What do children say about seeking help in situations of gender-based violence? Different perspectives depending on whether they have experienced such situations or not

BACKGROUND

As highlighted in recent studies, children could have a relevant role to play in seeking help in cases of gender-based violence at home, contributing to early detection and empowering them as rights holders and masters of their own lives. Notwithstanding, multiple obstacles to them doing so have been detected.

OBJECTIVE

To find out expectations of help among children, seeking the differences between those who have experienced gender-based violence at home and those who have not, by gender and age.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

3664 schoolchildren from 8 to 18 years old (Meanage = 13.16, girls = 50.7 %, secondary school = 64.6 %, primary school = 35.4 %) in Catalonia (Spain).

METHODS

Quantitative study. Children responded to an on-line questionnaire. Bivariate analysis and binary multiple logistic regression were used.

RESULTS

Children would like to take an active role in seeking help, but were afraid of the consequences and did not know how, or who to ask. Older children and those who had experienced gender-based violence at home were less likely to ask for help (β = -0.66, [-0.99 - -0.34], p < .001 and β = -0.67, [-1.04 - -0.27], p < .001, respectively), and were less trusting of adults.

CONCLUSIONS

In seeking help, children demand safe services, with clearly identifiable helpers available, able to protect them and their family. Training adults they can trust such as teachers is key. Educating children about what gender-based violence is and where they can seek help is also important.

Towards an ecological understanding of readiness to engage with interventions for children exposed to domestic violence and abuse: Systematic review and qualitative synthesis of perspectives of children, parents and practitioners

Children who grow up in homes affected by domestic violence and abuse (DVA) are at risk of poor outcomes across the lifespan, yet there is limited evidence on the acceptability and effectiveness of interventions for them. A recent review of child-focused interventions highlighted a gap in understanding the factors influencing the willingness of parents and children to engage with these programmes. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative evidence on the experiences of receiving and delivering interventions with the aim of identifying factors at different levels of the social-ecological context that may influence parent and child readiness to take up interventions. We searched literature till April 2016 and found 12 reports of eight programmes. Two authors independently screened papers for inclusion, extracted data and identified the first- and second-order constructs. The third-order constructs were derived and fitted to the ecological framework to inform a picture of readiness to engage with interventions. Three key findings emerged from this review: (a) parent and child readiness is influenced by a complex interplay of individual, relationship and organisational factors, highlighting that individual readiness to take up child-focussed interventions must be viewed in an ecological context; (b) the specific process through which women become ready to engage in or facilitate child-focussed interventions may differ from that related to uptake of safety-promoting behaviours and requires parents to be aware of the impact of DVA on children and to focus on children's needs; (c) there are distinct but interlinked processes through which parents and children reach a point of readiness to engage in an interventions aimed at improving child outcomes. We discuss the implications of these findings for both practice and research.

Reporting Maltreatment to Child Protective Services in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence Research

Given the overlap between intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment, IPV-exposed child participants in research might disclose instances of child maltreatment. Such disclosures might require researchers to report the maltreatment to child protective services (CPS). However, the literature provides minimal guidance on how to navigate the complex challenges and ethical dilemmas around reporting in the context of research. To help address this gap and stimulate discussion regarding protocols and policies for reporting child maltreatment, this article presents a CPS reporting protocol developed as part of a community-engaged research project evaluating a parenting intervention for system-involved mothers experiencing IPV.

Measuring Substance Use Among System-Involved IPV Survivors: A Research Note

This research note presents findings from a qualitative study exploring female, system-involved intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors' perspectives on substance use disclosure in the context of research studies. The study sample includes 22 women who completed a court- and/or child protective services (CPS)-mandated IPV parenting program. Analyses revealed three key areas of participants' perspectives on substance use assessment and disclosure: (a) administration setting/format and measurement clarity, (b) administrator characteristics, and (c) repercussions due to breach of confidentiality. Findings from the current study offer insights into barriers for survivors reporting their substance use and suggestions for researchers seeking to assess substance use among this population.

Understanding How Intimate Partner Violence Impacts School Age Children's Internalizing and Externalizing Problem Behaviors: A Secondary Analysis of Hawaii Healthy Start Program Evaluation Data

We examined the role of maternal depression and parenting stress in the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and child internalizing and externalizing problems, and explored whether child gender modified these pathways. This secondary analysis used data from the Hawaii Healthy Start Program. Logistic regression models examined the associations between IPV in 1st grade and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades. Mediation models used bootstrapping methodology and stratified models examined effect modification. Adjusted models with 214 mothers demonstrated associations between IPV and internalizing (adjusted odds ratios (aOR)=2.62; 95% CI 1.11, 6.21) and externalizing (aOR=4.16; 95% CI 1.55, 11.19) behaviors. The association with externalizing behaviors was mediated by maternal depression and parenting stress, while internalizing behaviors was mediated by depression only. Stratified models found the association between IPV and externalizing behaviors was significant for girls only. Our results support the importance of multicomponent maternal IPV interventions.