The Effects Of Domestic Violence On Children - Research Paper Example

The Effects Of Domestic Violence On Children “Domestic violence is a behaviors used by one person in a relationship to control the other. Partners may be married or not married; heterosexual, gay, or lesbian; living together, separated or dating” (Domestic Violence: Definition, 2009). It is a serious social problem which can cause huge problems to the proper development of families and the societies. It can affect all the family members and the society in many ways. The effects of domestic violence may cause several problems to the development of children. There is a common link between domestic violence and child abuse. Among victims of child abuse, 40 per cent report domestic violence in the home. One study in North America found that children who were exposed to violence in the home were 15 times more likely to be physically and/or sexually assaulted than the national average. This link has been confirmed around the world, with supporting studies from a range of countries including China, South Africa, Colombia, India, Egypt, the Philippines, and Mexico (Behind Closed Doors: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children, n. d, p.7) In fact children seem to be the major victims of domestic violence since the probability of divorce could be more after the violent incidents. Even though children may not suffer any physical injuries as a result of domestic violence, the possibility of mental injuries cannot be ruled out. Some children may develop depression problems whereas some others may develop antisocial behaviors as a result of domestic violence. This paper analyses the effects of domestic violence upon children. Methodology As stated earlier, the primary aim of this research is to find out the effects of domestic violence upon children. Children from the families with the history of domestic violence are the better sources to get primary information about how domestic violence may affect them. However, many of the children who were approached were reluctant in disclosing their experiences in the family. Moreover they had not much awareness about the indirect influences of domestic violence upon them, since there were not matured enough to identify those things. So, this research is conducted primarily based on the information provided in the secondary sources such as books, periodicals, and internet sites. Plenty of secondary sources from different regions and deferent countries are available to learn more about the influence of domestic violence upon children. However, this research collected majority of the information from American sources in order to write this paper more from an American perspective. In order to give more credibility to this research, credible resources such as book references and government portals are used extensively. Literature review “Domestic violence, be it physical, emotional, sexual or verbal, changes everyone in the family unit” (Domestic Violence Information: The Process Of Healing, 2011). Children seem to be the most vulnerable community as far as the effects or consequences of domestic violence are concerned. It is not necessary that domestic violence may impact children physically; however, the psychological impacts of domestic violence upon children are huge. Children who are exposed to violence in the home may have difficulty learning and limited social skills, exhibit violent, risky or delinquent behaviour, or suffer from depression or severe anxiety. Children in the earliest years of life are particularly vulnerable: studies show that domestic violence is more prevalent in homes with younger children than those with older children (Behind Closed Doors: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children, n. d, p.3). Groves (2003) also supported the above findings of the UNICEF article. In his opinion, “When young children witness an extremely scary event, their outlook on the world and on their place in it changes dramatically” (Groves, 2003, p.7). According to Edward et al (2004), “Guilt is usually more important than anger because guilt contributes directly to shame and low self-esteem”(Edward et al, 2004, p.24). When a child watches the fight between his father and mother, he may not develop any anger; instead he may develop guilty consciousness and subsequent under development of self-esteem. For example, majority of the domestic violence cases occur because of the guilt committed or suspected among the couples. Both of them may accuse each other and the child who watches it may not get any proper idea about what is going on between his parents. However, he may realize that either or both of his parents had committed some crime or guilt. The feeling of the guilt committed by his parents may force him to think too much about it and subsequently he may develop depression, anxiety or lack of self-esteem. Martin (2007) has also supported the idea of Edward et al. in his opinion, “It is also common in an abusive relationship for the abuser to isolate the victim from friends and family. This allows the abuse to continue until the victim becomes brave enough to speak up and get help” (Martin, 2007, p.1). A child who watches the pathetic condition of the victim (mostly his mother) may develop emotional problems. Roberts (2002) gave another dimension to the effect of domestic violence upon children. He has pointed out that “A survey of the large cities by the US conference of mayors found that domestic violence was the primary cause of homelessness among women” (Roberts, 2002, p.16). Since majority of the children who were victims of domestic violence forced to stay with their mothers, homelessness may affect them drastically. A child growing in a home and in a street or public shelter homes may develop differently. In other words, domestic violence often affects the personality developments of the children. “Children are affected by domestic violence in a variety of ways. Domestic violence in the household is often accompanied by other major developmental risk factors for children such as poverty, female-headed household, and low education level of primary care giver” (Domestic Violence and Children: Effects of Domestic Violence on Children, 2005). Poverty and improper education to children are other major outcomes of domestic violence. Because of the increasing life expenses, both