Child Protection in Families Experiencing Domestic Violence

by Child Welfare Information Gateway

Domestic violence is a devastating social problem that affects every segment of the population. While system responses are primarily targeted towards adult victims of abuse, increasing attention is now focused on the children who witness domestic violence. Studies estimate that 10 to 20 percent of children are at risk for exposure to domestic violence. Research also indicates children exposed to domestic violence are at an increased risk of being abused or neglected, and that a majority of studies reveal there are adult and child victims in 30 to 60 percent of families who experience domestic violence. This manual provides background ...

Each day, the safety and well-being of children across the Nation are threatened by child abuse and neglect. Many of these children live in homes that are experiencing domestic violence. The child welfare field is working to find effective ways to serve families where this overlap occurs. Intervening effectively in the lives of these children and their families is not the sole responsibility of a single agency or professional group, but rather it is a shared community concern.

The Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series has provided guidance on child protection to hundreds of thousands of multidisciplinary professionals and concerned community members since the late 1970s. The User Manual Series provides a foundation for understanding child maltreatment and the roles and responsibilities of various practitioners in its prevention, identification, investigation, assessment, and treatment. Through the years, the manuals have served as valuable resources for building knowledge, promoting effective practices, and enhancing community collaboration.

Since the last update of the User Manual Series in the early 1990s, a number of changes have occurred that dramatically affect each community's response to child maltreatment. The changing landscape reflects increased recognition of the complexity of issues facing parents and their children, new legislation, practice innovations, and system reform efforts. Significant advances in research have helped shape new directions for interventions, while ongoing evaluations help us to know "what works."

The Office on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) within the Children's Bureau of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), has developed this third edition of the User Manual Series to reflect the increased knowledge base and the evolving state of practice. The updated and new manuals are comprehensive in scope while also succinct in presentation and easy to follow, and they address trends and concerns relevant to today's professional.

The Overlap Between Child Maltreatment and Domestic Violence

Over the past few decades, there has been a growing awareness of the co-occurrence of domestic violence and child maltreatment. Studies report that there are approximately between 750,000 and 2.3 million victims of domestic violence each year. Many of these victims are abused several times, so the number of domestic violence incidents is even greater. According to a national study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, approximately 903,000 children were identified by child protective services (CPS) as victims of abuse or neglect in 2001. Increasingly, service providers and researchers have recognized that some of these adult and child victims are from the same families. Research suggests that in an estimated 30 to 60 percent of the families where either domestic violence or child maltreatment is identified, it is likely that both forms of abuse exist. Studies show that for victims who experience severe forms of domestic violence, their children also are in danger of suffering serious physical harm. In a national survey of over 6,000 American families, researchers found that 50 percent of men who frequently assaulted their wives also abused their children. Other studies demonstrate that perpetrators of domestic violence who were abused as children are more likely to physically harm their children.

The Co-occurence of Child Maltreatment and Domestic Violence

An estimated 3.3 to 10 million children a year are at risk for witnessing or being exposed to domestic violence, which can produce a range of emotional, psychological, and behavioral problems for children. This estimate is derived from an earlier landmark study that found approximately 3 million American households experienced at least one incident of serious violence each year. The broad range of this estimate highlights the fact that the exact number of domestic violence incidents is unknown, and there sometimes is incongruence or a lack of agreement about exactly what constitutes "domestic violence."

One study estimates that as many as 10 million teenagers are exposed to parental violence each year. This estimate comes from a survey in which adults were asked "whether, during their teenage years, their father had hit their mother and how often" and vice versa for the mother. The survey found that about one in eight, 12.6 percent of the sample, recalled such an incident. In these cases, 50 percent remembered their father hitting the mother, 19 percent recalled their mother hitting the father, and 31 percent recalled the parents hitting each other.

These estimates are based on research that identified maltreated children who accompanied victims of domestic violence to shelters and identified adult victims via CPS caseloads. Additionally, research examining the relationship between victims and their own use of violence indicate that they are more likely to perpetrate physical violence against their children than caretakers who are not abused by a partner or spouse. Children who witness domestic violence and are victimized by abuse exhibit more emotional and psychological problems than children who only witness domestic violence.

Current data regarding the co-occurrence between domestic violence and child maltreatment compel child welfare and programs that address domestic violence to re-evaluate their existing philosophies, policies, and practice approaches towards families experiencing both forms of violence. The overlap of these issues may be particularly critical in identifying cases with a high risk of violence, such as the relationship between domestic violence and child fatalities in CPS cases. A review of CPS cases in two States identified domestic violence in approximately 41 to 43 percent of cases resulting in the critical injury or death of a child. A number of protocols and practice guidelines have surfaced over the past decade to provide child welfare and service providers with specific assessment and intervention procedures aimed at enhancing the safety of children and victims of domestic violence.

About the Author

www.childwelfare.gov
Formerly the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information and the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, Child Welfare Information Gateway provides access to information and resources to help protect children and strengthen families. A service of the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.