Policy Issues Paper

Believe it or not exposure to violence affects children in many ways. Children are like sponges they absorb everything they see. Children who are exposed to violence in their homes become fearful, anxious, and never feel safe. They are always worried for themselves, their mother, and their siblings. They may even feel worthless and powerless. Many children will keep the abuse a secret and not tell anyone but as time progresses they will think that it’s their fault and that that’s why the violence is occurring. Children exposed to abuse can look normal to the

For children living in violent and unsafe homes, they are learning that hitting and verbally abusing someone is the proper way of communicating love. According to Holt, Buckley & Whelan (2008), “as they learn a generational cycle begins in which children grow up to be victims and abusers as adults.” The effects that domestic violence has on children are heartbreaking. Some of the major effects are; increased risk of poor health, poor education, isolation, learned helplessness and decreased satisfaction in such family environment.

Domestic violence effects everybody in a family. Patterns of abuse from one parent to another, between both parents or directed toward a child all have a composite effect of inflicting potentially severe emotional damage upon the child. The research outlined here identifies domestic violence as a serious sociological problem and consequently provides a usable definition of domestic violence for the present study. This is followed by a discussion on the various psychological consequences of exposure to domestic violence for a developing child. This includes acknowledgement of the manner in which this exposure may damage the ability to formulate healthy social relationships later in life as well as a greater proclivity toward behavior problems, learning difficulties, substance abuse and a learned pattern of violent tendencies.

Children who witness domestic violence in their home often experience a multitude of mental and emotional difficulties. Many studies have shown childhood violence is associated with depression, incarceration and committing domestic violence themselves Buckley et al. (2007) and Katz, Settler & Gurtovenko (2016). Scholars also found that children who are both witnesses and victims both have increased levels of aggression and behavior problems Sternberg, Lamb, Guterman & Abbott (2006). Not only are children prone to aggression and behavior problems, witnessing domestic violence makes children susceptible to post traumatic stress disorder. Meltzer et al. (2009) found children who have witnessed domestic violence to be fearful and show more anxiety and depression than other children who did not experience domestic violence.

The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between a child who witnesses abuse in his/her home and the child’s development, physically, emotionally, and socially. Young children exposed to abusive environments are at risk of higher levels of emotional stress, which can impair their physical and social development.

Domestic violence can lead to several long-lasting effects for both adults and children. While growing up, children’s brains are very susceptible to remembering and reenacting what they have previously seen. In the case of domestic violence, children can suffer from adverse childhood experiences, ACEs, which have long-lasting effects such as having trouble with school work, personality problems, social development issues, and more cognitive struggles (UNICEF, 2006, p. 4). As discussed by Karen Kenney in her book “Domestic Violence” Emotional trauma can lead to elevated levels of stress which can cause a variety of health problems. This trauma can also cause depression which can lead to thoughts of suicide and cause PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress

· There should be doubled the number of intelligence analysts and also tripled the amount of linguists within the entire agency.

Whenever we talk about the subject of domestic violence, the first concern that we have is on adults who have experienced it. However, little attention has been paid to children who were exposed to domestic violence. The tragic reality of a long term effects for who have experienced domestic violence is not only to adult but their children. The younger the children is the harder for them to understand violence and coping with it. Therefore, children who witness their parents being abused are more likely to growing up thinking hurting people is a way to protect themselves or that is okay to being hurt by other. According to a study, nearly “4.8 million acts of physical or sexual aggression are perpetrated against women while 2.9 million physically

Domestic violence also greatly impacts the family structure and the relationships between the members. Domestic violence threatens both the relationship between the child and their mother and the child and their father. Children who are exposed to domestic violence do not have an emotionally available parent to foster their development and have a 30-60% higher risk for being abused by the perpetrator (NCADV, 2007); when the father is the perpetrator of the violence, he often knows little about his children, their interests, and progress in school (Crosson-Tower, 2009, p. 84). The mother’s parenting style may also be damaged from domestic violence; the perpetrator may not allow the mother to take care of her children properly or soothe them when they are upset, which can cause the children to believe their mother does not care for them. When a mother is constantly traumatized by domestic violence, it can be more difficult for her to be present and attentive in her children’s lives due to depression, anxiety, and lack of sleep (Centre for children and families in the justice system, 2009). Domestic violence has an impact on the ability for a family to function. The perpetrator may sow divisions between the members of the family by turning them against each other, or favoring one child over the others. There may also be role reversals in families who experience domestic violence; parentification of the children and infantilizing of the mother may

Over 5 million children witness domestic violence across the U.S. each year. When a child/children are exposed to domestic violence; it affects their life aspects, such as learning, health, and social ability. Children who witness domestic violence often fault themselves and live in fear. Most children become dysfunctional and victims of child abuse. Domestic violence not only affects the victims of the crime but surrounding victims, also. Any child exposed to domestic violence can potentially commit domestic violence later on in life.

