Abstract
This qualitative synthesis describes the successful coping strategies and service needs of children exposed to family violence using the evidenced based meta-synthesis approach. Social services abstracts, academic search premiere, PubMed, and Google scholar database searches were conducted. 17 studies published between 1991 and 2012 were included in the meta-synthesis. The 17 studies included in the synthesis is not an exhaustive list of studies published on the topic. Findings suggest that social support, resilience, and hope are important factors in helping children successfully cope with exposure to family violence. Child serving agencies can assist children cope with family violence by developing programs that include family mentors, increase children’s knowledge about available services, and encourage children to tell someone about their experiences. Child welfare practice and policy recommendations are provided by the author.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
*Anderson, K. M., & Danis, F. S. (2006). Adult daughters of battered women, resistance and resilience in the face of danger. Affilia, 21(4), 419–432. doi:10.1177/0886109906292130.
Annells, M. (2005). Guest editorial: A qualitative quandary: Alternative representations and meta-synthesis. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 14(5), 535–536.
*Aymer, S. R. (2008). Adolescent males coping responses to domestic violence: A qualitative study. Children and Youth Services Review, 30(6), 654–664. doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2008.01.011.
*Bagshaw, D. (2007). Reshaping responses to children when parents are separating: Hearing childrens voices in the transition. Australian Social Work, 60(4), 450–465. doi:10.1080/03124070701671164.
Baldry, A. C. (2007). “It does affect me:” Disruptive behaviors in preadolescents directly and indirectly abused at home. European Psychologist, 12(1), 29–35. doi:10.1027/1016-9040.12.1.29.
Bayarri, E., Ezpeleta, L., & Granero, R. (2011). Exposure to intimate partner violence, psychopathology, and functional impairment in children and adolescents: Moderator effect of sex and age. Journal of Family Violence, 26(7), 535–543. doi:10.1007/s10896-011-9390-4.
*Bennett, L. L. (1991). Adolescent girls experience of witnessing marital violence: A phenomenological study. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16(4), 431–438.
Benzies, K., & Mychasiuk, R. (2009). Fostering family resiliency: A review of the key protective factors. Child & Family Social Work, 14(1), 103–114. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2206.2008.00586.x.
*Buckley, H., Holt, S., & Whelan, S. (2007). Listen to me! Children’s experiences of domestic violence. Child Abuse Review, 16(5), 296–310. doi:10.1002/car.995.
Carlson, B. E. (1984). Children’s observations of interpersonal violence. In A. R. Roberts (Ed.), Battered women and their families (pp. 147–167). New York: Springer.
Chen, Y. Y., & Contrada, R. J. (2007). Religious involvement and perceived social support: Interactive effects on cardiovascular reactivity to laboratory stressors. Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research, 12(1), 1–12. doi:10.1111/j.1751-9861.2007.00010.x.
Clarke, S. N. (2006). Strictly liable: Governmental use of the parent–child relationship as a basis for holding victims liable for their child’s witness to domestic violence. Family Court Review, 44(1), 149–163. doi:10.1111/j.1744-1617.2006.00073.x.
Cohen, S. (2004). Social relationships and health. American Psychologist, 59(8), 676–684. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.59.8.676.
Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310–357. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.310.
D’Ambrosio, Z. (2008). Advocating for comprehensive assessments in domestic violence cases. Family Court Review, 46(4), 654–669. doi:10.1111/j.1744-1617.2008.00230.x.
Devaney, J. (2009). Children’s exposure to domestic violence: Holding men to account. The Political Quarterly, 80(4), 569–574.
Edleson, J. L. (1999). Children’s witnessing of adult domestic violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 14(8), 839–870.
*Ericksen, J. R., & Henderson, A. D. (1992). Witnessing family violence: The children’s experience. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 17(10), 1200–1209. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2648.1992.tb01836.x.
Finkelstein, N., Rechberger, E., Russell, L. A., VanDeMark, N. R., Noether, C. D., O’Keefe, M., et al. (2005). Building resilience in children of mothers who have co-occurring disorders and histories of violence: Intervention model and implementation issues. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 32(2), 141–154.
Fletcher, K. E. (2003). Childhood posttraumatic stress disorder. In E. J. Mash & R. A. Barkley (Eds.), Child psychopathology (2nd ed., pp. 310–371). New York: Guilford Press.
Fowler, D. N., & Chanmugam, A. (2007). A critical review of quantitative analyses of children exposed to domestic violence: Lessons for practice and research. Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention, 7(4), 322–344. doi:10.1093/brief-treatment/mhm019.
*Goldblatt, H. (2008). Strategies of coping among adolescents experiencing interparental violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18(5), 532–552.
*Gonzales, G., Chronister, K. M., Linville, D., & Knoble, N. B. (2012). Experiencing parental violence: A qualitative examination of adult men’s resilience. Psychology of Violence, 2(1), 90–103. doi:10.1037/a0026372.
