The Trauma from the perspective of mothers of juvenile victims of family violence

Abstract

Introduction: A child exposed to violent events may go on to develop health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). One of the stressful events that can cause PTSD is family violence. Objective: To describe traumatic events, and to identify the frequency of PSTD and the symptoms in juvenile victims of violence from the perspective of their mothers and stepmothers. Method: The Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Aged-Children Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL) clinical interview was used with the caregivers and children and semi-structured interviews were conducted only with the caregivers. The data from the K-SADS-PL clinical interview were organised in Microsoft Excel. For the analysis of the semi-structured interview data, Atlas/Ti 5.0 software was used. Results: In total, 20 subjects participated, including 10 children between six and twelve years of age and 10 caregivers. The family composition that predominated was blended and the type of violence was psychological. Of the 10 children who participated in the survey, three were diagnosed with PTSD and four of them showed symptoms, but did not meet all the diagnostic criteria for the disorder. The most common traumatic events experienced by the children were physical abuse, witnessing domestic violence and experiencing trauma. It was found in the semi-structured interviews that trauma, from the perspective of the caregivers, was caused by losses and violence to which the children were exposed. The psychological, behavioural and cognitive symptoms manifested as a result of the traumatic event. In this situation, caregivers looked for support from reference people. Conclusion: These findings suggest that it is urgent to think of strategies to prevent violence and to perform additional research on PTSD and violence in mental health services.