Abstract
Although childhood violence by any person is negative for children, little is known about whether violence by different family members is linked differently to problems in young adulthood, as family relationships might play different roles in children’s individual development. In this study, we examine parent and sibling violence and associations with emotional and behavioral problems, directly and indirectly via peer victimization. We used retrospective reports from 347 young adults (aged 20–24) who all reported childhood family physical violence, and we performed a path analysis using Mplus. The results showed that participants who had been victimized by a sibling only or by both a sibling and parent were more likely to report peer victimization than were participants who had been victimized by parents only. Peer victimization was, in turn, linked to more aggression, criminality, and anxiety. Theoretical and clinical implications of these results are discussed.
Highlights
A majority of childhood physical violence takes place within the family in which both siblings and parents may serve as potential perpetrators (Espelage et al 2014)
Is the association between family physical violence on the one hand and emotional and behavioral problems on the other hand mediated by an increased risk of peer victimization? Second, do parent and sibling violence have different associations with peer victimization, and emotional and behavioral problems in young adulthood? We answer these research questions using a sample of young adults reporting on their childhood experiences of family and peer victimization, as well as their emotional and behavioral problems in young adulthood
We present zero-order correlations for all study variables. Both family violence variables were significantly correlated with peer victimization
Summary
A majority of childhood physical violence takes place within the family in which both siblings and parents may serve as potential perpetrators (Espelage et al 2014). Violence within the family may Bteach^ children to be submissive and signal weakness in other relationships and potentially increase the risk of being victimized in other settings, such as by peers (Tippett and Wolke 2015; Tucker et al 2014). Previous research on family violence has mainly focused on parent to child violence, overlooking victimization by other family members, such as siblings, which might influence both peer relations, and children’s behaviors and development. We seek to expand this area of research and break down the associations between being victimized of physical violence by parent, sibling, and peer on the one hand, and emotional and behavior problems in young adulthood on the other hand
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