NCJ Number
183325
Journal
Future of Children Volume: 9 Issue: 3 Dated: Winter 1999 Pages: 122-132
Date Published
1999
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This review of mental health literature relating to children’s exposure to adult domestic violence focuses on the effects on children of witnessing domestic violence, issues relating to the identification and assessment of such children, goals and models of service delivery, intervention and treatment approaches, and related issues.
Abstract
Results reveal that exposure to domestic violence has significant negative repercussions for children’s social, emotional, and academic functioning. Mental health professionals have developed treatment programs and approaches aimed at reducing these negative effects. However, the difficulty of identifying and gaining access to the target population often hampers their efforts. Group and individual therapy approaches for these children share several goals. These goals include promoting open discussion abut children’s experiences with adult domestic assault, helping children deal with their emotions and consequences, reducing problematic symptoms, strengthening children’s relationships with their nonabusive caregivers, and helping children and families create and maintain nonviolent relationships and living situations. Future needs include the development of controlled outcome studies demonstrating the effects of these programs. Other challenges that confront clinicians include working with children’s families, addressing children’s complex and intense emotional experiences, determining whether children have themselves been victims of abuse or neglect, and interfacing with child protective services as needed. Photographs and 32 references (Author abstract modified)