Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

Psychological Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

Abstract

The cases of violence against women and children are pretty worrying. While women will carry physical dents, children have psychological dents that cannot be seen. The hidden impacts of domestic violence will have far-reaching effects on the child’s life. Some of the children will grow up to be perpetrators or receivers of domestic violence. Growing up experiencing and seeing one of your caregivers undergoing violence alters the mind and thought patterns of the child. The child grows up thinking that is the best way to show or receive love. Therefore, they will act it out through bullying of other children and their love partners. There is a need to break this cycle and ensure children receive the assistance they need to overcome the negative emotions they experience. Teachers and other adults who interact with the child should be trained to spot the sign of domestic violence. With early intervention, we can assist the child in learning how to cope and understand how to deal with the violence they experience at home. In extreme cases, the child could be removed from the house.

Psychological Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

According to Afdal, Syawitri, and Fikri (2019) the psychological impact of domestic violence on children is far severe than the physical impact. The psychological impact will include fear, anxiety, post-traumatic disorder, fatigue, eating, and sleeping disorders (Afdal et al., 2019). These will result in the child struggling with daily activities. While the child is not harmed physically, the unseen impact of domestic violence is far worse than the physical abuse a child might suffer. Domestic violence cases are on the rise, and if caution is not taken, we will have a generation of children who grow to adulthood with the same psychological effects they suffered as children, making it hard for them to function properly in life. Domestic violence has been linked to internalizing and externalizing impacts on children. The effects of domestic violence will follow the child to adulthood, and they will also continue with the same behavior as observed or experienced by the parents. Youths affected by domestic violence demonstrate bullying and dating violence either as perpetrators or victims. Therefore, it is vital to stop this sequence or continuation of violence. Despite the increased need for a solution focused on the child, providers struggle since they have systemic limitations. Exposure of children to adverse events will lead to long-term physical and mental health problems. Domestic violence is an adverse event to children because it creates hardships that they cannot process in their minds. It is well known how an adverse event will negatively impact the life of a child.

Exposing a child to domestic violence is child maltreatment that has long-term behavioral and mental health impacts (Turner et al., 2017). Therefore, understanding domestic violence from the children’s perspective allows professionals to tailor their services to meet the needs of the children. With assumed conditions, children’s services might be failing since they are not focused on what the child experiences. Children can offer accounts of how they cope with the domestic violence they experience at home (Arai et al., 2021). Using these experiences, professionals can understand children’s coping mechanisms and tailor services to overcome these coping mechanisms. Children exposed to domestic violence have a higher risk of behavioral and mental health problems (Berg et al., 2020). The best indicator of exposure to domestic violence among children is animal cruelty. The child might be experienced in hiding their emotional issues, but there are strategies to uncover those who demonstrate truancy and those suffering psychologically. Using these cues, adults around the child can initiate further talk with the child and assist them in receiving mental health care from a professional (Berg et al., 2020).

In most cases, children will commit acts of cruelty towards animals based on what they have observed from adults around them (Bright, Huq, Spencer, Applebaum, & Hardt, 2018). Children need support, and if there could be a way to quickly identify those who need more help due to psychological issues stemming from experiencing domestic violence, we could be saving future generations (Lloyd, 2018). Surprisingly, domestic violence is a significant issue that has detrimental effects on the health and well-being of children. Children have always been ignored, and it is only recently that they are being included in research on domestic violence. Understanding the impact of domestic violence on children is beneficial to society and family (Porche, Costello, & Rosen-Reynoso, 2016). There is a need to get insights into children’s understanding of domestic violence. The majority of studies have focused on the impact of domestic violence on the child. However, there is no information on the children’s views, which can ensure we have a child-centered understanding of their experiences of domestic violence.

Literature Review

Children’s perspectives on domestic violence and the behavioral impact of domestic violence on children are reviewed in the literature review because they have tremendous impact on a child’s mental and behavioral health. Children who experience domestic violence develop different strategies for coping and overcoming the negative emotions they experience. Therefore, we must understand how they cope and the child’s perspective on domestic violence to develop solutions targeted at children. The literature review will uncover children’s views and their coping strategies to build solutions for assisting children in managing their mental and behavioral health.

