Children exposed to intimate partner violence: impact assessment and guidelines for intervention

Abstract

In recent years there have been significant changes in the system of protection of children and adolescents in Spain. One of the most important changes that has affected intimate partner violence (IPV) is the category of victims, which includes children who have been exposed to situations of gender-based violence among their parents. This study aims to analyze the impact that exposure to gender violence can have in children’s psychological development, specifically in the emotional and social areas. We recruited 132 children whose mean age was 9.54 years (SD = 2.18), 47.7% were girls. Of this sample, 66 participants reported being exposed to situations of gender violence and the rest had not been exposed. Psychological adjustment was assessed through the self-reported version of the Child and Adolescent Behavior Assessment System (BASC-S2). The results indicated that children who have been exposed to gender violence have higher scores on psychosocial disorders compared to children from non-violent families. In global terms, the results showed that children exposed to violence show greater adaptive and emotional difficulties. A reflection on the identified needs and their implications for evaluation and intervention is presented.