Psychological Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

Introduction

According to Afdal, Syawitri, and Fikri (2019), the psychological impact of domestic violence on children is far more severe than the physical impact. The psychological impact includes fear, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, fatigue, and eating and sleeping disorders (Afdal et al., 2019). These effects cause the child to struggle with daily activities. While the child may not be harmed physically, the unseen impact of domestic violence is often far worse than the physical abuse a child might suffer. Domestic violence cases are on the rise, and if caution is not taken, a generation of children will grow into adulthood carrying the same psychological burdens they suffered in childhood, making it difficult for them to function properly in life.

Domestic violence has been linked to both internalizing and externalizing impacts on children. Its effects follow the child into adulthood, and affected individuals often replicate the behaviors they observed or experienced at the hands of their parents. Youths affected by domestic violence demonstrate bullying and dating violence, either as perpetrators or as victims. It is therefore vital to interrupt this cycle of violence. Despite the increased need for child-focused solutions, service providers struggle due to systemic limitations. Exposure to adverse events leads to long-term physical and mental health problems, and domestic violence is a particularly harmful adverse event because it creates hardships children cannot process on their own.

Exposing a child to domestic violence constitutes child maltreatment with long-term behavioral and mental health consequences (Turner et al., 2017). Understanding domestic violence from the children's perspective allows professionals to tailor their services to meet children's actual needs. Without this perspective, children's services may fail because they are not designed around what the child experiences. Children can offer firsthand accounts of how they cope with domestic violence at home (Arai et al., 2021), and using these accounts, professionals can better understand children's coping mechanisms and develop more targeted support. Children exposed to domestic violence face a higher risk of behavioral and mental health problems (Berg et al., 2020). One notable behavioral indicator of such exposure is animal cruelty. Although a child may have become skilled at hiding emotional distress, adults can look for additional cues — such as truancy — to identify those who are suffering psychologically and initiate conversations that connect them with professional mental health care (Berg et al., 2020).

In most cases, children who commit acts of cruelty toward animals are imitating behaviors they have observed from adults around them (Bright, Huq, Spencer, Applebaum, & Hardt, 2018). If effective methods existed for quickly identifying children who need additional support due to the psychological effects of witnessing domestic violence, entire future generations could be better protected (Lloyd, 2018). Domestic violence is a significant public health issue with detrimental effects on children's health and well-being. Only recently have children begun to be included in research on domestic violence. Understanding the impact of domestic violence on children benefits both society and the family (Porche, Costello, & Rosen-Reynoso, 2016). Most existing studies have focused on the impact of domestic violence on children from an adult perspective; comparatively little research captures children's own views, which are essential for building a child-centered understanding of their experiences.

Children's Perspective on Domestic Violence

Numerous studies have been conducted on the impact of domestic violence on children. Most of these studies, however, fail to focus on children's needs and instead rely on adults' perceptions. Children are understood as recipients of domestic violence who undergo potentially traumatic experiences (Arai et al., 2021). Yet, without direct input from children themselves, studies have reported only what adults and professionals perceive to be happening. Developing strategies and solutions aimed at children without understanding how children themselves perceive domestic violence leads to interventions that fail to reach the intended population. It is essential to understand how children explain domestic violence and how they feel after experiencing it. Children's own accounts provide a more accurate picture of the impact of domestic violence, and solutions can then be designed to address the specific adverse effects children identify (Arai et al., 2021). A professional perspective remains valuable, but it should be grounded in what children actually report.

The domestic violence experiences described by children are vivid and detailed. Children often feel they are the cause of the violence, assuming they have somehow angered the abusive parent (Noble-Carr, Moore, & McArthur, 2020). Some children report having been victims of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse. With their developing minds, it takes children considerable time to gradually understand and make sense of the violent events occurring at home (Noble-Carr et al., 2020). Some children describe domestic violence as "fights" or "arguments," while others struggle to speak about the violence at all. The difficulty children have in talking about violence reflects the psychological toll it has taken and how hard it is for them to process those events (Lloyd, 2018). In some cases, the child may still feel threatened and fear that speaking about the domestic violence will result in further punishment.

