best study design to answer our question. We must take into account feasibility, cost, and length of time it will take to complete the study, and the risk and benefits to study participants. Acknowledging the survey’s validity is often the weak point; our design must determine the survey format that is appropriate for a specific research purpose. 7. Bibliography Bancroft Lundy and Silverman Jay, 2002, The Batterer as parent: Addressing the Impact of Domestic Violence on Family dynamics, Published 2002 SAGE, ISBN: 0761922776 Brittain Charmaine and Hunt Esquibel Deborah, 2004, Helping in Child Protective Services: A Competency-based Casework Handbook, American Humane Association, Published 2004 Oxford University Press US, ISBN: 0195161904 Hester Marianne, Pearson Chris, Harwin Nicola, and Abrahams Hilary, 2006, Making an Impact: Children and Domestic Violence, Published 2006 Jessica Kingsley Publishers, ISBN: 1843101572 Humphreys Catherine and Stanley Nicky, 2006, Domestic Violence and Child Protection: Directions for Good Practice, Published 2006 Jessica Kingsley Publishers, ISBN: 1843102765 Jaffe Peter, Baker Linda, and Cunningham Alison, 2004, Protecting Children from Domestic Violence: Strategies for Community, Published 2004 Guilford Press, ISBN: 157230992X Jones David, 2003, Communicating with vulnerable children: a guide for practitioners, Published 2003 RCPsych Publications, ISBN: 1901242919 Lee Raymond and Stanko Elizabeth Anne, 2003, Researching Violence: Essays on Methodology and Measurement, Published 2003 Routledge, ISBN: 0415301319 Maxfield Michael, Maxfield Babbie, and Babbie Earl, 2004, Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology, Published 2004 Thomson Wadsworth, ISBN: 0534615600 McGee Caroline, 2000, Childhood experiences of domestic violence, Published 2000 Jessica Kingsley Publishers, ISBN: 1853028274 Mullender Audrey, Hague Gill, Imam Umme, Malos Ellen, Kelly Liz, and Regan Linda, 2002, Children's Perspectives on Domestic Violence, Published 2002 SAGE, ISBN: 0761971068 Sonkin Jay Daniel and Durphy Michael, 1997, Learning to Live Without Violence: A Handbook for Men, Published 1997 Volcano Press, ISBN: 1884244165 Read More