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Cited by 1,489Intimate Partner and Family ViolenceChild Abuse and TraumaChild Welfare and Adoption

The impact of exposure to domestic violence on children and young people: A review of the literature

Holt, Stephanie, Buckley, Helen, Whelan, Sadhbh·2008·Child Abuse & Neglect
DOI 10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.02.004
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Abstract

Objective This article reviews the literature concerning the impact of exposure to domestic violence on the health and developmental well-being of children and young people. Impact is explored across four separate yet inter-related domains (domestic violence exposure and child abuse; impact on parental capacity; impact on child and adolescent development; and exposure to additional adversities), with potential outcomes and key messages concerning best practice responses to children's needs highlighted.Method A comprehensive search of identified databases was conducted within an 11-year framework (1995-2006). This yielded a vast literature which was selectively organized and analyzed according to the four domains identified above.Results This review finds that children and adolescents living with domestic violence are at increased risk of experiencing emotional, physical and sexual abuse, of developing emotional and behavioral problems and of increased exposure to the presence of other adversities in their lives. It also highlights a range of protective factors that can mitigate against this impact, in particular a strong relationship with and attachment to a caring adult, usually the mother.Conclusion Children and young people may be significantly affected by living with domestic violence, and impact can endure even after measures have been taken to secure their safety. It also concludes that there is rarely a direct causal pathway leading to a particular outcome and that children are active in constructing their own social world. Implications for interventions suggest that timely, appropriate and individually tailored responses need to build on the resilient blocks in the child's life.Practice implications This study illustrate the links between exposure to domestic violence, various forms of child abuse and other related adversities, concluding that such exposure may have a differential yet potentially deleterious impact for children and young people. From a resilient perspective this review also highlights range of protective factors that influence the extent of the impact of exposure and the subsequent outcomes for the child. This review advocates for a holistic and child-centered approach to service delivery, derived from an informed assessment, designed to capture a picture of the individual child's experience, and responsive to their individual needs.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.02.004

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  • Youths' relationships with their mothers or peers may mediate the effects of exposure to domestic violence.

    “Youths' relationships with their mothers or peers may mediate the effects of the domestic violence exposure (Camacho et al., 2012; Holt et al., 2008; Johnson & Lieberman, 2007; Owen et al., 2008).”

    From A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF EXPOSURE TO INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (2014) · cites this paper as Holt et al., 2008

  • Associations between IPV exposure and negative outcomes persist into a child's adolescence and adulthood.

    “Such associations between IPV exposure and negative outcomes persist into a child's adolescence and adulthood”

    From A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF EXPOSURE TO INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (2014) · cites this paper as Holt et al., 2008

  • Although there have been more than three decades of research on children's exposure to domestic violence, it is only within the last decade or so that we have begun to acknowledge that children are dynamic in their efforts to make sense of their experiences while navigating the complexity and terror intrinsic to domestic violence.

    “although we have more than three decades of research on the scope and consequences of children's exposure to domestic violence it is only within the last decade or so, that we have begun to acknowledge that children are indeed 'dynamic in their efforts to make sense of their experiences while navigating their way around the complexity and terror intrinsic to domestic violence' (p. 798).”

    From A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF EXPOSURE TO INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (2014) · cites this paper as Holt et al. (2008)

  • Children are not just passive recipients of experience; they also interpret their experiences and use their interpretations to draw conclusions about self, others, and the world.

    “Holt et al. underline the fact that children are not just passive recipients of experience recipients who merely replicate and reproduce what they see, hear, taste, touch, and feel; they also interpret their experiences and use their interpretations to draw conclusions about self, others, and the world.”

    From A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF EXPOSURE TO INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (2014) · cites this paper as Holt et al. (2008)

  • Holt et al.'s review of 143 peer-reviewed articles focused specifically on studies that examined children and young people's outcomes through reports, surveys, and other measures that directly involved these children and youth rather than eliciting views of parents, shelter workers, and other professionals, which lends particular significance to the review.

    “This review, which also included research that was previously analyzed (for example, Kitzmann et al., 2003; Wolfe et al., 2003), focused specifically on those studies that examined children and young people's outcomes through reports, surveys, and other measures that directly involved these children and youth rather than eliciting the views of their parents, shelter workers, and other”

    From A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF EXPOSURE TO INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (2014) · cites this paper as Holt et al. (2008)

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Authors
Holt, S., Buckley, H., & Whelan, S.
Affiliations
Trinity College Dublin (IE)
Corresponding author
Holt, Stephanie
ORCID
Holt, Stephanie
Venue
Child Abuse & Neglect
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-08
Volume
32
Issue
8
Pages
797-810
ISSN
0145-2134 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.02.004
OpenAlex
W2006929969
Cited by
1,489
References
141
Citations by year
2026: 67 · 2025: 79 · 2024: 94 · 2023: 73 · 2022: 113 · 2021: 105 · 2020: 79 · 2019: 130 · 2018: 110 · 2017: 101 · 2016: 103 · 2015: 102 · 2014: 83 · 2013: 87 · 2012: 66
FWCI
33.77
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
Locations
  • Child Abuse & Neglect (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Health Research Board
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Health › Intimate Partner and Family Violence
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
  • Social Sciences › Safety Research › Child Welfare and Adoption
Keywords
domestic violence exposure, children exposed to domestic violence, child abuse, child development, adolescent development, parenting capacity, emotional and behavioral problems, protective factors, resilience, child-centered intervention, child welfare services
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Child, Child Abuse, Child Behavior Disorders, Child Development, Family Characteristics, Female, Health Status, Humans, Life Change Events, Male, Socioeconomic Factors, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Violence, Domestic Violence, Crime Victims, Adolescent Development, Resilience, Psychological

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