Honors Theses
Date of Award
Spring 4-24-2024
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Social Work
First Advisor
Saijun Zhang
Second Advisor
Patricia Digby
Third Advisor
Laura Drislane
Relational Format
Thesis
Abstract
Domestic violence (DV), also known as Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), is a widespread issue that affects many people, families, and communities, with one in four women and one in nine men falling victim to domestic violence each year in the United States. However, these statistics only consider what has actually been reported. More than 44% of domestic violence cases go unreported each year. It can be inferred that a drastic number of children are also affected. Children who witness domestic violence are indirect victims of DV, as they experience psychological and emotional turmoil simply by witnessing the abuse. However, there are limited studies investigating the impact of DV on children, especially from the perspectives of child welfare related professionals.
This study aims to specifically investigate how witnessing domestic violence affects child well-being and their development through the perspectives of child welfare related professionals. The study’s interview participants were all female social service workers and juvenile system professionals. Through a series of open-ended and closed-ended questions, the study explores how child welfare related workers view the impact of DV on children, current service status for these children, as well as additional resources needed to strengthen the support.
The results show that children witnessing DV face significant challenges in areas such as mental health and relationship-building. The quantitative data highlights DV’s impacts on these children’s mental health, suicidal ideations, delinquent behaviors, difficulty forming healthy relationships, and other behavioral issues. Concerning mental health, participants noted that children often experience depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other psychological issues as a result of witnessing DV, even though they are not professionally diagnosed with these conditions.
In addition to affirming findings from the quantitative data, the qualitative data shows the need for trauma-informed therapy and increased therapy resources for children who witness DV. Although these resources are typically available, there are not many therapists who specialize in offering services to these children. Furthermore, many children who witness DV will fall through the cracks and not have access to these resources because the DV that he or she has witnessed has gone unreported. There is also a severe lack of resources in lower-income communities, which hinders children from accessing proper care for their trauma, such as trauma-informed therapy, behavioral therapy, and other psychiatric help (i.e. mental health disorder diagnoses).
Recommended Citation
Cleckler, Victoria, "How Witnessing Domestic Violence Affects the Future of Children: An Exploratory Study" (2024). Honors Theses. 3110.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/3110