NCJ Number
223667
Journal
Journal of Emotional Abuse Volume: 8 Issue: 1/2 Dated: 2008 Pages: 67-82
Date Published
2008
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article presents data/information on 507 families, including 1,012 children, who called 911 in Minneapolis, MN, because of an incident of violence between intimate partners (IPV), with attention to patterns in children's exposure to IPV incidents.
Abstract
Most children living in the home were direct witnesses to the violent incident. Older children were more likely to be exposed to and become involved in the violent incident, including calling 911. Older children were also more likely to be exposed to IPV incidents that involved the use or threat of weapons. Apparently, as both boys and girls mature, they are increasingly motivated to help the parent/caregiver who is the victim of IPV. This increases the risk of both physical and emotional abuse against the child by the perpetrator of IPV. This indicates that safety planning for children should be a key feature of IPV intervention programs. Future research should examine the details of children's physical involvement in IPV incidents, for example, by categorizing whether the involvement was escape/help-oriented or defensive/aggressive. Research should also focus on the development of more complex models that predict children's functioning immediately after violent events in relation to their role in the most recent event and any prior IPV incidents that may be related to their posttrauma needs and functioning. Study data were obtained from records of the Minneapolis Child Development Policing Program, which is a multidisciplinary, community-university partnership that provides clinical and advocacy services to children and families following their exposure to violence. Data included the age of children in the home, race, and gender; relationship of the child to the victim and perpetrator; relationship between victim and perpetrator; number of children in the family; and details of the incident and of the child's proximity to the violent event. 1 table, 4 notes, and 41 references