Children Exposed to Interparental Violence: Does Parenting Contribute to Functioning Over Time?

• NCJ Number: 210245
• Journal: Journal of Emotional Abuse Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 1-28
• Author(s): Jacqueline G. Rea; B. B. Robbie Rossman
• Date Published: 2005
• Length: 28 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This longitudinal study of children exposed to interparental aggression (IPA) and violence examined whether maternal parenting style contributed to children's functioning over the course of 1 year.

Abstract

A total of 191 children ages 7-12 and their mothers were placed in 4 exposure groups at Time 1:61 nonabused children who had been exposed to IPA and were living in shelters; 36 abused children who had been exposed to IPA and were living in shelters; 35 nonabused children living in the community who had been exposed to IPA; and 59 nonabused children from the community who had not been exposed to IPA. Mothers and children participated in three interviews at approximately 5- to 6-month intervals. Mothers and children were interviewed separately. The interviews used instruments that measured demographics and life adversity, interparental aggression, parenting styles, and child adjustment. The analyses found that battered mothers endorsed higher levels of "permissive" parenting than did nonbattered mothers. Contrary to study hypotheses, shelter mothers endorsed greater "authoritative" parenting than did battered community mothers; and battered community mothers showed a trend toward greater "authoritarian" parenting. Whereas "authoritarian" parents emphasize obedience and tight control in parenting, "authoritative" parents have rules for their children's behavior, but emphasize using reasoning with children rather than enforced obedience. After controlling for critical factors, parenting style explained significant differences in child functioning at Time 3. Specifically, maternal use of "verbal hostility" apparently exacerbated internalizing and externalizing problems over time, and maternal permissiveness contributed to poorer school performance. Authoritative parenting apparently promoted child adjustment in the face of domestic violence and life adversity. Battered mothers tended to be more inconsistent in their parenting styles than nonbattered mothers and showed more parenting-related stress than nonbattered mothers. Results have implications for parenting interventions designed for battered women and their children. 5 tables and 48 references