the father and the mother of the current families are engaged in some kind of professional works mostly. Domestic violence will separate them and therefore the family may not get enough revenue for the expenditure of the family. Thus all the members of the family, especially the children will face the consequences like poverty and lack of education. Discussion Single parenthood may develop as a result of domestic violence and subsequent divorce like issues. Children need the love and care of both father and mother in order to develop properly. A father can never provide the same love and intimacy given by a mother and same way a mother can never cultivate the same security feeling cultivated by a father in the minds of the children. In other words, both father and mother play an important role in the emotional development of a child. Many of the children have the habit of imitating their parents as role models. The violent behavior seen among the parents may force the children to behave violently not only in the family, but also in the society as well. In other words, behavioral problems can develop among children who witness domestic violence frequently. As they grow up, children who are exposed to domestic violence continue to face a range of possible effects including trouble with school work, limited social skills, depression, anxiety and other psychological problems. They are at greater risk for substance abuse, teenage pregnancy and delinquent behavior, according to the report (Some of the biggest victims of domestic violence are the smallest, 2006). The indirect effect of domestic violence upon children seems to be more than that of the direct effect. Children growing in a disturbed family may show more interests in antisocial activities than the children growing in a normal family. They may develop a vengeance towards the society which caused domestic violence in his family. It is difficult for him to take revenge against his parents, but is easy for him to respond aggressively in the society. Majority of the school violence incidents, substance abuse problems and other antisocial activities develop among school children as a result of their troubled family history. In some cases, children may try to stay away from all of their normal activities like playing, joking, socializing etc because of domestic violence problems. Such children may not have the courage to release their depressed or suppressed energy in the form of aggressive behaviors. They will try to curse their destiny and may try to limit their activities as much as possible in order to avoid socializing. Lack of education and poverty, as a result of domestic violence may cause huge damages to the development of the children. In other words, children will be deprived of their natural right for getting proper food and education necessary for their proper development. Peace of mind is necessary for the children to concentrate more on their education. In the case of children, who face domestic violence in their families, peace of mind would only be a distant dream. They will always be worried about the consequences of domestic violence and may face problems in concentrating in their normal routine works. Conclusions Domestic violence may cause immense damages to family relationships. It can cause physical as well as psychological damages to the victim. In some cases, domestic violence may force the victim to seek divorce from the offender. In such cases children will suffer a lot. Divorce may force the children to stay either with their father or mother. In any case, they will face single parenthood as a result of domestic violence and subsequent divorces. Children need the love, care and protection of both; father and mother. A father can never be a substitute for a mother and vice versa. Even though domestic problem may occur mostly between husbands and wives, the major victims of such problems would be the children. Children during their developmental stages, try to imitate their parents because of their unawareness about good and evil. When they see violent or aggressive activities between their father and mother, they may develop a tendency either to respond aggressively in the society or to stay away from all the normal activities. In the first case they may become antisocial elements whereas in the second case, they may become depressive. In any case, children would be the major victims of domestic violence. Lack of education and poverty to children are other consequences of domestic violence. Children may not get proper environment for their development as a result of domestic violence. In short, domestic violence cannot be justified under any circumstances and it should be avoided or controlled as much as possible in order to provide better development possibilities to the future generation. References 1. Behind Closed Doors: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children (n. d). UNICEF. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/protection/files/BehindClosedDoors.pdf 2. Domestic Violence and Children: Effects of Domestic Violence on Children, (2005), Retrieved from http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/508291_3 3. Domestic Violence Information: The Process Of Healing (2011). Retrieved from http://www.essortment.com/domestic-violence-information-process-healing-16535.html [Accessed on 08 November 2011] 4. Domestic Violence: Definition. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.domesticviolence.org/definition/ 5. Groves B.M. (2003), Children Who See Too Much: Lessons from the Child Witness to Violence Project. Publisher: Beacon Press (January 20, 2003) 6. Edward S., Ph.D. Kubany, Mari A. McCaig, Janet R. Laconsay, Healing the Trauma of Domestic Violence: A Workbook for Women (New Harbinger Self-Help Workbook), Publisher: New Harbinger Publications; 1 edition (August 2004) 7. Martin T. (2007). Is there life after domestic violence? Retrieved from http://www.helium.com/items/240814-is-there-life-after-domestic-violence 8. Roberts Albert R., Handbook of Domestic Violence Intervention Strategies: Policies, Programs, and Legal Remedies, Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 1 edition March 28, 2002) 9. Some of the biggest victims of domestic violence are the smallest, (2006), UNICEF Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/media/media_35151.html Read More