Guille, L. (2004). Men who batter and their children: An integrated review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 9(2), 129–163.
Hackney, C. H., & Sanders, G. S. (2003). Religiosity and mental health: A meta-analysis of recent studies. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 42(1), 43–55. doi:10.2307/1387984.
*Hague, G., Malos, E., Mullender, A., Kelly, L., & Imam, U. (2002). Children’s coping strategies and domestic violence: Community practitioner. The Journal of the Community Practitioner and Health Visitors’ Association, 75(5), 180–183.
Hill, P. C., & Butter, E. M. (1995). The role of religion in promoting physical health. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 14(2), 141–155.
Hines, L. (2013). The treatment views and recommendations of substance abusing women: A meta-synthesis. Qualitative Social Work, 12(4), 473–489. doi:10.1177/1473325011432776.
Holden, G. W. (2003). Children exposed to domestic violence and child abuse: Terminology and taxonomy. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6(3), 151–160. doi:10.1023/A:1024906315255.
Hopper, E. K., Bassuk, E. L., & Olivet, J. (2010). Shelter from the storm: Trauma informed care in homelessness services settings. The Open Health Services and Policy Journal, 3, 80–100.
Howell, K. H., Graham-Bermann, S., Czyz, E., & Lilly, M. (2010). Assessing resilience in preschool children exposed to intimate partner violence. Violence and Victims, 25(2), 150–164.
Huculak, S., & McLennan, J. (2010). “The Lord is my Shepherd”: Examining spirituality as a protection against mental health problems in youth exposed to violence in Brazil. Mental Health, Religion, & Culture, 13(5), 467–484. doi:10.1080/13674670903406096.
*Humphreys, J. C. (2001a). Growing up in a violent home: The lived experience of daughters of battered women. Journal of Family Nursing, 7(3), 244–260. doi:10.1177/107484070100700303.
*Humphreys, J. C. (2001b). Turnings and adaptations in resilient daughters of battered women. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 33(3), 245–51.
*Joseph, S., Govender, K., & Bhagwanjee, A. (2006). “I can’t see him hit her again, I just want to run away hide and block my ears”: A phenomenological analysis of a sample of children’s coping responses to exposure to domestic violence. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 6(4), 23–45. doi:10.1300/J135v06n04_02.
Kitzmann, K. M., Gaylord, N. K., Holt, A. R., & Kenny, E. D. (2003). Child witnesses to domestic violence: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 71(2), 339–352. doi:10.1037/0022-006X.71.2.339.
Kliewer, W. W., Fearnow, M. D. M., & Miller, P. A. P. (1996). Coping socialization in middle childhood: Tests of maternal and paternal influences. Child Development, 67(5), 2339–2357.
Kliewer, W., & Lewis, H. (1995). Family influences on coping processes in children and adolescents with sickle cell disease. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 20(4), 511–525. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/20.4.511.
Kliewer, W., Parrish, K. A., Taylor, K. W., Jackson, K., Walker, J. M., & Shivy, V. A. (2006). Socialization of coping with community violence: Influences of caregiver coaching, modeling, and family context. Child Development, 77(3), 605–623. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00893.x.
Lang, J. M., & Stover, C. S. (2008). Symptom patterns among youth exposed to intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Violence, 23(7), 619–629. doi:10.1007/s10896-008-9184-5.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Coping and adaptation. In W. D. Gentry (Ed.), The handbook of behavioral medicine (pp. 282–325). New York: Guilford Press.
Levendosky, A. A., Bogat, G. A., & von Eye, A. (2007). New directions for research on intimate partner violence and children. European Psychologist, 12(1), 1–5. doi:10.1027/1016-9040.12.1.1.
Martin, S. G. (2002). Children exposed to domestic violence: Psychological considerations for health care practitioners. Holistic Nursing Practice, 16(3), 7–15.
McDonald, R., Jouriles, E. N., & Skopp, N. A. (2006). Reducing conduct problems among children brought to women’s shelters: Intervention effects 24 months following termination of services. Journal of Family Psychology, 20(1), 127–136. doi:10.1037/0893-3200.20.1.127.
McGee, C. (1997). Children’s experiences of domestic violence. Child & Family Social Work, 2(1), 13–23. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2206.1997.00037.x.
Meadows-Oliver, M. (2006). Homeless adolescent mothers: A meta-synthesis of their life experiences. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 21(5), 340–349. doi:10.1016/j.pedn.2006.02.004.
Miller, P. A., Kliewer, W., Hepworth, J. T., & Sandler, I. N. (1994). Maternal socialization of children’s post-divorce coping: Development of a measurement model. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 15(3), 457–487. doi:10.1016/0193-3973(94)90042-6.
Miller, P. A., Kliewer, W., & Partch, J. (2009). Socialization of children’s recall and use of strategies for coping with interparental conflict. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 19(4), 429–443.
*Mullender, A., Hague, G., Imam, U., Kelly, L., Malos, E., & Regan, L. (2002). Children’s perspectives on domestic violence. London: Sage Publications.