Children’s Perspective on Domestic Violence

There are numerous research studies conducted on the impact of domestic violence on children. Most of these studies fail to focus on children’s needs and only focus on adults’ perceptions. Children are seen as perceived recipients of domestic violence, and they do undergo potentially traumatic experiences (Arai et al., 2021). However, without receiving any direct input from the children, the studies have only reported what adults and professionals perceive is happening to children. Developing strategies and solutions aimed at children without understanding how children perceive domestic violence results in failure to have the right impact on the targeted population. It is vital to know how children explain domestic violence and how they feel after experiencing domestic violence. Children’s views give a better perspective on the impact of domestic violence on children, and solutions can directly target the adverse effects (Arai et al., 2021). Seeking a professional perspective is also vital, but the professional view should be guided on what children state.

The domestic violence experiences described by children are vivid and detailed. Children feel they are the cause of the violence because they assume they have angered the abusive parent (Noble?Carr, Moore, & McArthur, 2020). There are cases of children reporting they have been victims of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse. With their tender minds and understanding, it took children time to gradually understand what was happening at home and make sense of the events (Noble?Carr et al., 2020). Some children describe domestic violence as fights or arguments, while others struggle to talk about the violence. The failure or struggle to talk about the violence by children demonstrates the physiological toll it has taken on the child and how difficult it is for the child to make sense of the violent events (Lloyd, 2018). In some cases, the child could still be feeling threatened and assume that talking about the domestic violence could result in them being beaten by the parent.

Children do not portray physical health impacts, but they do have psychological health impacts of domestic violence. These psychological health-related effects come to the fore when the child is asked to reflect on their experiences with domestic violence (Noble?Carr et al., 2020). In most cases, the therapist notices how disturbing it is for the child to recall those events and express how they feel when they remember the domestic violence events. The child demonstrates pain, loss, and a desire for normality in their life. Children have expressed having feelings of anxiety, fear, and emotional distress during and after domestic violence. Arai et al. (2021) posit that children are forced to watch as one of their parents is physically abused, and they cannot do anything to help. The effect is that they develop fear towards the abusive parent and try to avoid interacting with the parent. Fear was found to be the most common feeling expressed and experienced by children. Children were fearful of what might happen in the future to their mothers and their siblings (Noble?Carr et al., 2020). There are cases of sleep deprivation reported by some children due to the fear the child felt at home. Children have said they only slept at school since they felt safer there than they would at home.

Children will struggle to make sense of what is happening, and they will not manage to develop a relationship with their parents (Afdal et al., 2019). Mothers are the most abused parents in a home, and children find it challenging to build a relationship with their mothers. Even after trying, children have expressed how hard it becomes for them to receive the love they received from their mother after the abuse. Surprisingly, children have stated they still love their abusive parents. Fathers are the most abusers in a home, and children still excuse their father’s behavior. Therefore, understanding these complex relationships is vital because we can uncover insights that have been ignored before.

Behavioral Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

To escape the mental torture they suffer, most children who experience domestic violence will entertain suicidal thoughts. These thoughts can be overwhelming for young children, and they might try to actualize their ideas eventually. Children will struggle in school since their behaviors and emotions are unregulated (Afdal et al., 2019). Due to the constant internal mental struggle, children cannot cope with their overwhelming emotions, resulting in them entertaining suicidal thoughts. Children do not know how to express what is happening at home to others, making it hard to receive the necessary support. Without assistance, the children struggle to understand and make sense of the violence and how to process the violence. Terminating their life seems like a better option since they will no longer suffer mentally and emotionally. The struggle could be demonstrated differently by the child, and only adults with knowledge can decipher the expression and behaviors of the child (Lloyd, 2018). Victims of domestic violence will have emotional scars that come to the fore through negative behaviors and lack of concentration in class.

Some children will start keeping to themselves and withdrawing from interactions with other children. Others will replicate the violence they experience at home through bullying or beating up other children. These are the coping strategies employed by children that could be seen by adults who interact with the children often. However, the adults face a considerable challenge: how can they tell a child is behaving in a certain way because of domestic violence, or it is based on something else. Many educators have stated they prefer to keep away from indulging in some activities, one of them being a counselor to a child. Therefore, while the educators will notice a change in behavior in a child, they will not talk to the child to try and understand what is happening in the child’s life. The reasons given by the educators are understandable since they do not have the experience and education on how to handle cases of mental health. However, with a brief talk with a child, an educator can recommend a child to the school guidance and counseling officer or further assistance.

