Citation

Ornduff SR, Monahan K. Child Youth Care Forum 1999; 28(5): 351-364.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This paper describes domestic violence from the perspective of 56 preschool and school-age children during their temporary residence at a shelter for battered women. Data were extracted from transcripts of individual counseling sessions that explored the childrens' feelings about the abuse and the abuser, their strategies for coping with aggression and conflict in their families, and their understanding and feelings about their need for shelter placement. Content analysis of session data revealed that the children viewed the violence as unambiguously negative, although ambivalence about the abuser was sometimes expressed. Coping strategies varied and tended to be focused on emotional disengagement. Most children were able to articulate causal links between episodes of parental violence and need for shelter placement. Feelings about the shelter were generally positive and centered around themes of personal safety and comfort. Family reunion was frequently expressed as a desired outcome. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed. (Abstract Adapted from Source: Child and Youth Care Forum, 1999. Copyright © 1999 by Springer)

Child Witness
Child Perceptions
Early Childhood
Middle Childhood
Late Childhood
Interparental Violence
Domestic Violence Perceptions
Domestic Violence Effects
Spouse Abuse Effects
Spouse Abuse Perceptions
Witnessing Violence Effects
Witnessing Spouse Abuse
Children of Battered Women
Partner Violence
Violence Against Women
Coping Skills
Domestic Violence Shelter
Witness Adjustment
Witness Perceptions
Child Adjustment
Emotional Adjustment
Psychological Victimization Effects
02-04