Each year about 15 million children tend to see violence in their home (Joyful Heart Foundation). When a child experiences domestic violence in their home it can cause them to have long term and short term effects. Long term effects can be when they get older they could have trust issues with others, could have a difficulty keeping a relationship, and or have an ongoing depression. Children that grew up with abuse they sometimes in their adulthood will be an abuser since they experienced at home of abuse. It’s hard to break a cycle of domestic violence because the parents has set an example that abusive actions are normal (Domestic Violence and Abuse: Types, Signs, Symptoms, Causes, and Effects).

Children are impacted the most in a household where domestic violence occurs. Fifty-four percent of families reported that domestic violence occurred in the child’s home (Bowen, 2000). That is over half of all children who experience some sort of physical or psychological abuse at some point in their lifetime. Children exposed to violence exhibit many more problems than children who do not witness violence at home, including anxiety; aggression; depression and temperament problems; less empathy and self-esteem; and lower verbal, cognitive, and motor abilities. Furthermore, the American Academy of Pediatrics reports that “children who witness domestic violence are likely to become sufferers of posttraumatic stress disorder” (Lundy, Grossman, 2005). They lack the confidence in themselves, because they are constantly told they are bad. Behavioral problems, particularly externalizing behavior, in children who witness marital violence and who are victims of abuse have been found to be worse than in children who are exposed to just one type of violence (Cox, Kotch, & Everson, 2003). Some children act up just so they can get attention from peers and elders. This is because the child does not receive the appropriate attention at home, possibly from being neglected by their parents.

Every year children most at risk of being exposed to violence in the home is estimated to be between 3.3 million and 10 million in the United States alone (Bourassa, 2007). With increasing frequency, more research is being carried out regarding the impact merely witnessing domestic abuse has on a child (Edleson, 2011). In 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in conjunction with the office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, conducted a comprehensive nationwide survey to ascertain the incidence and prevalence of children’s exposure to violence (Hamby, Finkelhor, Turner, & Ormrod, 2011). This survey is known as the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence or NatSVEC (2011). The information gathered contains the most comprehensive and detailed data collected thus far on the subject (2011). The results have proved equally alarming as the statistics regarding the act of domestic violence itself. It showed, unequivocally, that children are exposed to unacceptable rates of violence in the home. These incidents of violence include, but are not limited to, the ‘willful intimidation, assault, battery sexual assault or other abusive behavior perpetrated by one family member, household member, or intimate partner against another’ (The National Center for Victims of Crime). Over 4500 children and adolescents were interviewed telephonically. Their ages ranged from 17 and younger (Hamby, et al, 2011). They found that, more than

In the United States, it is estimated over 30 million people living in America over the age of 18 have witness or experience some form domestic violence as a child. Government data research on domestic violence exposure to children, indicate four to five million children are living with domestic violence and/ or experiencing some form of child abuse within their homes per year. A high risk of heavy exposure to domestic violence for children are between the ages of three and eighteen. Over 80 percent of these children are living with their mother or a female caregiver, who is being abused by an inmate partner (s). Two-thirds of these families, the mother and child are being battered. Slightly over half of these children, who are exposed to domestic

Throughout the course of one’s lifetime, there are countless events that shape the personality, actions and mentality of that individual. Some of these events will affect the individual in a positive way allowing great life opportunities, while other events will unfortunately affect the individual in a negative way which can lead to disorders. Among the various events that can affect a person, one of the most common occurrences that some children witness early on in their lives that deeply affect their long-term mental health is being a witness to domestic violence. Research and observations that were studied revealed that there are multiple factors that can contribute to a child witnessing domestic violence. The more categories that the