Top

Published in:

01-07-2010 | Original Article

“I Didn’t Want To Put Them Through That”: The Influence Of Children on Victim Decision-making in Intimate Partner Violence Cases

Authors: Karin V. Rhodes, Catherine Cerulli, Melissa E. Dichter, Catherine L. Kothari, Frances K. Barg

Published in: Journal of Family Violence | Issue 5/2010

Abstract

For mothers, intimate partner violence (IPV) presents a concern not only for their own well-being but also for that of their children who are exposed to the violence and its aftermath. In focus groups with adult women (N = 39) across three jurisdictions who had experienced legal system intervention for IPV victimization, mothers raised unsolicited concerns about the negative effects of IPV exposure on their children. These comments were not prompted by the facilitator but were raised by women in all seven of the focus groups during discussions about motivations and barriers to participation in prosecution of their abusive partners. The overall message was that victims with children felt very conflicted. Children both facilitate and inhibit leaving the abusive relationship. Mothers wanted to spare their children from harmful effects of violence but also wanted to keep their families together and protect their children from potential agitation and instability caused by legal system involvement. Participants described how fears and threats of involvement from child protective services inhibited help-seeking while simultaneously voicing a desire for services that would help their children. More research is needed to help service providers understand the quagmire mothers who are victims of IPV encounter regarding their children’s wellbeing.

American Medical Association. (1995). Diagnostic and treatment guidelines on the mental health effects of family violence. Chicago: Author.

American Psychological Association. (1996). Violence and the family: Report of the American psychological association presidential task force on violence and the family. Washington, DC: Author.

Appel, A. E., & Holden, G. W. (1998). The co-occurrence of spouse and physical child abuse: a review and appraisal. Journal of Family Psychology, 12, 578–599.CrossRef

Bryant, A., & Charmaz, K. (2007). Introduction: Grounded theory research: methods and practices. In A. Bryant & K. Charmaz (Eds.), The sage handbook of grounded theory. Los Angeles: Sage.

Carlson, B. E. (2000). Children exposed to intimate partner violence: research findings and implications for intervention. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 1, 321–342.CrossRef

Carter, L. S., Weithorn, L. A., & Behrman, R. E. (1999). Domestic violence and children: Analysis and recommendations. The Future of Children: Domestic Violence and Children, 9.

Cerulli, C. (2007). The evolving legal landscape protecting children exposed to domestic violence: A review of 50 states. Paper presented at the National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges’ 70th Annual Conference. San Francisco, California, July 24, 2007.

Cerulli, C., Marinucci, K., & Reixach, K. (2003). Safe start technical assistance phase II report. Getzville: SUNY at Buffalo School of Law Family Violence Clinic.

Edelson, J. L. (1999). The overlap between child maltreatment and woman battering. Violence Against Women, 5, 134–154.CrossRef

Edelson, J. L., Grassman, J., & Hill, M. B. (2006). Defining child exposure to domestic violence as neglect: Minnesota’s difficult experience. Social Work, 15, 167–174.

Fantuzzo, J., & Fusco, R. (2007). A population-based study of children’s direct sensory exposure to types of substantiated domestic violence crimes. Violence and Victims, 22, 158–171.CrossRefPubMed

Fantuzzo, J. W., & Mohr, W. K. (1999). Prevalence and effects of child exposure to domestic violence. The Future of Children, 9, 21–32.CrossRefPubMed

Gjelsvik, A., Verhoek-Oftendahl, W., & Pearlman, D. N. (2003). Domestic violence with children witnesses: findings from Rhode Island surveillance data. Women’s Health Issues, 13, 68–72.CrossRefPubMed

Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.

Grayson, J. (2001). The state of child neglect. In T. D. Morton & B. Salovitz (Eds.), The CPS response to child neglect: An administrator’s guide to theory, policy, program design and case practice. Duluth: National Resource Center on Child Maltreatment.

Jaffe, P. G., Wolfe, D. A., & Wilson, S. K. (1990). Children of battered women. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

Jaffe, P., Crooks, C. V., & Wolfe, D. A. (2003). Legal and policy responses to children exposed to domestic violence: the need to evaluate intended and unintended consequences. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6, 188–198.CrossRef

Kernic, M. A., Wolf, M. E., & Holt, V. L. (2003). Behavioral problems among children whose mothers are abused by an intimate partner. Child Abuse and Neglect, 27, 1231–1246.CrossRefPubMed

Magden, R. H. (1999). In the best interests of battered women: reconceptualizing allegations of failure to protect. Child Maltreatment, 4, 127–135.CrossRef

Margolin, G., & Gordis, E. B. (2000). The effects of family and community violence on children. Annual Review of Psychology, 51, 445–479.CrossRefPubMed

McDonald, R., Jouriles, E. N., Ramisetty-Mikler, S., & Caetano, R. (2006). Estimating the number of American children living in partner-violent families. Journal of Family Psychology, 20, 137–142.CrossRefPubMed

Osofsky, J. (1995). The effects of violence exposure on young children. American Psychologist, 50, 782–788.CrossRefPubMed

Riger, S., Raja, S., & Camacho, J. (2002). The radiating impact of intimate partner violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17, 184–205.CrossRef

Somer, E., & Braunstein, A. (1999). Are children exposed to interpersonal violence being psychologically maltreated? Aggression and Violent Behavior, 4, 449–456.CrossRef

Stark, E. (2002). The battered mother in the child protective service caseload: developing and appropriate response. Women’s Rights Law Reporter, 23.

Straus, M. A., & Gelles, R. J. (1990). Physical violence in American families. New Brunswick: Transaction.

Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. (1998). Prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women: Findings from the national violence against women survey. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. (2000). The role of stalking in domestic violence crime reports generated by the Colorado springs police department. Victims & Victims, 15, 427–441.

Wolfe, D. A., Jaffe, P., Wilson, S. K., & Zak, L. (1985). Children of battered women: the relation of child behavior to family violence and maternal stress. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 53, 657–665.CrossRefPubMed

Wolfe, D., Crooks, C. V., Lee, V., McIntyre-Smith, A., & Jaffe, P. G. (2003). The effects of children’s exposure to domestic violence: a meta-analysis and critique. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6, 171–187.CrossRefPubMed

Title: “I Didn’t Want To Put Them Through That”: The Influence Of Children on Victim Decision-making in Intimate Partner Violence Cases
Authors: Karin V. Rhodes
Catherine Cerulli
Melissa E. Dichter
Catherine L. Kothari
Frances K. Barg
Publication date: 01-07-2010
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Family Violence / Issue 5/2010
Print ISSN: 0885-7482
Electronic ISSN: 1573-2851
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-010-9310-z

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

“I Didn’t Want To Put Them Through That”: The Influence Of Children on Victim Decision-making in Intimate Partner Violence Cases

Abstract

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 5/2010

Does Context Matter in Determining Psychological Abuse? Effects of Pattern, Harm, Relationship, and Norms

Social Structure and Family Homicides

Internal Consistency and Factor Structure of the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales in a Sample of Deaf Female College Students

The Clinical and Adaptive Features of Young Offenders with Histories of Child-Parent Violence

The Prevalence of Domestic Violence Against Women Among a Group Woman: Ankara, Turkey

Is Psychological Abuse Reciprocal in Intimate Relationships? Data from a National Sample of American Adults