Children often do not present visible physical health impacts, but they do experience significant psychological effects. These psychological effects emerge most clearly when a child is asked to reflect on their experiences (Noble-Carr et al., 2020). Therapists frequently observe how distressing it is for children to recall violent events and articulate their feelings. Children commonly express pain, loss, and a longing for normality. They report feelings of anxiety, fear, and emotional distress both during and after incidents of domestic violence. Arai et al. (2021) note that children are often forced to watch as one parent is physically abused, powerless to intervene. The result is that they develop fear toward the abusive parent and avoid interacting with them. Fear was identified as the most common emotion experienced by children in these situations. Children expressed fear about what might happen in the future to their mothers and siblings (Noble-Carr et al., 2020). Sleep deprivation has also been reported by some children, who stated they only felt safe enough to sleep at school.

Children struggle to make sense of what is happening at home, and this confusion interferes with their ability to form healthy relationships with their parents (Afdal et al., 2019). Mothers are the most frequently abused parent, and children find it difficult to rebuild a secure relationship with their mother after witnessing her abuse. Despite this, children have expressed that they still love their abusive parents. Fathers are most commonly identified as the abusers, yet children still find ways to excuse their father's behavior. Understanding these complex emotional relationships is important, as it can reveal insights into children's inner lives that have previously been overlooked by researchers and practitioners.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Children's perspectives on domestic violence and the behavioral impact of domestic violence on children are critical to understanding their mental and behavioral health. Children who experience domestic violence develop varied strategies for coping with and overcoming the negative emotions they experience. It is essential to understand both how children cope and how they perceive domestic violence in order to develop solutions that genuinely meet their needs. The literature highlights children's views and their coping strategies as the foundation for building effective support systems.

Breaking the cycle of domestic violence requires early identification and targeted intervention. Teachers and other adults who interact regularly with children should receive training to recognize the signs of domestic violence exposure. Trauma-informed care and routine screening for adverse childhood experiences can facilitate early intervention and prevent long-term harm. In extreme cases, removing the child from a dangerous home environment may be necessary. With coordinated support from educators, healthcare professionals, and mental health providers — guided by children's own accounts of their experiences — it is possible to help affected children build healthier emotional frameworks and interrupt the intergenerational transmission of violence.

References

Afdal, A., Syawitri, M., & Fikri, M. (2019). Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) in reducing psychological impacts on children victims of domestic violence. Jurnal EDUCATIO: Jurnal Pendidikan Indonesia, 5(2), 109–114.

Arai, L., Shaw, A., Feder, G., Howarth, E., MacMillan, H., Moore, T. H., . . . Gregory, A. (2021). Hope, agency, and the lived experience of violence: A qualitative systematic review of children's perspectives on domestic violence and abuse. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 22(3), 427–438.

Berg, K. A., Bender, A. E., Evans, K. E., Holmes, M. R., Davis, A. P., Scaggs, A. L., & King, J. A. (2020). Service needs of children exposed to domestic violence: Qualitative findings from a statewide survey of domestic violence agencies. Children and Youth Services Review, 118, 105414.

Bright, M. A., Huq, M. S., Spencer, T., Applebaum, J. W., & Hardt, N. (2018). Animal cruelty as an indicator of family trauma: Using adverse childhood experiences to look beyond child abuse and domestic violence. Child Abuse & Neglect, 76, 287–296.

Lloyd, M. (2018). Domestic violence and education: Examining the impact of domestic violence on young children, children, and young people and the potential role of schools. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2094.

Noble-Carr, D., Moore, T., & McArthur, M. (2020). Children's experiences and needs in relation to domestic and family violence: Findings from a meta-synthesis. Child & Family Social Work, 25(1), 182–191.

Porche, M. V., Costello, D. M., & Rosen-Reynoso, M. (2016). Adverse family experiences, child mental health, and educational outcomes for a national sample of students. School Mental Health, 8(1), 44–60.

Turner, W., Hester, M., Broad, J., Szilassy, E., Feder, G., Drinkwater, J., . . . Stanley, N. (2017). Interventions to improve the response of professionals to children exposed to domestic violence and abuse: A systematic review. Child Abuse Review, 26(1), 19–39.