Nicolotti, L., El-Sheikh, M., & Whitson, S. M. (2003). Children’s coping with marital conflict and their adjustment and physical health: Vulnerability and protective functions. Journal of Family Psychology, 17(3), 315–326. doi:10.1037/0893-3200.17.3.315.
Noblit, G. W., & Hare, R. D. (1988). Meta ethnography: Synthesizing qualitative studies. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
O’Brien, M., Margolin, G., & John, R. S. (1995). Relation among marital conflict, child coping, and child adjustment. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 24(3), 346–361. doi:10.1207/s15374424jccp2403_12.
Osofsky, J. D. (2003). Prevalence of children’s exposure to domestic violence and child maltreatment: Implications for prevention and intervention. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 6(3), 161–170. doi:10.1023/A:1024958332093.
Øverlien, C. (2010). Children exposed to domestic violence: Conclusions from the literature and challenges ahead. Journal of Social Work, 10(1), 80–97. doi:10.1177/1468017309350663.
Owen, A. E., Thompson, M. P., Shaffer, A., Jackson, E. B., & Kaslow, N. J. (2009). Family variables that mediate the relation between intimate partner violence (IPV) and child adjustment. Journal of Family Violence, 24(7), 433–445. doi:10.1007/s10896-009-9239-2.
Panniers, T. L. (2006). Teaching meta synthesis: Summarizing qualitative research. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
*Parker, B., Steeves, R., Anderson, S., & Moran, B. (2004). Uxoricide: A phenomenological study of adult survivors. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 25(2), 133–145. doi:10.1080/01612840490268144.
*Peled, E. (1998). The experience of living with violence for preadolescent children of battered women. Youth & Society, 29(4), 395–430. doi:10.1177/0044118X98029004001.
Perry, B. (2009). Examining child maltreatment through a neurodevelopmental lens: Clinical applications of the neurosequential model of therapeutics. Journal of Loss & Trauma, 14(4), 240–255. doi:10.1080/15325020903004350.
Philippe, F. L., Laventure, S., Beaulieu-Pelletier, G., Lecours, S., & Lekes, N. (2011). Ego-resiliency as a mediator between childhood trauma and psychological symptoms. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 30(6), 583–598. doi:10.1521/jscp.2011.30.6.583.
Radovanovic, H. (1993). Parental conflict and children’s coping styles in litigating separated families: Relationships with children’s adjustment. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 21(6), 697–713.
Rice, M. J. (2008). Qualitative meta-synthesis. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 14(5), 382–385. doi:10.1177/1078390308326661.
Riesen, Y., & Porath, M. (2004). Perceived social support of maritally abused women and their children’s global self-worth. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health, 23(2), 109–115.
Seybold, K. S., & Hill, P. C. (2001). The role of religion and spirituality in mental and physical health. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10(1), 21–24. doi:10.1111/1467-8721.00106.
Skinner, E. A., & Zimmer-Gembeck, M. (2007). The development of coping. Annual Review of Psychology, 58, 119–144.
Snyder, C. R., & Harris, C. (1991). The will and the ways: Development and validation of an individual-differences measure of hope. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60(4), 570.
Sullivan, C. M., Bybee, D. I., & Allen, N. E. (2002). Findings from a community-based program for battered women and their children. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17(9), 915–936.
*Suzuki, S. L., Geffner, R., & Bucky, S. F. (2008). In R. Geffner, D. Griffin & J. Lewis (Eds.), The experiences of adults exposed to intimate partner violence as children: An exploratory qualitative study of resilience and protective factors. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group.
United States Department of Health and Human Services. (2006). What is resilience? Retrieved Jan 11, 2012 from http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/road-resilience.aspx.
*Velleman, R., Templeton, L., Reuber, D., Klein, M., & Moesgen, D. (2008). Domestic abuse experienced by young people living in families with alcohol problems: Results from a cross-European study. Child Abuse Review, 17(6), 387–409. doi:10.1002/car.1047.
Yick, A. (2008). A metasynthesis of qualitative findings on the role of spirituality and religiousity among culturally diverse domestic violence survivors. Qualitative Health Research, 18, 1296–1306. doi:10.1177/1049732308321772.
Zimmer, L. L. (2006). Qualitative meta synthesis: A question of dialoguing with texts. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 53(3), 311–318.
Zink, T., Kamine, D., Musk, L., & Sill, M. (2004). What are providers reporting requirements for children who witness domestic violence? Clinical Pediatrics, 43(5), 449–460.
Zink, T., Siegel, R., Chen, L., & Levin, L. (2005). Physician knowledge and management of children exposed to domestic violence in Ohio: A comparison of pediatricians and family physicians. Clinical Pediatrics, 44(3), 211–219.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hines, L. Children’s Coping with Family Violence: Policy and Service Recommendations. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 32, 109–119 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-014-0333-9
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-014-0333-9