As the children grow to teenagehood and start having intimate relationships, they will either become violence perpetrators or recipients of violence in the relationship. Growing up experiencing domestic violence alters part of a child’s mental abilities, and they will learn from an early age that is how relationships work since no one told them differently. Experience is said to be the best teacher, and it holds for domestic violence. Youths who grew up in violent homes tend to also be violent in their relationships (Berg et al., 2020). Bullying other students and also beating their intimate partners is the norm for these children. They internalized the domestic violence, and they assumed that is the best way to show your partner love. Even though they might feel it is wrong, they do not understand how to show their partner love. If the child were closely monitored when growing up, one would have seen the child torture or beat a doll when playing. The violent behavior becomes ingrained in the child as they continue to practice and deal with the overwhelming emotions they experience due to domestic violence (Berg et al., 2020).

Stopping or preventing the behaviors early is vital for the community and the child. What should be understood is that any form of violence by a child should be taken with all seriousness, and no assumption should be made that the child is merely playing. Trauma-informed care has the potential to assist a child who experiences domestic violence to overcome negative emotions. Screening for traumatic exposures allows early intervention since at-risk children are identified early, and support is offered early.

Children exposed to adversity have poor educational outcomes. Children’s behavioral responses to trauma exposure are mistaken as avoidance, disinterest, or rejection of academics. The concentration levels of children who have undergone adverse events are low, and the mental struggle they are experiencing denies them a chance to concentrate on their studies. The mental issues they struggle with hinder the child’s concentration since they cannot stop thinking and imagining what they experienced. Even when the child has a perfect attendance score, their mind wanders when they are in class, or some of them struggle to stay awake since they might have had a sleepless night at home. Cases of increased absence in school increase the chances of a child dropping out of school. The mental health of a child determines their performance in school. When a child has a psychological issue like dealing with domestic violence, they will have poor outcomes in school. Without a proper background, most educators will assume the child is disinterested in school, and they will not put in much effort to assist the child. However, there is a need for change in how cases of poor school outcomes are handled. Educators should be curious to determine why the children’s performance drops or why a child fails to come to school.

According to Bright et al. (2018) animal cruelty by children could be the best sign of domestic violence experience. Children love animals, and when an adult observes a child being cruel to an animal, they should report the child to a mental health professional. Cruelty to animals is a behavioral coping strategy employed by children who experience domestic violence. The children are acting out what they see at home. An animal is a powerless creature as they perceive their abused parent. Therefore, the children are lashing out by violently attacking the defenseless animal. Animal cruelty involves intentional and unintentional acts of neglect, abuse, and torture of animals (Bright et al., 2018). In most cases, cruelty towards animals is the child’s attempt to imitate what they observe at home. If animal abuse is not addressed early, the chance of the child becoming a violent offender increases.

The best way for the adults surrounding children to tell there is an issue a child is experiencing is by noting behavioral changes. Most children who experience domestic violence become withdrawn, anxious, and fearful of adults. If a child is social and often enjoys interacting with others, they change their behavior and become withdrawn. It could be a sign of domestic violence (Lloyd, 2018). Therefore, the adults surrounding the child should find out why their behavior has changed by asking the child how they feel and why their behavior has changed (Turner et al., 2017). These strategies are vital for both educators and professionals who interact with the child. Healthcare professionals have the same problem of not knowing how to handle suspected domestic violence exposure on children (Porche et al., 2016). In many instances, while a health care professional will notice or suspect the child is experiencing domestic violence, they will not report or inform their colleagues (Turner et al., 2017). The failure to take action is never personal due to a lack of proper guidelines on how such a case can be handled. When dealing with physical signs, it is easy to report. However, psychological issues are complex, and they could be based on assumptions made by the professional, making it hard for them to take action (Porche et al., 2016). The overall guiding principle should be you would instead report and be wrong than fail to report and be right. The child is a victim, and if those around the child cannot offer support, the child is forced to develop their coping strategies, which are often negative and lead to further deterioration of behavior (Turner et al., 2017). Health care professionals have reported they lack the information necessary on how to respond to domestic violence. The best practices for their profession are unclear when it comes to children’s exposure to domestic violence. On the other hand, educators have indicated they prefer to steer clear of mental health issues since they have a lot on their plates, and adding counseling will result in their failure to educate the other children.